Bill preventing children from ‘doom scrolling’ to get govt backing – but plan watered down
A Labour MP’s bill to prevent children from “doom scrolling” on social media is expected to get government backing today, after its proposals were watered down.
Josh MacAlister, a former teacher, has been campaigning for tighter limits on younger teenagers spending hours a week on apps such as TikTok and Snapchat.
He told Sky News that today’s bill, which will be debated by MPs, was a “meaningful first step” towards making children safer online and hoped it would be “just the start” of government action on the issue.
The MP had originally called for a smartphone ban in schools, tougher action by Ofcom and raising the “digital age of consent” at which children can use most social media to 16.
But in the face of ministerial opposition, his bill now just calls for chief medical officers to review the evidence on screen-based harms – which was last looked at in 2019 – within a year.
File pic: PA
When that review is complete, the government must decide whether there is a case to raise the age at which children can use social media from the current age of 13.
Mr MacAlister said: “We’ve managed to persuade lots of MPs and make a big noise about this issue, which is that for too many children, smartphones and social media are really addictive and taking a lot of their time and attention.
“That issue for too long hasn’t been debated in parliament. My private members’ bill will get the government to come back within a year on the question of raising the age of digital consent, and that would be a really important step forward in this campaign to make sure that parliament takes these issues seriously.
“We chose 13 a long, long time ago. Is that right? You know, in Norway it’s 15. In France it’s 15. I’m asking them to consider, ‘should we be setting it at a higher age?’
“Different countries are trying different things out, but they all start with the same common problem, which is kids spending lots of time online that they used to spend in real life outdoors, doing things with their friends.”
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From December: Government cracks down on social media
Charities urge minister to back bill
Asked if he was disappointed that ministers had not been willing to go further, he said: “This is just the start. If you look back at previous debates about smoking or car seatbelts, often it was dozens of pieces of legislation that led to the conclusion.”
Mr MacAlister, the MP for Whitehaven and Workington, will tell MPs that changing the age at which a child can consent for their data to be shared online to 16 would give parents more control, and force platforms to enforce more rigorous age verification.
A minister will respond to the plans, which have attracted cross-party support. It’s expected that the government will agree to take the proposals further.
Ten children’s charities, including Barnardo’s and the NSPCC, have written to Peter Kyle urging him to support the bill, saying that the online world poses “significant risks to children” and that “current legislation does not go far enough” in restricting screen time.
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It’s understood that the tech secretary wanted to make sure the Online Safety Act, which was passed by MPs in 2023 and is being implemented in stages this year, is completed first. It intends to protect young people from illegal and harmful content.
The government has opposed a smartphone ban in schools, saying this should be up to headteachers.
Today, the most extensive polling of young people aged 16-24 shows that 62% of this age group say social media does more harm than good, both men and women.
Only 22% of the 2,000 young adults polled by the company More in Common think it does more good than harm.
Four in five of this age group also say they would try to keep their own children off social media for as long as possible.
Half of this generation, who grew up with smartphones, agree they spent too much time on their phones and social media during childhood.
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‘This isn’t just parents’
Anna McShane, director of The New Britain Project, which commissioned the polling, said: “This isn’t just parents worrying about their kids, young people themselves are saying social media has become more addictive, more negative, and more harmful.
“They’ve grown up with it, and now they’re warning us about its dangers.”
A Department for Technology spokesperson added: “We are committed to keeping young people safe online whilst also ensuring they can benefit from the latest technology.
“By the summer, robust new protections for children will be in force through the Online Safety Act to protect them from harmful content and ensure they have an age-appropriate experience online.
“The government’s response to the private members’ bill will follow during second reading of the bill, as per parliamentary process.”
Over $4 trillion worth of real estate could be tokenized on blockchain networks during the next decade, potentially offering investors greater access to property ownership opportunities, according to a new report.
The Deloitte Center for Financial Services predicts that over $4 trillion worth of real estate may be tokenized by 2035, up from less than $300 billion in 2024. The report, published April 24, estimates a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of more than 27%.
The $4 trillion of tokenized property is predicted to stem from the benefits of blockchain-based assets, as well as a structural shift across real estate and property ownership.
“Real estate itself is undergoing transformation. Post-pandemic work-from-home trends, climate risk, and digitization have reshaped property fundamentals,” according to Chris Yin, co-founder of Plume Network, a blockchain built for real-world assets (RWAs).
“Office buildings are being repurposed into AI data centers, logistics hubs and energy-efficient residential communities,” Yin told Cointelegraph.
“Investors want targeted access to these modern use cases, and tokenization enables programmable, customizable exposure to such evolving asset profiles,” he said.
Related: Blockchain needs regulation, scalability to close AI hiring gap
The uncertainty triggered by US President Donald Trump’s import tariffs has boosted investor interest in the RWA tokenization sector, which involves minting financial products and tangible assets on a blockchain.
Both stablecoins and RWAs have attracted significant capital as safe-haven assets amid the global trade concerns, Juan Pellicer, senior research analyst at IntoTheBlock, told Cointelegraph.
The tariff concerns also led tokenized gold volume to surpass $1 billion in trading volume on April 10, its highest level since March 2023 when a US banking crisis saw the sudden collapse of Silicon Valley Bank and the voluntary liquidation of Silvergate Bank
Related: US banks are ‘free to begin supporting Bitcoin’ — Michael Saylor
Blockchain innovation could drive regulatory clarity
Growing RWA adoption may inspire a more welcoming stance from global regulators, Yin said.
“While regulation is a hurdle, regulation follows usage,” he explained, likening tokenization to Uber’s growth before widespread regulatory acceptance:
“Tokenization is similar — as demand increases, regulatory clarity will follow.”
He added that making tokenized products compliant with a wide range of international regulations is key to unlocking broader market access.
However, some industry watchers are skeptical about the benefits introduced by tokenized real estate.
“I don’t think tokenization should have its eyes directly set on real estate,” said Securitize chief operating officer Michael Sonnenshein at Paris Blockchain Week 2025.
“I’m sure there are all kinds of efficiencies that can be unlocked using blockchain technology to eliminate middlemen, escrow, and all kinds of things in real estate. But I think today, what the onchain economy is demanding are more liquid assets,” he added.
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United States Senator Cynthia Lummis suggests the crypto industry may be celebrating too soon over the US Federal Reserve softening its crypto guidance for banks.
“The Fed withdrawing crypto guidance is just noise, not real progress,” Lummis said in an April 25 X post. Lummis called the Fed’s April 24 announcement — withdrawing its 2022 supervisory letter that had discouraged banks from engaging with crypto and stablecoin activities — “just lip service.”
Lummis’ tone was different from the rest of the crypto industry
Lummis, a pro-crypto advocate known for introducing the Bitcoin (BTC) Strategic Reserve Bill in July 2024, pointed out several flaws in the Fed’s announcement, even as Strategy founder Michael Saylor and crypto entrepreneur Anthony Pompliano suggested it was a step forward for banks and crypto.
She argued that the Fed continues to “illegally flout the law on master accounts” and still relies on reputational risk in its bank supervision practices. It comes as the Federal Insurance Deposit Corporation (FDIC) is working on a rule to stop examiners from considering reputational risk when reviewing a bank’s operations, according to a recent Bloomberg report.
Lummis also highlighted the Fed’s policy statement in Section 9(13), which hasn’t been withdrawn, stating that Bitcoin and digital assets are considered “unsafe and unsound.”
She also reiterated many of the same staff behind Operation Chokepoint 2.0 are still involved in crypto policy today.
“We are NOT fooled. The Fed assassinated companies within the industry and hurt American interests by stifling innovation and shuttering businesses. This fight is far from over.”
“I will continue to hold the Fed accountable until the digital asset industry gets more than a life jacket, Chair Powell — they need a fair shake,” Lummis said.
Related: If Trump fired Powell, what would happen to crypto?
Custodia Bank founder and CEO Caitlin Long seemed to share a similar view to Lummis.
“THANK YOU for seeing this for what it is,” Long said.
However, many crypto executives praised the Fed’s announcement as a positive development for the industry. Saylor said in an April 25 X post that the Fed’s move means that “banks are now free to begin supporting Bitcoin.”
Anastasija Plotnikova, co-founder and CEO of blockchain regulatory firm Fideum, said the Fed’s decision “is a significant development, as it will simplify the path to institutional adoption.”
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In one of his first appearances as the recently sworn-in chair of the US Securities and Exchange Commission, Paul Atkins delivered remarks to the agency’s third roundtable discussion of crypto regulation.
In the “Know Your Custodian” roundtable event on April 25, Atkins said he expected “huge benefits” from blockchain technology through efficiency, risk mitigation, transparency, and cutting costs. He reiterated that among his goals at the SEC would be to facilitate “clear regulatory rules of the road” for digital assets, hinting that the agency under former chair Gary Gensler had contributed to market and regulatory uncertainty.
“I look forward to engaging with market participants and working with colleagues in President Trump’s administration and Congress to establish a rational fit-for-purpose framework for crypto assets,” said Atkins.
Some critics of US President Donald Trump see Atkins’ nomination to lead the SEC as a nod to the crypto industry, acting on campaign promises to remove Gensler — the former chair resigned the day Trump took office — and cut back on regulation. Democratic lawmakers on the Senate Banking Committee questioned Atkins on his ties to the industry, potentially presenting conflicts of interest in his role regulating crypto.
Related: Atkins SEC era sparks massive industry optimism, crypto execs speak out
The direction of the SEC under new leadership
“We’ve noticed that we don’t have to be as concerned […] about being accused of things that we’re not doing, like being broker-dealers for securities,” Exodus chief legal officer Veronica McGregor, who participated in the roundtable, told Cointelegraph on April 24.”It’s just a less scary regulatory environment in general. It is, however, still unclear what the ultimate regs are going to look like for crypto.”
The SEC crypto task force is scheduled to hold two more roundtables in May and June to discuss tokenization and decentralized finance, respectively. Commissioner Hester Peirce, who leads the task force, told Cointelegraph in March that she welcomed the opportunity to work with Atkins to “reorient the agency,” hinting at an SEC with regulations more favorable to the crypto industry.
In addition to the roundtables, the crypto task force has reported several meetings with digital asset firms to discuss various policies and considerations in developing a regulatory framework.
Magazine: SEC’s U-turn on crypto leaves key questions unanswered
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