Teenagers will ‘inevitably’ find ways to keep using social media, ministers have admitted – as Keir Starmer was accused of rushing through a ban to secure a legacy before he is ousted.

In a major U-turn, the Prime Minister said he would bring in a ban on social media for under-16s, just six months after saying he was ‘personally’ opposed to the idea.

Surveys show 90 per cent of parents back the idea of a ban and the Prime Minister described the move as a ‘watershed moment’.

But ministers were unable to say how the new age verification will work – and officials admit they have not even finished assessing a pilot scheme.

Technology secretary Liz Kendall told MPs it was ‘inevitable’ that many children ‘will try and succeed in getting around a ban’.

She insisted it was still worth pursuing, saying that the ban was ‘as much about helping future generations and resetting social norms as it is about young people today’.

Ian Russell - the father of 14-year-old Molly Russell who took her own life in 2017 after viewing online content about suicide and self-harm - told ITV's Good Morning Britain: 'I can't help but think that this is just a rush job when it's come to online safety.'

Mr Russell had previously warned it would be 'deplorable' if the process of introducing new social media restrictions had been sped up for political reasons, with Sir Keir under huge pressure to introduce a ban from Labour MPs.

The Molly Rose Foundation warned that a ban would be ‘unenforceable’ and said the Prime Minister had chosen ‘not to follow the evidence but take the politically expedient option instead’.

The proposed ban follows a similar crackdown in Australia, which has had mixed results so far. Under-16s face being banned from most of the main social media sites, including Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube and X.

Under-18s will be barred from using so-called using ‘romantic companion’ chatbots – also known as AI girlfriends. And adults will be prevented from using online games to contact and groom children.

Ms Kendall told MPs she was ‘strongly minded’ to also impose late-night curfews on the use of social media by 16 and 17-year-olds and to place restrictions on their devices to prevent ‘infinite scrolling’.

Technology firms face potential fines of up to 10 per cent of turnover for breaching the new rules. But there will be no penalties for parents or children.

Social media firms claimed that the plans would backfire and leave many youngsters isolated from their peers.

X owner Elon Musk said Labour was turning the UK into a ‘police state’. He claimed that age verification would also force adults to hand over data to the state.

‘This censorship law is a wolf in sheep’s clothing,’ he wrote on X. ‘The real goal is to enable the UK government to track everyone.’

Sir Keir has opposed a ban for months and three times ordered his MPs to vote down opposition proposals for Australian-style restrictions.

But his position has softened in recent weeks as he casts around for eye-catching initiatives that could improve his popularity and serve as a legacy if he is ousted by Andy Burnham in the coming weeks.

Sir Keir insisted he had always been ‘open minded’ about a ban and said he had been swayed by conversations with bereaved parents who believe social media contributed to their children’s deaths.

Setting out his concerns at a press conference in No 10, he said social media was ‘designed to be addictive.

He added: ‘Social media is making children unhappy. It’s making it easier for bullies to harass and abuse them. And it could even be harming their mental health - exposing them to content that is dangerous, because that’s what grabs the attention.’

But shadow technology secretary Julia Lopez said the speed of Sir Keir’s U-turn had ‘left officials’ heads spinning.

She accused the PM of ‘announcing something as a legacy project that six months ago he said he was personally opposed to’.

The Conservatives have been calling for a ban since last year, but Ms Lopez warned that much of the detail is still missing.

Officials admit they do not know exactly how they will ask the social media sites to assess the age of youngsters. They also cannot say how they will prevent youngsters using Virtual Private Network (VPN) technology to sidestep any ban.

Ellen Roome, whose son Jools Sweeney was 14 when he took his own life in 2022 in an incident she believes could have been linked to an online challenge gone wrong said it was ‘heart-breaking’ that the change had come ‘too late’ for bereaved parents.

But she said campaigners were ‘“desperately trying to make a difference for the rest of the children in the UK’.

Esther Ghey, who has been campaigning for the ban since her 16-year-old daughter Brianna was murdered in February 2023, told the Daily Mail she would be 'celebrating quietly' but stressed children would need support navigating the changes.

‘The fact that 90 per cent of parents want to raise the age of social media to 16 absolutely proves what I have been saying all along, and I'm so grateful to all these parents for taking part in the consultation, they have been instrumental in creating change,’ she said

'When these changes happen, schools, youth organisations and families will need to work together to support young people through that transition.

'Some children may find it difficult at first, and they will need understanding, guidance and alternative ways to socialise.’