David Chadwick says it has been “very distressing” to hear from children the kind of harmful social media material to which they have been exposed.

The Brecon, Radnor and Cwm Tawe MP said in the House of Commons this week that over the past year, he has spoken to hundreds of children in schools across his constituency as part of his “safer screens” tour.

He told Science Secretary, Liz Kendall: “It has been very distressing to hear from them about the material that they have been exposed to and to hear that social media companies have not come back to them when they have reported this harmful content.

“If the Secretary of State agrees that there should be a ban on children accessing harmful social media platforms, will the default age for accessing them be 16?”

Ms Kendall said that in relation to the default age, the Government will consult on the age of 16.

She told Mr Chadwick: “I remind the House that the Online Safety Act has very strong provisions against illegal content for people of all ages and harmful content for children.

“We need to make sure that it is effectively enforced now, whatever decision is made through the consultation.”