Estonia is the rare EU country opposing bans on children’s social media use

Estonia and Belgium are the only two EU member states that declined to sign the Jutland Declaration, a 2025 pan-European commitment to restrict children's social media access. Estonia's position is principled: ministers argue age-based bans are unenforceable (pointing to Australia's failed implementation where 70% of banned minors retained active accounts), place responsibility on the wrong party, and that Europe should instead enforce existing GDPR provisions against platforms. Estonia advocates for digital literacy and platform accountability over access restrictions. The debate will play out in the forthcoming Digital Fairness Act, expected in late 2026, where the European Parliament has already called for a 16-plus digital minimum age.