Parents may receive alerts if children access malicious websites following Brianna Gay's murder

Esther Gay, mother of Brianna Gay, is advocating for new laws to prevent children from accessing social media on their phones. Photo: LEON NEAL/GETTY

Parents could be warned if their children try to access malicious websites following calls for tougher protections from the mother of murdered teenager Brianna Gay.

Plans being considered ministers will aim to stop young people viewing harmful content by alerting parents to any disturbing activity online and allowing them to intervene.

It comes after Brianna's mother, Esther Gay, called for similar protective measures, as well as prohibit teenagers under 16 years of age from accessing social networks from their smartphones.

Politicians are skeptical about the benefits of further restricting children's access to certain content, since anyone wishing to use the dark web — as in Brianna's case — could find a workaround.

However, it is clear that they are looking for more effective tools available to parents to monitoring their children. children's activity.

One suggested option is to send alerts to parents' phones when their children try to access potentially dangerous websites.

Scarlett Jenkinson and her accomplice Eddie Ratcliffe, both 16, were last week sentenced to life in prison for the murder of Brianna Gay

Ministers will have to act quickly if they want to push through any reforms, with a general election expected in the autumn and due in January next year. at the latest.

A government official said: “We are looking at several options. It's actually really important to give parents the opportunity to know what their children are seeing.»

Ms Gay called for «stronger» action to protect against online harm after it emerged that Scarlett Jenkinson, one of her daughter's killers, loved to watch online videos of murders and torture.

Jenkinson and her accomplice Eddie Ratcliffe, both 16, were last week sentenced to life in prison for the murder of Brianna, also 16. They stabbed her 28 times on February 11 last year. year.

The pair communicated to each other their desire to kill the teenager and other people they knew, while Jenkinson used a special darknet browser, a matrix of encrypted sites, to view extreme videos of real people being subjected to graphic violence.

< p>Ms Gay is backing new laws to prevent children under 16 from accessing social media on smartphones, as well as stronger controls to report potentially harmful searches to parents.

Labour said , which is «open-minded» about a possible ban on social media, and shadow minister Peter Kyle has called on the public to «get ahead of the game» when it comes to protecting children online.

Ms Gay calls on ministers to introduce laws that would allow parents to see whether their children have accessed harmful content online

Michelle Donelan, the technology minister, had hoped to meet Brianna's mother on Wednesday, but talks were postponed until later in the week after Ms Gay was caught up in a major political row during a visit to parliament.

The row broke out. when Rishi Sunak mocked Sir Keir Starmer's position on the «definition of a woman» during Prime Minister's Questions when he was told that Ms Gay, whose daughter was transgender, was watching from the public gallery.

Ms Gay actually missed the jibe and arrived a little late, but was present when Labor MP Liz Twist urged the Prime Minister to apologise.

Mr Sunak's remarks, made as he attacked Labour's U-turn, drew strong reactions, including from several Tory MPs. But No 10 has repeatedly refused to apologize on his behalf, insisting the comments were «absolutely legal» and Equalities Minister Kemi Badenoch has accused the Labor Party of «exploiting» the teenager's murder to «score political points».

Mr Sunak stepped up his comments on Thursday, saying citing Brianna's case was the «worst policy».

During a visit to Cornwall, he told reporters: “Like everyone, I was completely shocked by Brianna’s case. It's almost impossible to come to terms with having your child taken from you in such terrible circumstances, and to have Brianna's mom talk about it with such empathy and compassion I thought was inspiring and brought out the best in humanity.< /p >

“I have nothing but my sincerest sympathy for all her family and friends.

“But to use this tragedy to distract from a very separate and clear point I made about Keir Starmer's proven record, repeatedly rolling back major policies because he doesn't have a plan, I think it's both sad and wrong and it shows politics at its worst.»

Sir Keir again called on Mr Sunak to apologize on Thursday, saying: “I don’t think the Prime Minister should have said what he said at the PM and I think he should apologise. It's not enough for the Prime Minister's team to come out today and basically tell Brianna's father that you didn't understand what Rishi was saying. The best thing to do is apologize as quickly as possible. This is a grieving father.»

He added he «didn't think the Prime Minister would even come close to making that comment, knowing she was there» and said Ms Badenoch was «completely and utterly wrong» to criticize her own behaviour.

After watching PMQs, Ms Gay met Sir Keir, who said he was «absolutely delighted with her strength and courage».

Then she took part in a debate on mindfulness in schools at Westminster Hall, moderated by her local MP, Charlotte Nichols.

A Labor MP has called for the skill to be added to the national curriculum to develop «empathy, compassion». and kindness» after Brianna's murder.

She paid tribute to Ms Gay, who is raising money to train teachers to honor her daughter's memory, describing her as «perhaps the most wonderful person I have ever or met.” met.”

“She doesn’t want any sympathy or pity. She wants to leave a lasting legacy for her daughter,” she said.

Ms Nichols suggested that incorporating mindfulness into the curriculum would have several positive outcomes, including a reduction in mental health problems, as well as improving social skills. behavior and achievement.

But Damian Hinds, the schools minister, said schools “must remain flexible in choosing interventions that suit their pupils in their local context.”

He praised Ms. Gay's desire to create a kinder society, noting that «there are few things more important than the happiness of our children.»