LONDON – The UK could ban cellphones and smartphones for under-16s. The proposal is not yet a concrete bill, but it is currently being discussed in Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s ruling conservative party. And it is not excluded that the Tories could split over this too.
The executive has already issued one directive two months ago to all schools in the country to completely ban cell phones in the classroom and in schools and before that it approved the Online Safety Bill, which in theory punishes web giants with very high fines (up to 10% of turnover) if they do not previously filter content that is dangerous for children.
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But now we are thinking about taking a further step forward on this topic given the favorable polls and above all some recent tragic events. Like the brutal murder last year of the 16-year-old trans girl Brianna Ghey, mocked and insulted on social media before the ferocious murder by another boy. As reported by Guardian, the teenager’s mother explicitly asked to ban smartphones for those under 16 “so as not to be exposed to all the dangers today on social media and apps. We would need an ad hoc law”, she said. Becoming digital parents Daniele Novara, pedagogist: “Six rules to protect children from smartphone addiction” by Giulia Cimpanelli 27 January 2024
Last March a Parentkind survey out of 2,496 English parents certified as the 58% of the latter are in favor of banning cell phones for under 16s and around 80% believe smartphones have “harmful effects” on their children. Fears rekindled by the latest announcement Whatsapp, which has lowered the minimum age to use the chat app to 13 years.
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According to another survey by More in Common, 64% of British people agree with the ban on mobile phones. But several conservative MPs and ministers do not seem to agree and leak into the newspapers anonymously: “It is not the government’s role to be a ‘micro-parent’. It is the parents who must be aware of the means they have to provision – from restrictions on minors to parental control – to protect your children”. In short, an agreement, and an ad hoc law, will not be easy. Becoming digital parents Vicari: “Addiction to devices is like addiction to drugs” by Giulia Cimpanelli 30 March 2024 Topics