Labour leader vows to ban phones in classrooms

Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar has vowed to ban mobile phones in classrooms if he is elected first minister.

He said the devices are having a “catastrophic” impact on young people, with cyberbullying on the rise, and he pledged to instruct teachers and school staff to ban them in class if Labour wins the Holyrood election in May.

Mr Sarwar said: “I have listened to teachers, pupils, and their parents – the feedback is clear. Schools and classrooms should be spaces for learning, growing, and flourishing.

“However, the reality is that teachers are working in fear and anxiety, with physical attacks on staff having rocketed.

“Staff are noticing that the attention spans of our pupils is shortening, while cyberbullying is on the rise, with social media meaning pupils are being affected inside and outside of the school day.

“As a result, the mental health of our young people is being undermined, with catastrophic results. This has to end.

“That is why, as first minister, I will introduce a ban on mobile phones in classrooms for pupils.

“Under current guidance, teachers are allowed to ban mobile devices – but I would go further by instructing them to do so.

“We owe it to the next generation to give them the best possible education. A Scottish Labour government is committed to doing exactly that.”

The Scottish Government released guidance in 2024 that ruled out a blanket ban on mobile phone use in classrooms but encouraged headteachers to take steps “they see fit” to limit usage of phones in schools.

The guidance says: “That means empowering headteachers to take the steps they see fit to limit the use of mobile phones in our schools, up to and including a full ban on the school estate during the school day, if that is their judgment.”

In November, the City of Edinburgh Council carried out an impact assessment of an all-primary school phone ban.

Students at Portobello High School and Queensferry High School have already been issued with wallets to put their phones in during the school day.

The wallets require a magnetic pad to unlock them at the end of the day.

A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “The Scottish Government’s national guidance on mobile phones makes clear that we support full mobile phone bans in schools – but that we trust Scotland’s headteachers, who know their pupils best, to take the steps they deem appropriate for their school context.

“A number of councils, including Moray and The City of Edinburgh, have introduced full bans in schools, taking active steps in line with the updated guidance.”