Smart phone school blanket ban rejected by councillors

A call for a school ban on mobile phones after claims video footage of American activist Charlie Kirk’s fatal shooting had been shared with pupils has been rejected by East Lothian councillors.

Conservative councillors in the county put a motion calling for an outright ban of smart devices being used throughout the school day to a meeting of elected members earlier today.

Councillor Lachlan Bruce said parents had contacted him raising concerns about videos shared by children, including one showing the death of political activist Kirk who was shot in the head while giving a public speech in Utah last month.

However his call for a blanket ban to be introduced by the start of the 2026 term was described by opposition councillors as ‘headline grabbing’ and ‘political’.

SNP group leader Lyn Jardine said: “The Conservative motion for an outright ban is a headline grabbing gesture.”

She introduced a motion backed by council leader Norman Hampshire which called for further consultation with head teachers, unions, school staff and pupils over a future policy creating a ‘phone free learning environment’.

Councillor Jeremy Findlay, who seconded the Conservative motion for the ban, said parents wanted action now instead of waiting for the council to go through ‘un-needed’ processes.

He said he had been approached by parents and teachers calling for action and sharing their experiences with one saying that “by the age of 14 half of children had been exposed to porn” adding “while I accept I cannot control every aspect of my child’s life, I do believe schools should be a safe place.”

Councillor Findlay said: “What parents want is a ban brought in without any delays and un-needed process.”

The call for a ban came after East Lothian Council education chiefs had to act fast to suspend access to around 16,000 pupil Gmail accounts after an email containing ‘inappropriate’ content went viral after being sent from a student’s account.

Earlier this month councillors supported a petition from a concerned mother calling on the local authority to ensure all pupils have access to a council-owned device and banning then from using their personal devices as part of lessons.

Bringing an amendment to the motion to council, Councillor Jardine pointed out that the petition had been accepted and work was being carried out to help head teachers and schools set policy and systems for phone use.

She said an outright ban would not solve the problem while pointing out children’s voices also had to be heard in setting policy.

Supporting the amendment Councillor Hampshire said: “Children are not going to just hand over their phones, it will be a management nightmare. I would like a system in place that takes into account all views and everyone supports.”

Councillors voted for the amendment which will see a report brought back to council in December on future recommendations from consultation by 16 votes to four.