Meeting of the Parliament 22 January 2025
There is a huge difference between the guidance that ministers say that councils can develop and, rather than leaving it to individual schools, a national policy that says that we believe that mobile phones should not be in classrooms. There is broad evidence on that.
I will touch on the important issue of social media. There has been an important debate in Australia about the negative impact that social media is having on young people’s mental health. That is why our motion also calls on ministers to undertake a review of the issue in Scotland and look towards a potential ban in that area. We must consider the toxic environment that our young people are living in and how we can change that.
Schools must be a safe place for pupils to learn and for teachers to teach. That is simply not the case right now, and it will only get worse if SNP ministers do not get a grip of the situation. I am clear—let me be clear to any teacher watching the debate—that the Scottish Conservatives support our teachers 100 per cent in demanding fresh action to restore discipline in our schools. That must be the number 1 priority for SNP ministers. They must be judged over the next year on their actions, and we will continue to press the Government for that action.
I move,
That the Parliament notes the ongoing concern at reported cases of violence against pupils and staff, and disruption in schools, and the need for action to help restore positive learning environments in which all young people and teachers are safe to learn and teach in a respectful and supported setting; welcomes the publication of the joint national action plan with COSLA in August 2024, which set out a range of actions needed to be taken at both local and national levels to address violence in schools, alongside the Scottish Government’s action plan on tackling violence and verbal abuse in schools; calls on ministers to bring forward an update to the Parliament on how these actions are being taken forward; further calls on ministers to review the reporting and publication of data on incidents relating to violence and harassment in schools; notes the disparity in the availability of early years provision across Scotland and the potential long-term impacts on children’s development and educational outcomes; calls for a review to identify and mitigate negative influences on learning environments in primary schools, including factors affecting pupil behaviour and engagement; further calls on the Scottish Government to support children and young people impacted by violence and disruption in schools and to facilitate an environment in which all young people are safe to learn, develop and grow; notes the publication of the Scottish Government guidance on mobile phones in schools, and calls on ministers to take forward a national policy on a ban on mobile phones in classrooms and the provision of single-sex toilets and accessible toilets in all schools; acknowledges the recent passing of a law banning children under 16 from using social media in Australia, and calls on ministers to undertake a review in Scotland of the negative impact of social media on young people and the growing body of evidence suggesting that “over-exposure” to mobile phones and social media can result in pupils experiencing limited concentration, isolation and poor mental health, as well as the potential for a similar ban in Scotland.
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