Meeting of the Parliament 25 March 2026 [Draft]
I am pleased to deliver one of the final members’ business debates of this parliamentary session on a very important subject. Before I start, I would like to say a few words about my time in the Parliament over the past five years. I hope to return in May. However, just in case the stars do not align and the gods above have other plans for me, I would like to say a few words and to thank everybody who has engaged with me.
It has definitely been an interesting five years in the Parliament, during which time I have worked with colleagues from across the political parties. Sometimes that leads to agreement, and sometimes it does not. I have highlighted many important issues, including domestic abuse, the safety and protection of women and girls, education and many more. For someone who did not come from a political background or even have any friends or family in politics, it has been the absolute honour of my life to serve the country in which I was born and brought up. Here’s to not writing me off just yet. I hope to be back after 7 May.
I will now turn to the subject of the debate. I thank all the organisations and individuals who have contacted me regarding the serious issue of mobile phones in schools. My motion stems from my being contacted by concerned parents from my area in East Dunbartonshire, as well as from the round-table meeting that I hosted in Parliament last month, at which parents, teachers and experts spoke in depth about the issue. Special thanks go out to Sam Rice from Smartphone Free Childhood and Kids for Now, to Nova Eden from One Collective Power, which provided presentations to the round-table meeting, and to the Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills, who attended as well.
Children’s brains are still developing, which is why we have age limits on alcohol consumption, driving and consent. They are now being raised in a world that is more demanding than the one that we grew up in, and a lot of that involves the excessive use of technology and social media. Let us be clear: this is not just an education problem; it also affects health and justice, as we heard at the round-table meeting.