Plans to ban smartphones in schools have been dropped after the government refused to support a change in the law, Sky News understands.
Josh MacAlister, the Labour MP for Whitehaven and Workington, put forward the proposal earlier this month to stop children “doom-scrolling” – the act of spending excessive amounts of time online consuming negative news or social media content.
However, upon revealing the details of his Safer Phones Bill, Number 10 immediately indicated it could not support the measure on the grounds that headteachers already have the power to ban phones – although it is not upheld in law.
It is understood Mr MacAlister has now dropped this element of his bill in the hope the government will support its other aspects.
Mr MacAlister’s bill, which received broad support from cross-party MPs, education unions and charities, also calls for the age of “internet adulthood” – the minimum age to create social media profiles and email accounts – to be raised from 13 to 16.
It also wants to strengthen the powers of the regulator Ofcom to protect children from apps that are designed to be addictive and to commit the government to review further regulation if needed of the design, supply, marketing and use of mobile phones by children under 16.
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Although the government indicated it could not back the phones ban, there has been some confusion on its overall position on the bill after some cabinet ministers, including Health Secretary Wes Streeting, signalled their support.
“Given the impact of smartphone use and addiction on the mental health of children and young people and the concerns from parents, this is a really timely debate,” he posted on X.
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Speaking to Sky News earlier this month, Mr MacAlister, who chaired an independent review of children’s social care for the former government, said there was a “huge public health problem” with children around the world having increasing levels of mental health problems, issues with sleep and being impacted by phones in school.
“I’m only interested in one thing, which is making sure we can change the law to protect children and reduce screen time and get them back to having a healthier childhood,” he said.
“Parents are saying they’re facing an impossible choice between either keeping their kids off smartphones and ostracising them, or letting children get on these phones and seeing all the harmful effects that it can cause.
“And we need to shape some collective rules that help parents and teachers make better choices for children.
“Children themselves are recognising the harm that comes with all of the doom-scrolling.”
Current guidance to schools in England intended to stop the use of mobile phones during the school day is non-statutory, and was introduced earlier this year by the previous Tory government.
Sky News has approached the government for comment. Earlier this month, a government spokesperson said: “We all want to find the best way of ensuring children are kept safe while also benefiting from the latest digital technology.
“The Online Safety Act will introduce strong safeguards for children, preventing them from accessing harmful and age-inappropriate content. This will include requiring companies to check the age of children so that parents can have peace of mind about the safety of their children online.
“The vast majority of schools already handle the use of mobile phones effectively, including with bans. Legislating for an outright ban would simply remove the autonomy from school leaders who know their pupils and their communities best.”
Mr MacAlister’s bill is due to have its second reading – the first opportunity MPs have to debate the contents of a bill – in March.
A British man is one of 14 people who were killed when an alleged Islamic State supporter drove a truck into crowds celebrating the New Year in New Orleans.
The city’s coroner said the preliminary cause of death for the British citizen was blunt force injuries.
Their identity has been temporarily withheld at the request of the family “pending finalisation of international arrangements”.
Dozens of people were also injured when 42-year-old army veteran Shamsud-Din Jabbar’s rented truck rammed into people in New Orleans’ famous Bourbon Street in the early hours of New Year’s Day.
A senior Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) official has said the attack was “premeditated” and an “evil” act of terrorism, and said Jabbar was “100% inspired by ISIS”, also known as Islamic State.
The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office told Sky News: “We are supporting the family of a British national who has died in New Orleans and are in contact with local authorities.”
The coroner has also identified the majority of the victims in the attack.
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They are:
Andrew Dauphin, 26, from Montgomery, Alabama
Kareem Badawi, 23, from Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Brandon Taylor, 43, from Harvey, Louisiana
Hubert Gauthreaux, 21, from Gretna, Louisiana
Matthew Tenedorio, 25, from Picayune, Mississippi
Nikyra Dedeaux, 18, from Gulfport, Mississippi
Nicole Perez, 27, from Metairie, Louisiana
Reggie Hunter, 37, from Prairieville, Louisiana
Martin Bech, 27, from New York City, New York
Terrence Kennedy, 63, from New Orleans, Louisiana
Elliot Wilkinson, 40, from Slidell, Louisiana
William Dimaio, 25, from Holmdel, New Jersey
The identity of one other victim is unknown, with efforts to identity the person continuing.
The preliminary cause of death for all the victims is blunt force injuries, according to the New Orleans coroner.
The FBI has also revealed that before his attack, Jabbar set fire to a house he had rented in an effort to destroy evidence.
He had placed accelerants throughout the house in his effort to destroy it, according to the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms.
But the fire, which was started in the hallway, had extinguished itself before spreading to other rooms.
Bomb-making materials were found both at the rented accommodation in New Orleans and Jabbar’s home in Houston, Texas.
This breaking news story is being updated and more details will be published shortly.
But Littler became the youngest-ever world darts champion – winning a £500,000 prize – in front of a raucous London crowd.
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Temperatures are expected to plunge to minus 8C as weather warnings for snow and ice are set to remain in place over the weekend.
The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has issued cold weather health alerts for all of England ahead of a week of low temperatures.
Amber alerts were issued from 12pm on Thursday until next Wednesday, meaning a rise in deaths is likely, particularly among those aged 65 and over or with health conditions.
Temperatures of between minus 4C and 5C were expected in parts of Wales and southern England on Thursday night, plunging to minus 8C in northern England and Scotland.
Dan Stroud, a meteorologist at the Met Office, said: “There’ll be widespread frost across the country from Land’s End to John O’Groats.
“It will be comfortably below where we should be for this time of year and I would expect temperatures to hit minus 8C in parts of Scotland.”
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Mr Stroud confirmed conditions should become warmer by the end of this weekend before cold weather strikes again early next week.
He said: “The second half of the weekend should be in the high singles or low doubles.
“But temperatures will dive again next week, particularly on Monday and Tuesday.
“They should start to improve towards the latter end of the week. But there’s a lot of water to go under the bridge until then.”
The NHS Black Country integrated care board has warned the public to “avoid going out early when the frost is thick or late at night when it’s dark”, adding people should keep their hands free and wear shoes with a good grip.
In Herefordshire, the Wye Valley NHS Trust told people to “have sufficient food and medicine and take measures to reduce draughts in your home”.
London councils activated an emergency accommodation protocol on Thursday for people sleeping rough in freezing conditions.
The emergency measures, which see extra beds made available, have been active for three nights so far this winter.
Meanwhile, several weather warnings have been issued by the Met Office ahead of a blast of snow over the weekend.
The yellow warning indicates there could be icy surfaces in northern and western Scotland, the northwest of England and Northern Ireland.
It will remain in place until 10am on Friday morning, and could make for difficult travelling conditions, the forecaster warned.
A snow and ice warning is also in place covering parts of northern Scotland until 10am on Friday.
A yellow warning for snow and ice is in place from noon on Saturday until late on Sunday night and covers all regions of England, other than the South West, Wales and parts of southern Scotland.
About 5cm of snow is expected widely across the Midlands, Wales and northern England, with as much as 20cm to 30cm over high ground in Wales and the Pennines, the Met Office said.
Strong winds could lead to snow drifts in some areas, and freezing rain as temperatures creep up could add to the risk of ice.
A separate warning for snow is in place for most of Scotland from midnight on Sunday until 12pm on Monday.
The cold snap comes as a major incident was declared in Greater Manchester by police on Wednesday after flooding forced homes to be evacuated and closed train lines and roads following heavy rain.