There are complaints about the use of smartphones in many schools

New Zealand’s new conservative government wants to ban mobile phones in all schools in the future. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon, who was sworn in at the beginning of the week, said during his visit to a school in Auckland that the plan announced during the election campaign would be implemented in the first 100 days of his term.

The Prime Minister wrote on the X platform (formerly Twitter): “I will not stand idly by and watch educational success decline as has happened in recent years.”

According to his National Party, the goal is to increase students’ concentration and performance, the party wrote on its website. Many schools have already had positive results after cell phone bans – including overseas.

France had already banned the use of mobile phones in schools in 2018, and the Netherlands and Great Britain want to follow suit. The topic is also being discussed in Germany, but the German Teachers’ Association recently spoke out against an absolute ban.

Ministers must also hand over mobile phones

“To reverse the decline in performance, students must focus on their assignments during their valuable classroom time,” the NDP wrote. Declining performance over the past 30 years not only jeopardizes children’s future livelihoods, but also threatens New Zealand’s prosperity. Ministers and Members of Parliament must also hand in their smartphones during Cabinet and Parliament group meetings so they can work more focused.

Luxon this week caused a stir when he announced he wanted to repeal parts of strict tobacco control laws passed by the previous left-wing government. The coalition, which also includes populist party NZ First, wants to use the move to fund tax cuts.