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It was reported recently that the Reform UK Nottinghamshire council leader has banned a local newspaper from speaking to him or other councillors. Reform UK Nottinghamshire council leader bans local newspaper’s reporters – BBC News

The action by the leader of the council has been widely criticised by spokespeople from all other parties. Ignoring whether or not in this case the newspaper was right to publish their report, having an independent media who can hold politicians accountable to the public by highlighting issues and asking important questions is crucial to upholding democracy.

Is this a small but significant step towards the UK adopting a US-style (or at least Trump-style) of dealing with independent media?

Schools are implementing magnet locked phone pouches to prevent students from using their phones during school hours.

Though at first glance this may seem like a positive intervention, as schools try to reduce students’ use of phones during school time, it raises several questions.

For example, is this proof that other measures have failed and that this is a last resort for schools? Have schools assessed the total cost of introducing pouches beyond the initial purchase cost? Have they thought about the time that will be needed each day to lock them in the morning and then unlock them after school ends. Some schools may unlock these pouches at the school gate to ensure a gate to gate policy however, this creates an inefficient system, and depending on the number of students could lead to long queues as students are leaving school.

Bearing all of this in mind, are pouches the right way forward?