Forget suicide prevention ‘lessons’ in schools – we need to stop kids’ scrolling online instead, says Sophie Winkleman

PEEP Show icon Sophie Winkleman today urged the Tories and Labour to ban smartphones for kids rather than deploying expensive mental health squads to schools. 

The actress-turned campaigner slammed both parties for going “mad on spending” when they could simply stop children from scrolling online. 

Ms Winkleman made her plea on a new episode of Never Mind The Ballots and after writing a piece for today’s Sun on the matter alongside co-star Isy Suttie.

The mum-of-two told our Political Editor Harry Cole: “What I find frustrating is that I think both parties are pledging to spend millions and millions on the mental health crisis for young people, putting mental health professionals in schools and really going mad on spending.

“And if they just did this, I think they could spend a hell of a lot less.”

She added: “I think Labour want to put suicide prevention on the curriculum, which putting that idea in young people's heads, why don't you just stop them watching suicide material online?”

Labour wants to provide specialist mental health support in every secondary school and a part-time professional in every primary school. 

They also plan to put an open access mental health hub for children and young people in every community - for when children need to seek help themselves.

The party plans to fund the measures by closing tax loopholes. 

While Sir Keir Starmer has not proposed introducing suicide prevention classes on the curriculum, he said prevention would be at the heart of a Labour government. 

Meanwhile, Rishi Sunak earlier this year gave extra powers to headteachers to ban phones from classrooms under new Government guidance.

It was reported he was also considering banning sale of smartphones to under-16s but no announcement has yet been been made.

Along with Suttie, Ms Winkleman wrote today: "Sadly, our Prime Minister and the Leader of the Opposition have spent more emails than axing smartphones for kids.

"The over-hyped Online Safety Bill might remove some harmful material but it doesn't address the scandal of whole childhoods spent as zombies on phones."

She added: "There are many alternatives to smartphones, brickphones that can make and receive calls and texts, and tracker devices so you know where your child is, and the range of products is growing all the time as more and more parents start to wake up to the reality of smartphones."