Phones or a chat? It’s our Jury’s call...

A PUB in London has an electric shield that blocks phone signals, forcing customers to stop looking at their mobiles and to chat to each other instead. We asked our Email Jury if people should be able to use their phones wherever they please.

People use their phones far too much. It is the height of bad manners to ignore those with you and focus your attention on a screen. Mobiles have their place, but not everywhere. Liz Kelly, Glasgow.

What a brilliant idea! It is the height of rudeness when you’re in company. I don’t have a mobile – I’ve never felt the need. Elizabeth O’Regan, Lincoln.

There should be a separate room for those who want to use their phones or tablets. In fact there should be a separate area on trains and trams – and on buses this should be upstairs. Paula Calder, Inner Hebrides.

What a boring life these folk live who cannot be parted from their phone. Get out there and converse with real people. Allison Scotland, Roxburghshire.

How did we manage without phones? Very well! There is a time and place for phones, but we haven’t got the balance right. Bea Smith, Doncaster.

Nothing is more anti-social than mobile phones. If you must use your phone, excuse yourself and go outside. Lorraine Anderson, Edinburgh.

There’s far too much intrusion into people’s personal liberties these days. Why shouldn’t people be free to access their phones or texts if they want? Stephen Calder, Peterhead.

While I dislike the bad manners of those who keep looking at their screens when they are supposed to be talking to me, I am not sure that blocking signals is a good idea. What if someone is needed urgently at home? Why punish responsible phone

A previous employer I had did the same thing in the workplace to stop employees using their phones instead of getting on with their work. Archie Bryce Arbuckle, Cheshire.

It’s up to the individual how he or she uses their mobile phone. But I certainly wouldn’t go to the pub with someone who spent more time using Twitter and Facebook than talking with me. James Strachan Aberdeenshire.