I’m not afraid to say it: Andy Burnham has played a blinder. The PM has done the one thing guaranteed to win my abiding loyalty and respect for the rest of his premiership, however long it may last: outlawing “headphone dodging” on public transport.
The annoying practice is a relatively new phenomenon, one that’s grown in line with smartphone and social media use over the past decade. Although it’s commonly committed by the young, it’s certainly not confined to them. I’ve witnessed offenders of all ages, whether it be on buses, trains, tubes or trams, indulging in this most anti-social of anti-social behaviours: watching videos, films, or listening to music on their phones out loud, caring not a fig for the rest of the poor passengers around them. What is a matter with people?
