Japan city proposes two-hour daily smartphone limit

Tokyo: A Japanese city will urge all smartphone users to limit screen time to two hours a day outside work or school under a proposed ordinance that includes no penalties.

The limit — which will be recommended for all residents in central Japan’s Toyoake City — will not be binding and there will be no penalties incurred for higher usage, according to the draft ordinance.

The proposal aims “to prevent excessive use of devices causing physical and mental health issues… including sleep problems,” mayor Masafumi Koki said in a statement on Friday.