Don't call us ...

Finland's ingenuity galvanised the rapid global uptake of cellphones, so it's paradoxical the country's latest claim to fame should be the elevation of no-speakies to a new commercial opportunity.

- Jane Clifton

Helsinki hairdresser Kati Hakomeri has divided global opinion by introducing a chat-free service. The silent hair appointment - practically an oxymoronic concept has brought a clamour of requests to make the option compulsory everywhere and extend it to taxis - while traditionalists have mourned another symptom of the decline of civil society.

But a recent British survey suggests taciturnity is not just for the Finns. On top of data charting 33 billion fewer minutes spent on the phone in the UK than a decade ago, a poll found a quarter of Gen Zers and Millennials (18- to 35-year-olds) claim never to have answered a phone in their lives. Unsolicited conversation is being rationed.