Plain clothes 'spotter' helps police snare drivers using their mobile phone every two minutes

• ITV News Anglia's Natalie Gray went out with police as they carried out an operation to stop mobile phone use at the wheel.

Police using a plain clothes "spotter" caught 15 drivers using their mobile phones at the wheel in just half an hour on a rush-hour road.

The culprits snared included a 19-year-old who is now likely to lose his licence, and a mum with a four-month-old baby in her car who was looking at messages from her family.

Norfolk Police said the operation on Newmarket Road in Norwich on Thursday morning was in response to a significant rise in collisions caused by people looking at mobile phones at the wheel.

The sting involved an officer in plain clothes who radioed ahead to colleagues in uniform to pull the drivers over and tell them they were being prosecuted.

The first person to be stopped by PC Nick Harris was a 19-year-old man who was texting his boss to tell him he would be late for work.

PC Harris said: "He passed his test literally four months ago and he's driving a motor vehicle with both hands off the wheel. Because he's in his two-year amnesty period that driver is highly likely to lose his licence."

Using a phone at the wheel incurs a six-point penalty, which is enough to mean a recently-qualified driver can face a ban.

The next person pulled over was a mother with a four-year-old child in the back who was "keeping up to date with friends and family" on social media.

One officer on duty, who could not be identified, said some of the incidents he had witnessed were "shocking" and put other road users at risk.

"The worst one was a couple of weeks ago - a member of the public driving a van using two mobiles at one time with their wrists on top of the wheel.

"The excuse was he was transferring a number from his own phone to his work phone, which he could have done at any time."

PC Dave Nickerson said: "It's not unusual, unfortunately. The number of people still using mobile phones while they drive - it's ridiculous.

"I've had people do their makeup with their camera phone on, people watching films; one person I stopped couldn't get into his head what he was doing wrong. [It's] unbelievable."

The operation follows the case of a teenage driver who left a mother paralysed from the neck down after crashing into her.

George Taylor, 19, from Ely, was caught repeatedly using his mobile phone while driving, sometimes steering with his knees before the collision on the A47 at East Tuddenham in Norfolk.

Sgt Callum Wallchester said: "We're seeing a significant rise in collisions that are resulting in death or serious injury. One of those is mobile phone use and we've seen a number of high profile cases in recent weeks where there has been a catastrophic effect on people's lives.

"We see people texting and calling [and] people scroll on social media, we're seeing people Facetiming, watching films or playing games or scrolling through apps.

"You just think 'Why?'"

Want a quick and expert briefing on the biggest news stories? Listen to our latest podcasts to find out What You Need To Know