France plans to ban children under 15 from social media and restrict mobile phone use in secondary schools from next year, local media report Le Monde reported on Tuesday.
The proposal aims to curb excessive screen time and protect minors from online risks such as inappropriate content. President Emmanuel Macron has repeatedly cited social media as a contributing factor to youth violence.
“Many studies and reports now confirm the various risks caused by excessive use of digital screens by adolescents,” according to a draft law, according to Le Monde.
The document added that children with unrestricted access to the internet have been exposed to “inappropriate content” and may suffer from cyber harassment or experience changes in their sleep patterns, according to the paper.
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President Emmanuel Macron plans to ban the use of social media among children under 15. (TERESA SUAREZ/POOL/AFP via Getty Images)
The proposal follows Australia’s lead after the country introduced a world-first social media ban for children under 16 in December, restricting access to platforms such as Facebook, TikTok and YouTube.
Macron aims for Parliament to debate the proposal in January, with a possible start date of September next year, the local newspaper said.
In June, Macron said he wanted to push for similar regulations across the European Union (EU), after a fatal stabbing at a school in eastern France shocked the nation in April, Reuters reported.
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A 13-year-old girl uses her smartphone in a dark room. (iStock)
Macron has previously taken numerous steps to digitally protect minors. However, technical challenges, including EU legal restrictions and weak enforcement, have limited the effectiveness of such measures.
According to Le Monde, mobile phones have been banned in French primary and secondary schools since 2018.
In December, Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese became the first in the world to impose a social media ban, banning children under the age of 16 from using major platforms. (Brent Lewin/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
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In 2023, France reportedly attempted to pass a law calling for a “digital legal age,” which would require parental consent for social media users under the age of 15. However, the law was blocked by EU regulations.
In November, the European Parliament urged the EU to set minimum ages for social media to tackle adolescent mental health issues, although the final decisions rest with member states, Reuters reported.
