France plans to ban social media access for children under 15 and mobile phones in secondary schools, following Australia’s lead on youth digital protection.
PARIS: France is proposing a ban on social media access for children under 15 by next September. The draft law, backed by President Emmanuel Macron, aims to protect adolescents from excessive screen time.
The initiative follows Australia’s recent world-first ban on social media for under-16s. The French government cites studies confirming various risks from excessive digital screen use.
Children with unfettered online access face exposure to “inappropriate content” and risks like cyber-harassment and sleep pattern changes. The draft law contains two key articles to address these concerns.
One article would outlaw providing social media services to minors under 15. The second calls for a ban on mobile phone use in the nation’s secondary schools.
Macron has stated that the digital protection of minors is a government priority. Enforcement and compliance with international law, however, remain challenging issues.
A previous ban on mobile phone use in pre-schools and middle-schools took effect in 2018. This rule is rarely enforced in practice.
France also faced complications with a 2023 law setting a “digital legal age” of 15. That legislation was blocked for contravening European Union rules.
The French Senate this month backed its own initiative for protecting teenagers. It includes requiring parental authorisation for children aged 13 to 16 to register on social media sites.
The Senate’s proposal has been submitted to the National Assembly for approval. Parliament is expected to begin debating the proposals in January.
