France calls on Europe to ban social media for children

Amid growing concerns about the impact of social media on the mental health of children and adolescents, European pressure is mounting to tighten restrictions on minors’ access to these platforms, with calls for a unified ban across all European Union member states. In this context, the office of French President Emmanuel Macron announced on Tuesday that the president has urged the European Commission to support the imposition of a ban on social media use by children under the age of 15 at the EU level, following France’s failure to pass domestic legislation on the matter. In a letter dated August 29 addressed to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and reviewed by Reuters and other media outlets, Macron stressed that implementing a ban at the bloc level through new EU legislation has become urgent, after the French Constitutional Council struck down a domestic bill this summer before it was set to take effect in September. Macron stated, “I believe it is now necessary to move forward with a unified ban on access to social media platforms for children under 15 through new EU legislation, in order to protect all children across the Union.” The French move follows the historic ban imposed by Australia last year on children’s use of social media, while several European countries are considering similar restrictions amid rising concerns about the impact of these platforms on the mental health of children and young people. In contrast, some countries, particularly Nordic ones, believe that decisions regarding children’s use of these platforms should be left to parents. Macron is pushing for a stricter approach by imposing a comprehensive ban on social media access until the age of 15, ahead of von der Leyen’s State of the Union address to the European Parliament later this month.