French lawmakers will vote on the 21st of July on a law that would ban social networks for children under 15, joining several countries considering the unpopular move among teenagers, Reuters reports.
If passed, France would follow Australia’s example, which banned children from platforms such as Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok and YouTube last December.
French President Emmanuel Macron, who in April urged young people to turn off their phones and read more, wants the law to come into effect before the start of the next school year. The French bill, agreed by senators and deputies on the evening of the 220th of July, would require social media platforms to implement age verification systems approved by France’s privacy regulator.
The bill would ban children under 15 from creating new accounts on social media after the 1st of September. Platforms would have four months to close existing accounts for children.
Online encyclopedias and educational websites would remain open to children.
Social media platforms have opposed sweeping bans, saying they already have measures in place to protect young users, but have vowed to abide by government restrictions.
Given the growing risks posed by social media, countries in Europe and beyond are considering ways to restrict children’s access to social media. The European Commission is drawing up its own rules to protect younger users and curb platforms’ business models.
Macron said in April that young people had been left “in the jungle” and that this had robbed them of their attention span. The state must help them stop and help them grow into adults and, above all, responsible citizens. That is why it is necessary to ensure that social networks are not accessible to children under the age of 15.
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