There France is preparing to introduce one of the most restrictive regulations in Europe on the use of social media by young people. The government has in fact developed a draft law consulted from Le Monde which aims to prohibit access to social platforms to minors under 15 years of age starting fromschool year 2026/2027. The text will be examined by Council of State in the first days of January and thereafter discussed in Parliament. The initiative follows the example ofAustraliawhere a similar provision has already come into force.
The president Emmanuel Macron reiterated that the protection of minors in the digital environment represents one political priority in the final phase of his mandate. According to the Elysée, early and uncontrolled access to social media is equivalent to putting a teenager behind the wheel of a racing car without having taught him the rules: before surfing online, young people must acquire a real digital alphabet. The declared objective is to defend the psychological balance of the children and strengthen social cohesion.
The risks associated with excessive use of social media
At the basis of the project there are numerous studies that report the damage caused by intensive use of screens: exposure to harmful content, cyberbullyingdigital addiction and sleep disorders. A French parliamentary inquiry defined some platforms, as TikToka real one “slow poison” for children and adolescents, denouncing the role of algorithms in fostering a bubble of harmful content. Not surprisingly, the report recommended a total ban for under 15s and a possible digital curfew for the older ones.
Telephone ban even in high schools
The bill does not only concern social networks. Among the central points there is also the extension of the ban on the use of smartphones to high schoolsattended by students between 15 and 18 years old. In France there is already a 2018 rule banning phones in primary and middle schools, but its implementation has encountered difficulties. The new text aims to make the rules clearer and more uniform, declaring itself fully compatible with the European Digital Services Act.
However, there is no shortage of resistancesespecially from the school unionswho question the feasibility of checks in high schools. On the contrary, public opinion appears favorable: according to recent polls, a large majority of citizens support the ban on social media for children under 15considering it a necessary measure for the future of the new generations.
