{"id":265131,"date":"2026-01-25T10:51:41","date_gmt":"2026-01-25T14:51:41","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/?p=265131"},"modified":"2026-01-25T10:53:56","modified_gmt":"2026-01-25T14:53:56","slug":"macron-says-france-to-fast-track-social-media-ban-for-under-15s","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/antiguanewsroom.com\/macron-says-france-to-fast-track-social-media-ban-for-under-15s\/","title":{"rendered":"Macron says France to fast-track social media ban for under-15s"},"content":{"rendered":"
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CNN<\/strong>– French<\/a>\u00a0President Emmanuel Macron said he wants his government to fast-track the legal process to ensure that a ban on social media use for children under the age of 15 can be in place before the start of the next school year in September.<\/p>

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\u201cThe brains of our children and adolescents are not for sale,\u201d Macron said in a video released late Saturday by CNN\u2019s French affiliate BFMTV. \u201cTheir emotions are not for sale or to be manipulated, whether by American platforms or Chinese algorithms.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe are banning social media for under-15s and we are going to ban mobile phones in our high schools. I believe this is a clear rule \u2013 clear for our teenagers, clear for families, clear for teachers,\u201d he stressed.<\/p>

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A growing number of Western countries are seeking to enact sweeping legislation to safeguard young people from the potential harms of social media, following Australia\u2019s landmark law in December that bans under 16s from having accounts on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook and other platforms.<\/p>

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Macron\u2019s announcement came days after the British government said it is considering a range of measures aiming to keep children safe online, including banning the use of social media for under-16s.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The French ban is being spearheaded by Laure Miller, a lawmaker from Macron\u2019s Renaissance party. In an interview with the television channel associated with the French parliament, Miller said the government needed to take action because \u201cright now, there is no age verification whatsoever.\u201d<\/p>

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\u201cYou can enter any date of birth and access the platform. What we want to impose on platforms, by strictly enforcing the European Digital Services Act (DSA), is real age verification when you access a social network. That changes everything, because users will actually have to prove whether they are over or under-15,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While conceding that there will \u201calways be ways\u201d to circumvent the restrictions, she said France should \u201cat least put our foot in the door when it comes to protecting minors online.\u201d<\/p>

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Following Australia\u2019s ban, more than 4.7 social media accounts deemed to be held by under 16s have been deactivated or removed, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said last month.<\/p>

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