Paris [France], July 24 : France has voted to ban social media for children under the age of 15, President Emmanuel Macron said.
In a post on X, he thanked the parliamentarians for their support and said, "I had committed to it, and now it's been voted on: social media will be banned for those under 15 starting back-to-school. Thanks to the parliamentarians. It's up to the Constitutional Council to rule, then on to action to make this measure concrete and protect our children online."
https://x.com/EmmanuelMacron/status/2079628659808178528?s=20
According to CNN, this move makes France the first country in the European Union to introduce such an age limit.
Earlier in June, the United Kingdom had announced a ban on social media for children under the age of 16 years.
Former Prime Minister Keir Starmer, in a video message, had called it the need of the hour and a big decision for the country. He had said in a video message how social media can leave children trapped in a cycle of endless scrolling that displaces play, sleep, and time with the family and can harm their mental health.
Earlier in June, a government panel in Japan called for strengthening the responsibilities of social media operators by requiring them to have stricter age verification and restricting some features, in a list of proposed measures to protect underage social media users, Kyodo News reported.
Australia already implemented a blanket ban on social media for children under 16 years of age last year. Other countries include Spain and Denmark, which are mulling over the decision.