A reconciliation committee of France’s Parliament on Monday approved a bill to ban access to social media for children under the age of 15.

The reconciled text will be discussed in the Lower House on Tuesday before being taken up by the Senate.

French President Emmanuel Macron has said he wants the ban to take effect before the start of the new school year in early September.

If enacted, France would follow Australia, which introduced the world’s first social media ban for children under 16 in December, covering platforms including Facebook, Snapchat, TikTok and YouTube.

Macron has been advocating for similar restrictions across the European Union. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has also recently backed limiting children’s access to social media across the 27-member bloc.

Under the proposed law, France’s Information Technology minister will prepare a list of social media platforms prohibited for children and teenagers under the age of 15.

Social media companies will be required to introduce age verification systems approved by the French privacy regulator.

The bill also proposes banning the use of smartphones in high schools.

Source: Reuters