French President Emmanuel Macron has called on the European Commission to support imposing a ban on social media use for children under the age of 15 across the entire European Union, after France's own attempt to pass national legislation on the matter stalled, his office said Tuesday.
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In a letter dated August 29 and addressed to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, seen by Reuters and other media outlets, Macron said it was now urgently necessary to impose a unified EU-wide ban through new European legislation, after France's Constitutional Council struck down a national bill this summer that had been due to take effect in September.
Macron wrote in his letter: "I believe it has now become necessary to go further, and through a new European legislative text, to unify the ban on children under 15 accessing social media platforms, in order to protect all children across the various countries of the Union."
This push comes after Australia adopted a landmark ban last year on children's use of social media, at a time when several European countries are considering imposing similar restrictions amid growing concerns over the impact of these platforms on young people's mental health and safety.
However, some countries, particularly in Scandinavia, believe the decision to allow children to use social media should be left to parents.
Macron, who is in his final year as president of France, has made tightening controls on children's social media use one of his priorities ahead of France's next presidential election in 2027, and is also working to rally support from other EU governments for similar restrictions.
Macron said France would work separately to redraft the legislation struck down by the Constitutional Council, though political divisions within parliament and difficult budget negotiations could complicate efforts to pass a new law.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen had said in July that the EU would move to restrict young children's access to social media across its 27 member states, based on proposals put forward by two experts calling for a graduated, age-based system.
Under this approach, children under 13 would only be allowed limited, supervised use of social media, with restrictions gradually easing as they get older.
Macron, however, is pushing for a stricter approach: a blanket ban on social media use up to age 15, ahead of von der Leyen's annual State of the Union address to the European Parliament later this month.
The French call comes amid a growing European debate over how to protect minors from the risks associated with platforms like Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat, YouTube, Facebook, and X, weighed against controversy over how far governments should intervene in decisions about children's internet use.
