Macron proposes to ban social media for children under 15

French President Emmanuel Macron declared he would ban the use of social media for children under the age of 15. He voiced this after an attack in the department of Upper Marne by a 15-year-old schoolboy on a college worker, who later died of her wounds, BelTA reported citing RIA Novosti.

French President Emmanuel Macron said on Tuesday he would ban the use of social media for children under the age of 15 in France unless joint action is taken at the European level within a few months.

"We must ban social media for children under 15. I will give a few months for the European mobilization to begin. Otherwise, we will start doing it in France. We cannot wait any longer," he said.

The French leader also expressed his desire to tighten the rules for the sale of cold weapons. "It is impossible for a teenager to have a cold weapon on the street or at school: this is the responsibility of parents and sellers," the President said.

In April, MP and former French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal proposed banning access to social networks for children under 15 and limiting it at night for older teenagers as part of radical measures to combat Internet addiction. According to the former PM, teenagers spend between 3.5 and 5 hours in front of a screen every day. Attal, therefore, called for every teenager to be assessed for gadget addiction at the age of 11 and 15. He also suggested that a digital curfew be imposed on young people who have access to social media, that is, over 15 and under 18 years old, by closing social media to them from 22:00 to 8:00.

On June 10, police detained a teenager who attacked a college worker with a knife while inspecting students' bags in France's Upper Marne department. The woman died of her wounds.