During his conference, the President of the Republic decided to announce a political program, in addition to his justifications for the dissolution of the National Assembly. Among its priorities, a difficult, if not impossible, ban on smartphones for the youngest.
During his first intervention after the announcement of the dissolution of the National Assembly, Emmanuel Macron not only wanted to give his political line for the anticipated legislative elections. He also mentioned several projects in progress, launched by his government.
The president thus declared that he wanted to ban access to the telephone “ before 11 years » and social networks « before 15 years “. To consider such a measure, Emmanuel Macron claims to rely on a report submitted to the government at the end of April.
In this document of around a hundred pages, it is recommended to only authorize mobile phones from the age of 11. After the age of 13, experts suggest giving a smartphone without access to social networks, then opening this access from the age of 15, only on networks ” ethical »without further detail around this mention.
Still according to this study, 89% of 13-19 year olds own a smartphone in France, as do 35% of 7-12 year olds. Among young people who own a personal smartphone at the age of 10 and a half, the average age of acquisition was approximately 9 years and 8 months.
The report lists numerous harmful consequences associated with the use of smartphones among young people: sleep deficits, lack of activity, vision problems, but also access to pornography, extremes, violence as well as an entrenchment of stereotypes. .
Emmanuel Macron said he wanted to counter these risks with an age for the digital majority, and therefore the ban on smartphones before the age of 11.
How could a government ban telephones for young people?
Concretely, it would be impossible to permanently limit access to smartphones for children. The report recommends measures such as an obligation to provide the customer’s date of birth when purchasing a mobile and subscribing to a telephone plan. Just like with toys, a label “ not suitable for under 13s » should be added to the boxes in specialized stores.
However, in practice, nothing would prevent an adult from buying a smartphone before giving it to their children.
As for social networks, the major platforms (Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok) do not verify the age of their users. The hypothesis of using an identity document was raised. However, the risks are currently too great: identity theft, data theft, reuse of information by companies.
Social media can only become more “ethical,” as the report recommends. Good luck.
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