The Fort Worth Press - Even at Elysee, phones are handed in, Macron tells French pupils

Macron has been pushing for French children to spend less time in front of screens, which the government fears is arresting their development.

Visiting a school in the southern town of Mende, the French president defended his push to ban phones in high schools as the measure came into force on the first day of the new school year on Tuesday, arguing they were a distraction and an obstacle to learning.

"Inside the school grounds it's not good to have your phone," he said. "It's not compatible with paying attention in classes."

Macron implied he practiced what he preached.

"When I have meetings, for example at the Elysee now, I ask people to hand in their mobile phones," he said. "Otherwise, even at the Elysee, you have meetings with people and they're all on their phones."

"If we're honest with ourselves, we've all been somewhat overwhelmed by this. And that's true for everyone, including adults," he added.

The pupils had been asked to hand over their phones, placing them in a dedicated numbered storage unit mounted on the classroom wall.

Several students spoke up, with some saying they understood the new ban, while others argued it was "infantilising" in a world where mobile phones had become ubiquitous.

France has already banned children from using mobile phones in primary and middle schools, meaning the ban goes up to the age of around 15.

Authorities have now introduced the high school mobile phone ban, even though teachers' unions warn that the measure might be hard to implement quickly.

Macron also used the back-to-school event to promote his push to ban social media access for children under 15.

While parliament backed the bill, France's top court struck down the social media ban on freedom of expression grounds.

Macron's office has said the president has no plans to give up on his drive to bar children from apps such as TikTok and the government would work on a new draft law.

"This creates addictions and dependencies. It also leads to attention disorders," Macron told the pupils.

"Moreover, we have seen that the more we are exposed to screens and social media, the harder it becomes to sustain our attention and concentrate on reading."

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T.Mason--TFWP