France readies high school phone ban for next month

France will proceed with a ban on mobile phones in high schools starting next month, government spokesperson Maud Bregeon confirmed, even after the Constitutional Council struck down a related provision banning social media for children under 15. Macron's office says the phone ban has a 'stable, consolidated and statutory legal framework,' though unions warn schools have had little time to update their internal regulations.

School principal union leaders say implementation could take up to a year, since rules banning phones must first be written into each school's regulations, and enforcement isn't as simple as posting a supervisor by every student. One regional council estimated storage solutions like phone pouches and lockers cost about 40,000 euros per high school of 1,500 students.

The ministry allows exemptions for educational uses, and students commonly rely on phones for schedule and room-assignment updates. Macron, term-limited and stepping down next spring, says he still intends to pursue a separate law targeting apps like TikTok.

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