French government considers limiting 'no kids' tourism
Children's Commissioner Sarah El-Haïry
has been holding a series of meetings
with unions and business groups representing French hotels, campsites, tourism companies and tour guide operators over the increase in holidays advertised as being 'adults only'.
Although the designation has been common in some global holiday resorts - especially luxury sites - for some years, it has been less common in France but is now growing in popularity.
Despite less than three percent of the tourism representatives questions operating a 'no kids' policy in part or all of their premises, the Commissioner declared that the trend was "worrying".
Advertisement
'I'm quite frightened, and I weigh my words carefully, of the development of movements, of 'no kids' spaces, where children are no longer welcome, where children are pushed out of sight, even banned,' said El Haïry.
"This phenomenon privileges the comfort of adults, to the detriment of the inclusion and well-being of the youngest,' she added.
The subject of kid-free spaces has previously been raised in France as part of a report on the dangers of screen time for children.
"We can't accept that some people decide they no longer want to put up with this or that part of the population, in this case children, and that society organises itself around this intolerance," Socialist Senator Laurence Rossignol told AFP.
"Children are not a nuisance," he added, calling on the government to add the issue to its parliamentary agenda and penalise businesses that promote 'child free' spaces.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
LeMonde
3 hours ago
- LeMonde
Israel threatens more strikes on Lebanon unless Hezbollah is disarmed
Israel warned Friday, June 6 that it would keep striking Lebanon until militant group Hezbollah has been disarmed, after hitting south Beirut in what Lebanese leaders called a major violation of a November ceasefire. Thursday's attacks on what the Israeli military said were underground Hezbollah drone factories came after an Israeli evacuation call on the eve of Eid al-Adha, a key Muslim religious festival, and sent huge numbers of residents of Beirut's southern suburbs fleeing. It was the fourth and heaviest Israeli bombardment of the heavily populated area, known as a bastion of support for Hezbollah, in the six months since a ceasefire deal aimed at ending hostilities between Hezbollah and Israel. The last attack was in late April. "There will be no calm in Beirut, and no order or stability in Lebanon, without security for the State of Israel," Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said in a statement. "Agreements must be honored and if you do not do what is required, we will continue to act, and with great force." The state-run National News Agency reported around a dozen strikes, while Health Minister Rakan Nassereldine said several people were wounded by flying glass. AFP photographers on Friday saw huge destruction as residents, some wearing masks, inspected the debris and damage to their homes. 'Blatant act' A Hezbollah statement said a preliminary assessment showed nine buildings were completely destroyed and dozens of others damaged. A woman in her 40s who lives near one of the strike sites said she fled on foot with her young children including a three-month-old baby. "Thank God" the building was not destroyed, she told AFP after returning Friday morning to find the windows of her flat shattered. South Beirut resident Fatima, 40, said "life goes on," adding that she and her two children were following the usual Eid traditions after fleeing the previous night. Hezbollah sparked months of deadly hostilities by launching cross-border attacks on northern Israel in stated solidarity with Palestinian ally Hamas following its October 7, 2023 attack. France, part of a committee overseeing the ceasefire, condemned the strikes and urged all parties to respect the truce, noting that the monitoring mechanism "is there to help the parties deal with threats and prevent any escalation." Lebanese President Joseph Aoun late on Thursday voiced "firm condemnation of the Israeli aggression" and "flagrant violation of an international accord... on the eve of a sacred religious festival." Prime Minister Nawaf Salam condemned the strikes as a violation of Lebanese sovereignty. Hezbollah lawmaker Ali Ammar on Friday urged "all Lebanese political forces... to translate their statements of condemnation into concrete action," including diplomatic pressure. Hezbollah backer Iran called the strikes "a blatant act of aggression against Lebanon's territorial integrity and sovereignty," foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said. The war left Hezbollah massively weakened, with top commanders including longtime leader Hassan Nasrallah killed and weapons caches incinerated. 'Refusal to cooperate' Under the ceasefire, Lebanon should disarm Hezbollah, once reputed to be more heavily armed than the state. A Lebanese military official told AFP the committee received no warning before the Israeli evacuation order. The Lebanese army "attempted to go to one of the sites... but Israeli warning shots prevented it from carrying out its mission," the official said, requesting anonymity. Lebanon's army, which has been dismantling Hezbollah infrastructure under the truce, said the Israeli military's ongoing violations and "refusal to cooperate" with the ceasefire monitoring mechanism "could prompt the (Lebanese) military to freeze cooperation" on site inspections. The French foreign ministry statement noted that "dismantling unauthorised military sites... falls as a priority to the Lebanese" army with the support of United Nations peacekeepers. The Israeli military had said Hezbollah was "operating to increase production of UAVs (drones) for the next war" in "blatant violation" of the truce understandings. Under the ceasefire, Hezbollah fighters were to withdraw north of the Litani river, about 30 kilometers (20 miles) from the Israeli border. Israel was to withdraw troops from Lebanon but has kept them in five areas it deems "strategic" and still launches regular strikes on south Lebanon. Israel's military also issued an evacuation warning for the southern village of Ain Qana. It then struck a building there that it alleged was a Hezbollah base, according to the NNA.
LeMonde
5 hours ago
- LeMonde
Lula presses Macron on Mercosur trade deal during Paris visit
French President Emmanuel Macron and his Brazilian counterpart Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva may have a close relationship, but that does not always prevent serious disagreements. Macron welcomed Lula to Paris on Thursday, June 5, for a two-day state visit, and the two leaders were set to meet again at a United Nations conference on ocean protection in Nice from June 9 to 13. The state dinner at the Elysée, which was attended by a large number of guests, was preceded earlier in the day by a tense moment during a joint press conference following their welcome at Les Invalides and initial talks. Lula launched into a passionate plea for the signing of the free trade agreement between the European Union and Mercosur (the South American trade bloc). "My dear Macron, open your heart a little," he urged the French president, who has deemed the compromise negotiated by the European Commission "unacceptable in its current form." Such an EU-Mercosur agreement would be "the best response our regions can give in a scenario of uncertainty brought about by the return of unilateralism and tariff protectionism," added the former trade unionist, referring to the threat of trade wars posed by US president Donald Trump. The Brazilian leader even encouraged the 27 member states to sign the agreement during his presidency of Mercosur in the second half of 2025.
AFP
6 hours ago
- AFP
Fake Trump post on Musk's drug use spreads amid blowup
"Elon Musk or 'Mediocre Musk' is constantly high on ketamine. Always making promises he can't keep. NOT TO BE TRUSTED! He wants to go to Mars, how about you go back to Africa," reads the alleged post from Trump, timestamped to June 5, 2025 at 6:07 pm . Image Screenshot from X taken June 6, 2025 The image rocketed across platforms including X, Facebook, Instagram and Threads as the US leader and world's richest man traded barbs in what began as a dispute over the "big, beautiful" spending bill before Congress. The pair hurled insults at each other online after Trump expressed disappointment in his top donor's criticism of the legislation, with Trump threatening to strip Musk of his huge government contracts and Musk claiming credit for the Republican's 2024 election victory. At one point, Musk alleged that the president was referenced in government documents on the disgraced financier Jeffrey Epstein, who died by suicide in jail while awaiting trial for sex crimes. The fallout came days after the New York Times reported that Musk used so much of while on the 2024 campaign trail that he developed bladder problems -- a charge Musk has denied. But a review of live and archived versions of Trump's Truth Social feed reveals he did not invoke ketamine in his attacks on Musk. "That is fake," the White House said of the purported screenshot circulating online, in a June 6, 2025 email to AFP. The president did not post during the 6 pm (2200 GMT) hour Two hours earlier, he championed his bill and wrote: "I don't mind Elon turning against me, but he should have done so months ago" (archived here). His next post, after 10:30 pm (0230 GMT), shared a link to a Newsmax article about his approval ratings (archived here). Keyword searches returned no credible news articles referencing the alleged post. AFP has debunked several fake osts erroneously attributed to Trump. Read more of AFP's reporting on misinformation about US politics here.
