In French culture, seven is known as \u201cl\u2019\u00e2ge de raison\u201d, the age at which children know right from wrong and can take some moral responsibility. France\u2019s national rail operator, it seems, puts the age at which a child can be trusted to behave in a non-annoying way onboard a train a bit higher.<\/p>\n
In launching its new Optimum plus tariff earlier this month, offering spaces onboard its weekday TGV trains between Paris and Lyon with bigger, more comfortable seats, fancy food and no under-12s, SNCF was trying to appeal to the many business travellers who make that journey. But the move has sparked a backlash<\/a> and a philosophical debate about the place of children in society, against the backdrop of a worrying decline in French birthrates<\/a>. \u201cWe can\u2019t on one hand say that we are not having enough children and on the other hand try to exclude them from everywhere,\u201d argues Sarah El Ha\u00efry<\/a>, France\u2019s high commissioner for childhood.<\/p>\n Anyone who has spent a long train ride playing 4,000 rounds of I-spy with their own child, let alone sat close to anyone else\u2019s, may understand the logic of offering child-free spaces. But the reaction highlights a strong philosophical objection in a country that traditionally gives children plenty of autonomy and responsibility, as part of a mindset that sees helping them fit in with wider society as a priority. It also highlights practical concerns about what \u201cno kids\u201d attitudes say about how birthrates will evolve.<\/p>\n SNCF\u2019s move was certainly a surprising one in a country that has a reputation for being family-friendly and respecting children\u2019s right to take part in the rituals of everyday life, starting with the elaborate three-course meals they are served in school canteens. My own half-French children, growing up in Paris, have had customs such as politely greeting <\/strong>neighbours and shop workers drilled into them from babyhood, not to mention sitting patiently in a restaurant and chacun son tour (taking turns) on the swings in the park. The logic is that treating children like small but valuable and responsible members of society helps them evolve into polite and respectful adults \u2013 how can they learn what society expects of them if they are excluded from public spaces as kids? It\u2019s hard to argue with that logic.<\/p>\n So, the \u201cno kids\u201d rule has hit a nerve. SNCF is not only a public service operator; it is entwined with French identity and the all-important long summer holidays. As things stand, it seems pretty child-friendly: SNCF station staff hand out activity kits to youngsters travelling on its TGVs in the school breaks, and summer trains are often full of groups of unaccompanied children being escorted to summer camps by young guides.<\/p>\n Once the social media storm broke, SNCF did some swift downplaying<\/a>, noting that the Optimum plus tariff only applies to 8% of Monday-to-Friday seats on one route popular with business travellers, leaving 92% of seats on weekdays and 100% on weekends available to everyone. It eventually removed the reference to the minimum age from the description on its website, but the debate is raging on.<\/p>\n A society that cannot bear the presence of children is \u201cworrying\u201d, El Ha\u00efry argues. The former minister has spoken out before about the \u201cno kids\u201d trend, whereby restaurants and hotels are increasingly targeting child-free grownups who are seeking peace and quiet and have deep pockets. She <\/strong>is not the only one to see a problem<\/a>; last year the socialist senator Laurence Rossignol put forward a law<\/a> making the creation of no-kids spaces illegal. Now, politicians from the right and the left are finding common ground in denouncing SNCF\u2019s move.<\/p>\n This is not only a question of morality. France\u2019s finances are in crisis \u2013 and politicians know that a falling birthrate piles on <\/strong>more long-term pressure. Compared with its European neighbours, France is actually not doing that badly, with the second-highest fertility rate in the EU in 2023<\/a>. But the latest figures show that France\u2019s rate is below the replacement rate \u2013 and falling. A recent update from the national statistics bureau, Insee<\/a>, shows 24% fewer babies were born in France last year than in 2010. The government is trying to turn the tide, but family-focused measures such as increased parental leave, while welcome, are just part of the story \u2013 they won\u2019t offset the worries about the future climate crisis and the eye-watering cost of living that are also behind some people\u2019s reservations about starting a family.<\/p>\n