France is considering making parents financially responsible for damage caused by their children as the government seeks to contain a wave of youth unrest that has left schools, public buildings and transport infrastructure facing a repair bill running into tens of millions of euros.
Gerald Darmanin, France’s justice minister, has called on prosecutors to pursue the civil liability of parents whose children are involved in damaging public property, arguing that making families pay for repairs could prove a more effective deterrent than prison.
“It’s not the minor who pays, it’s the parents… Today it’s also a problem with parents,” Darmanin said.
“When high schools are destroyed, when bus shelters are attacked, when transport is attacked, we now demand the civil responsibility of the parents,” he added.
Darmanin said imposing financial liability on parents would be “much more useful than imprisonment” as authorities confront the escalating cost of repairing damage caused during the unrest.
The scale of the destruction is already pressuring regional governments. In the Île-de-France region, which includes Paris and has 468 schools, regional president Valérie Pécresse has estimated damage at €7mn.
Fabrice Pannekoucke, president of the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, said damage across about 300 high schools was between €25mn and €30mn. Franck Leroy, president of the Grand Est region, said his administration was facing a bill of almost €1mn.
The figures highlight the wider economic consequences of disorder, with public authorities potentially forced to divert funds towards rebuilding schools and infrastructure rather than planned investment and public services.
Around 2,000 people have reportedly been taken into custody since the disturbances began, with about 90 per cent under the age of 18. Authorities have said a significant proportion of arrests involved violence against individuals.
The government is seeking to draw a line between legitimate political protest and criminal damage as the unrest continues to spread.
“We have gone from student protests” to a question of “public order,” Darmanin said.
The justice minister has also warned of further “urban violence” over the weekend ahead of a national mobilisation planned for Tuesday.
The unrest has intensified a political debate over policing, social conditions, immigration and the role of political parties in mobilising protesters.
Darmanin has accused politicians from the left-wing France Unbowed (LFI) movement of attempting to exploit the student movement and inflame tensions. He described LFI coordinator Manuel Bompard as a “firefighter-arsonist” and accused the party’s presidential candidate Jean-Luc Mélenchon of making “extremely violent remarks” before “changing his tone, too late.”
Jordan Bardella, president of France’s National Rally, said footage showing a policewoman being attacked while on the ground “illustrates what France has become after decades of laxity and mass immigration”.
In Britain, Reform UK leader Nigel Farage said he was “horrified by the violence” and argued that the unrest demonstrated the consequences of allowing political extremism and disorder to escalate.
“This is what happens when hard-left politicians allow thuggery to spiral out of control. This will never happen in Britain under Reform,” he said.
Zia Yusuf, Reform UK’s home affairs spokesman, described the scenes as “a warning to Britain”.
“Unless we have political leaders brave enough to stand up to these people and take action, scenes like the ones in France will come to Britain too. Britain needs Reform,” he said.
The violence has included attacks on police, public transport and schools, with videos circulating online appearing to show officers being pursued and attacked and members of the public and teachers assaulted.
For the French government, the immediate challenge is restoring public order while determining who should ultimately absorb the financial consequences.
Darmanin’s proposal would shift part of that burden from taxpayers to families, making parental civil responsibility a central element of the government’s response as the cost of the unrest continues to mount.
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