Republican Leader Calls for Ban on Veils During All School Activities

"It shocks me that we accept that a veiled person can accompany children on school trips because, how can we explain that it is prohibited within the school premises, but if we are in contact with the children outside, and still within the school framework, we allow it?".

This is how Christian Jacob expressed himself on France Inter. He advocates a return to the circular of Luc Chatel, former Minister of Education under Sarkozy. For the President of the Republicans, the wearing of the veil must be prohibited "for the entire school time".

This circular dated March 2012 indeed prohibited accompanying persons from wearing conspicuous religious symbols.

However, in December 2013, a study by the Council of State took the opposite view of the said circular, indicating that the parents accompanying the children during school outings could not be considered as auxiliary agents of the public service.

Consequently, they are not subject to the religious neutrality imposed on teachers.

Christian Jacob’s proposal comes a few days after the humiliation that a veiled woman accompanying her son to the Regional Council of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté in Dijon on Friday, October 11, suffered from Julien Odoul, spokesperson for the National Rally (RN). He had been very aggressive towards the young woman.