French venues are in hot water for banning kids. Is adult-only a luxury or a necessity?

Hospitality venues in France such as hotels, restaurants and campsites that do not admit children could face prosecution under proposals for a crackdown that emerged this week.Laurence Rossignol, a socialist senator, plans to introduce a private member’s bill to make it illegal to ban children from such establishments, the Times reported, while the French high commissioner for childhood, Sarah El Haïry, said government lawyers were looking into whether it would be possible to take legal action against places that exclude families.She told the French international radio station RFI that the move would address the “no kids trend”, which amounted to “violence against children”, adding: “A child shouts, laughs and moves … we are institutionalising the idea that silence is a luxury and the absence of children is a luxury.”Here, four people from across Europe share their thoughts on the idea.Emilie, who is a stay-at-home mother, thinks it’s “healthy” that French politicians want to stop the trend that “turns children into pariahs” but does not think a ban would deal with the root cause

Sweet dreams: dessert parlours help to revive UK’s high streets

Dessert cafes and ice-cream parlours are hoping to play a role in a revival of UK high streets and the night-time economy, as people seek an alternative to going to the pub or an expensive meal out.Their number has soared by almost 700 in the UK in the past decade, according to analysts at Green Street, formerly the Local Data Company, with outlets in places from Aberdeen to Plymouth.The market is thought to be worth more than £500m, including several national chains as well as much-loved independents from The Pudding Stop in St Albans to Cloud 9 in Brighton.“It’s a nice chit-chat place,” says Ria, 24, emerging from a lunchtime stop at a London outpost of one of the UK’s biggest chains, Creams, with two friends. “Especially if you are craving something sweet

What is the most common mental health misinformation on TikTok?

Thousands of influencers peddle mental health misinformation on social media platforms – some out of a naive belief that their personal experience will help people, others because they want to boost their following or sell products.As part of a Guardian investigation, experts established clear themes to the misinformation contained in videos posted with a #mentalhealthtips hashtag on TikTok.Several videos about borderline personality disorder suggest symptoms that are everyday experiences – such as feeling anxiety when people change plans, experiencing mood swings, a fear of abandonment and mirroring people’s behaviour to be liked.Another video purports to show how depression manifests in the workplace as a lack of concentration, feeling tired, having low energy levels, a loss of appetite and irritability.“While some of the ‘symptoms’ overlap with depression, these can be attributed to a range of afflictions and struggles,” said Liam Modlin, a therapist and psychology researcher at King’s College London

Starmer says Farage would spook the City and give us Truss 2 – he could be right

The message Zia Yusuf wanted to send was clear. With a backdrop of the City of London behind him, from the 34th floor of the Shard, the Reform UK chair laid out an economic policy designed to show his party meant business.In a briefing over a full English breakfast for some of the nation’s journalists on Friday morning, Yusuf reiterated an announcement the Reform leader, Nigel Farage, had made overnight from another hotel 5,000 miles away in Las Vegas: the party would now accept donations in bitcoin, and if elected to power would make tax and regulatory changes to bolster Britain’s adoption of cryptocurrency.As far as settings go for a press conference, commanding views over St Paul’s Cathedral and the banks and asset managers of the Square Mile, it is straight out of the Westminster playbook, even if the policy idea is pure Donald Trump.However, the trouble with Yusuf’s message to the City was not the questionable credibility of crypto – viewed with unease at the Bank of England as the wild west of finance – but the party’s broader tax and spending policies

Jannik Sinner eases past Lehecka to stay on track for first French Open title

Jannik Sinner continued his pursuit of a first French Open title as he eased into the fourth round at Roland Garros with a supreme 6-0, 6-1, 6-2 victory over Jiri Lehecka of the Czech Republic. This is Sinner’s second tournament since he returned from a three-month doping ban this month. After reaching the Italian Open final in Rome, losing to the reigning French Open champion Carlos Alcaraz, Sinner has continued to build on his form in Paris.Sinner, the top seed, was in imperious form from the first ball as he rolled to a 6-0, 5-0 lead against Lehecka, a talented 23-year-old and a vicious shotmaker, before losing his first game of the match. Despite bulldozing a quality opponent, Sinner refused to entertain any complacency

French Open day seven: Draper, Sinner and Gauff storm through – as it happened

It’s 6-3 4-1, Norrie leading Fearnley in the all-Brit game. Novak Djokovic takes the stage later. Tumaini will bring you the latest through the evening. Meanwhile, here’s his report on Jack Draper’s excellent win.That concludes the blog for today