Nannies and childcare assistants could soon be banned from wearing the Islamic veil in France, even when working at home, after a controversial law bill was adopted by the French Senate late last night.
If the text is subsequently approved by the country’s national assembly, there will be a ban on wearing the veil for childcare assistants working in nursery schools (where the veil is already banned), in educational centres and in all facilities catering for children, as well as for nannies who look after children at home.
“Parents have the right to want a nanny who is neutral from a religious perspective,” said the left-wing senator Françoise Laborde, defending the text, while debate raged in the Senate. The Green party voted against the bill, while the right-wing UMP party was divided between abstentions and votes against the text.