Live: France will maintain order without state of emergency, but it’s not off the table, Macron says

President Emmanuel Macron on Monday said public order will be maintained in France without the need for a state of emergency, while noting that it was not “off-limits or taboo” if “things were to deteriorate". During a visit to Marseille, Macron promised "concrete" measures to address the demands by high school students after their protests triggered weeks of nationwide unrest. Follow our live blog for all the latest updates. Macron says 'social media is damaging our democracies' Social media is "damaging our democracies", said President Emmanuel Macron as France struggles to contain weeks of protests marked by street violence and looting. During a visit to Marseille, France's second-largest city, Macron that social media was especially used during unrest on October 17 "to bring young and not-so-young people to places where criminal acts, attacks and looting were taking place". He described social media as "tools for mobilising the worst impulses". France will maintain order without state of emergency, but it’s not off the table, Macron says President Emmanuel Macron has said “public order” will be maintained across France “without a state of emergency,” while noting that it was not “off-limits or taboo” if “things were to deteriorate.” “We are upholding the Republic and public order today without a state of emergency,” said Macron after a meeting with Marseille Mayor Benoît Payan. Macron described the current situation as “a social and political mobilisation rooted, on the one hand, in the high school student protests, and on the other, in the high cost of living.” Macron warns Saturday protests in France could turn 'risky' French President Emmanuel Macron has warned that a new wave of protests this weekend could turn "risky", adding that protest routes would remain outside city centres to protect public order. "Next Saturday is expected to be another risky day," Macron said during a visit to Marseille, France's second-largest city, where protesters briefly stormed city hall on October 17. Macron acknowledged that authorities had "not anticipated at all" the scale of the demonstrations a week earlier. French government to announce strong measures to assuage social protests, Macron says French President Emmanuel Macron has said his Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu will announce "strong measures" to assuage protests in the country. "I have also asked the government to respond to the legitimate demands that lie at the root of this social movement," he told reporters in Marseille on Monday. Lecornu is set to hold a news conference later Monday after meeting with unions of high school students. Hello and welcome to FRANCE 24's live coverage as Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu is set to meet with high school student unions after weeks of unrest.