§ Lord Houghton of Sowerbyasked Her Majesty's Government:
How many prosecutions have taken place under the Obscene Publications Acts 1959 and 1964 in respect of video recordings between July 1982 and the most recent date of available information.
§ The Minister of State, Home Office (Lord Elton)The statistics available centrally on prosecutions 968 under these Acts do not distinguish offences involving video recordings separately. Records available to us, which may be incomplete, show 491 defendants proceeded against in 1983 under the Obscene Publications Acts 1959 and 1964. The corresponding figure for 1982 was 282.
§ Lord Houghton of Sowerbyasked Her Majesty's Government:
On what grounds video recordings of films passed by the BBFC for viewing by persons over the age of 18 are being made the subject of prosecutions under the Obscene Publications Acts, and how many cases of this kind have occurred since July 1982 to a recent date.
§ Lord EltonThe test of obscenity in Section 1(1) of the Obscene Publications Act 1959 is whether the effect is, if taken as a whole, such as to tend to deprave and corrupt persons who are likely, having regard to all the circumstances, to read, see or hear the material in question.
Since July 1982, the Director of Public Prosecutions has advised proceedings under Section 2 of the Obscene Publications Act 1959 in respect of 14 works which appear to have been awarded a certificate by the British Board of Film Censors. We understand that most, if not all, of these certificates are for exhibition in the cinema. The BBFC awards certificates for exhibition in the cinema on the basis that the works concerned will be shown in circumstances where the audience can be restricted to persons above a certain age, whereas many video recordings are intended for viewing in the home where children may be present.