HL Deb 19 July 1982 vol 433 cc745-6WA
Viscount Gormanston

asked Her Majesty's Government:

Whether they intend either to introduce or to amend legislation so as to prohibit the use of video on large screens in public performance.

Lord Elton

Under the Cinematograph (Amendment) Act 1982, which comes into force on 13th October, cinematograph licensing arrangements will apply to exhibitions involving the use of video equipment of all kinds in the same way as to those given by means of film projection equipment. Any such exhibition to which the public are admitted on payment or which is otherwise promoted for private gain will have to conform with the cinema safety regulations and with film censorship requirements imposed by the licensing authority. Such an exhibition will also be subject to the provisions of the Obscene Publications Act 1959. The Government are not aware of any need for additional legislative restrictions.