Children continue to be exposed to pornography online because the Govt has once again delayed its age verification programme.
Under the new system, anyone attempting to view pornography will need to either purchase a pass at a local shop or will need to sign up for an AgeID account using a credit card or another form of ID.
The legislation was passed in 2017, and it was first postponed in April 2018. Now it has been pushed back again by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS).
‘Devastating effects’
The DCMS has previously affirmed its commitment to the blocks, saying that introducing age verification is “a world-leading step forward to protect children” and that adult content is “too easy to access on the internet”.
Writing for The Telegraph, columnist Charlie Peters said children “must be protected from the devastating effects of Internet pornography”.
He also hit out at those who paint “any attempt to quell the unfettered access to pornography that currently exists” as “a grave breach of individual liberty that must be resisted”.
‘Immensely damaging’
Liberal think-tank the Adam Smith Institute is calling for the Government to repeal the law, accusing it of “creating a dystopian future by requiring us to go to a local shop to get a government-approved porn pass”.
But Peters said he found the think-tank’s claims unconvincing, writing that the Act’s purpose “is to prevent children from accessing harmful, adult content. And we must be clear: pornography is immensely damaging”.
He pointed out that the harmful effects of pornography “more than outweigh the additional effort of age verification”.
Frequent pornography consumption is blamed for increased violence against women, and greater instances of impotence and infidelity.
‘Sensible approach’
He continued: “In previous generations, Britons expected pornography to be hidden away from children at the top of newsagents’ shelves. But today, thanks to the internet, the extreme theatre of pornography is now easily accessible.”
Government statistics show that around ten per cent of UK children visited a pornographic website in just one month, and sixty per cent were 14 or younger when they first saw pornography online.
Peters said it is “high time” the Government acted in order to “lessen the tide of pornography that reaches British children”, adding “Internet porn-peddlers have escaped action for too long.”
The DCMS was reportedly set to announce its new timetable for the rules on Wednesday, but that too has been delayed.