UK Obscenity Laws
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UK Obscenity Laws
Since 1857, a series of obscenity laws known as the Obscene Publications Acts have governed what can be published in England and Wales. The classic definition of criminal obscenity is if it "tends to deprave and corrupt," stated in 1868 by Sir Alexander Cockburn, 12th Baronet, Lord Justice Cockburn, in ''Regina v. Hicklin'', now known as the Hicklin test. Timeline of legislation There have been several Act of Parliament, Acts of Parliament of this name: * Obscene Publications Act 1857 * Obscene Publications Act 1959 * Obscene Publications Act 1964 Of these, only the 1959 and 1964 acts are still in force in England and Wales, as amended by more recent legislation. They define the legal bounds of obscenity in England and Wales, and are used to enforce the removal of obscene material. Irish law diverged from English law in 1929, replacing the OPA 1857 with Censorship in the Republic of Ireland#Development of Irish statutes, a new Irish act. Key cases under the Obscene Publication ...
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Obscenity
An obscenity is any utterance or act that strongly offends the prevalent morality of the time. It is derived from the Latin ''obscēnus'', ''obscaenus'', "boding ill; disgusting; indecent", of uncertain etymology. Such loaded language can be used to indicate strong moral repugnance and outrage, in expressions such as "obscene profits" and "the obscenity of war". As a legal term, it usually refers to graphic depictions of people engaged in sexual and excretory activity, and related utterances of profane speech. United States obscenity law In the United States, issues of obscenity raise issues of limitations on the freedom of speech and of the press, which are otherwise protected by the First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States. Federal obscenity law in the U.S. is unusual in that there is no uniform national standard. Former Justice Potter Stewart of the Supreme Court of the United States, in attempting to classify what material constituted exactly "what is ...
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Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982
The Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982 is an Act of the United Kingdom Parliament which makes provision for a wide range of civic government matters. Effects of the Act Parts I and II of the Act deal with licensing by local authorities of a range of activities including taxis and private hire cars, second-hand dealers, metal dealers, boat hire, street traders, market operators, public entertainment, indoor sports entertainment and window cleaners. Part III deals with the control of sex shops. Part IV sets out a range of public nuisance offences, including soliciting and importuning by prostitutes, urination or defecation in public places, dog fouling, dangerous animals, drunkenness, display, publication etc. of obscene material, obstruction by pedestrians, ticket touting, causing annoyance by playing of instruments, radios &c. Sections 52 and 52A create offences of possession, making and distribution etc. of indecent images of children. Part V deals with public procession ...
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Book Censorship In The United Kingdom
A book is a medium for recording information in the form of writing or images, typically composed of many pages (made of papyrus, parchment, vellum, or paper) bound together and protected by a cover. The technical term for this physical arrangement is '' codex'' (plural, ''codices''). In the history of hand-held physical supports for extended written compositions or records, the codex replaces its predecessor, the scroll. A single sheet in a codex is a leaf and each side of a leaf is a page. As an intellectual object, a book is prototypically a composition of such great length that it takes a considerable investment of time to compose and still considered as an investment of time to read. In a restricted sense, a book is a self-sufficient section or part of a longer composition, a usage reflecting that, in antiquity, long works had to be written on several scrolls and each scroll had to be identified by the book it contained. Each part of Aristotle's ''Physics'' is called ...
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Obscenity Law
An obscenity is any utterance or act that strongly offends the prevalent morality of the time. It is derived from the Latin ''obscēnus'', ''obscaenus'', "boding ill; disgusting; indecent", of uncertain etymology. Such loaded language can be used to indicate strong moral repugnance and outrage, in expressions such as "obscene profits" and "the obscenity of war". As a legal term, it usually refers to graphic depictions of people engaged in sexual and excretory activity, and related utterances of profane speech. United States obscenity law In the United States, issues of obscenity raise issues of limitations on the freedom of speech and of the press, which are otherwise protected by the First Amendment to the Constitution of the United States. Federal obscenity law in the U.S. is unusual in that there is no uniform national standard. Former Justice Potter Stewart of the Supreme Court of the United States, in attempting to classify what material constituted exactly "what is ...
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Laws In The United Kingdom
Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior,Robertson, ''Crimes against humanity'', 90. with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been variously described as a science and as the art of justice. State-enforced laws can be made by a group legislature or by a single legislator, resulting in statutes; by the executive through decrees and regulations; or established by judges through precedent, usually in common law jurisdictions. Private individuals may create legally binding contracts, including arbitration agreements that adopt alternative ways of resolving disputes to standard court litigation. The creation of laws themselves may be influenced by a constitution, written or tacit, and the rights encoded therein. The law shapes politics, economics, history and society in various ways and serves as a mediator of relations between people. Legal systems vary between jurisdictions, ...
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Section 63 Of The Criminal Justice And Immigration Act 2008
Section 63 of the Criminal Justice and Immigration Act 2008 is a law in the United Kingdom criminalising possession of what it refers to as "extreme pornographic images". The law came into force on 26 January 2009. The legislation was brought in following the murder of Jane Longhurst by a man who was said at the time of his trial to have had "extreme pornography" in his possession at the time of the death. The law has been more widely used than originally predicted, raising concerns as to whether the legislation is being used for prosecutions beyond the scope originally envisaged by parliament. The law The law, part of the Criminal Justice and Immigration Act 2008, applies to pornography (defined as an image "of such a nature that it must reasonably be assumed to have been produced solely or principally for the purpose of sexual arousal") which is "grossly offensive, disgusting or otherwise of an obscene character" and portrays "in an explicit and realistic way" any of the follow ...
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Pornography In The United Kingdom
Pornography in the United Kingdom is regulated by a variety of laws, regulations, judicial processes, and voluntary schemes. Pornographic material generally has to be assessed by regulators or courts to determine its legality. The Victorian pornographic tradition included French photographs, erotic prints, and printed literature. As technology has advanced, pornography has taken diverse forms and become more widespread in society. In the twentieth century the production of pornographic magazines and films developed, and by the twenty-first century pornography was available by telephone, on television and via the internet. However, access to pornography has generally been more restricted than it has been in comparable Western countries. By 2006 the UK pornography industry was estimated to be worth about  billion, compared to  billion worldwide. Legal situation The UK has a markedly different tradition of pornography regulation from that found in most other Western countri ...
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Censorship In The United Kingdom
Censorship in the United Kingdom has taken many forms throughout the history of the country, with either various stringent and lax laws in place at different times, especially concerning British cinema, entertainment venues, literature, the monarchy and the press. In a specific sense, the concept of free speech generally does not exist as a fundamental right within the country. British citizens have a negative right to freedom of expression under the common law. In 69, the United Kingdom incorporated the European Convention into its domestic law under the Human Rights Act, although a repeal has been proposed, with a replacement known as the Bill of Rights Bill 2022 announced with draft text on 22 June 2022. Even under the current Human Rights Act, there is a broad sweep of exceptions. They include threatening or abusive words or behaviour intending or likely to cause harassment, alarm or distress or cause a breach of the peace, sending another any article which is indecent or g ...
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Censorship In The Republic Of Ireland
In Ireland, the state retains laws that allow for censorship, including specific laws covering films, advertisements, newspapers and magazines, as well as terrorism and pornography. In the early years of the state, censorship was widely enforced, particularly in areas that were perceived to be in contradiction of Roman Catholic dogma, including abortion, sexuality and homosexuality. The church had banned many books and theories for centuries, listed in the Index Librorum Prohibitorum. Current censorship Film censorship Ireland's Film Censors Office, renamed in 2008 as the Irish Film Classification Office, heavily cut films and videos for rental release, or placed high age ratings on them. In 2000 ''The Cider House Rules'' received an 18 certificate in Ireland due to its themes of abortion and incest, although in other countries, such as the UK, the film received a 12 certificate. Advertisements Advertisements are regulated by the Advertising Standards Authority for Irela ...
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England And Wales
England and Wales () is one of the three legal jurisdictions of the United Kingdom. It covers the constituent countries England and Wales and was formed by the Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542. The substantive law of the jurisdiction is English law. The devolved Senedd (Welsh Parliament; cy, Senedd Cymru) – previously named the National Assembly of Wales – was created in 1999 by the Parliament of the United Kingdom under the Government of Wales Act 1998 and provides a degree of self-government in Wales. The powers of the Parliament were expanded by the Government of Wales Act 2006, which allows it to pass its own laws, and the Act also formally separated the Welsh Government from the Senedd. There is no equivalent body for England, which is directly governed by the parliament and government of the United Kingdom. History of jurisdiction During the Roman occupation of Britain, the area of present-day England and Wales was administered as a single unit, except f ...
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Obscene Publications Act 1964
The Obscene Publications Act (OPA) 1964 is a short piece of English legislation providing minor additional provisions in addition to the Obscene Publications Act 1959, which is the primary statute in this area. The OPA 1964 was specifically designed to strengthen the law around obscenity, particularly regarding the production of obscene articles for sale and the materials used in the production of obscene articles. See also * Obscene Publications Act 1959 * Censorship in the United Kingdom Censorship in the United Kingdom has taken many forms throughout the history of the country, with either various stringent and lax laws in place at different times, especially concerning British cinema, entertainment venues, literature, the mon ... References External links *{{wikisource-inline, single=true Obscenity law United Kingdom pornography law United Kingdom Acts of Parliament 1964 ...
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Obscene Publications Act 1959
The Obscene Publications Act 1959 (c. 66) is an Act of Parliament of the United Kingdom Parliament that significantly reformed the law related to obscenity in England and Wales. Prior to the passage of the Act, the law on publishing obscene materials was governed by the common law case of '' R v Hicklin'', which had no exceptions for artistic merit or the public good. During the 1950s, the Society of Authors formed a committee to recommend reform of the existing law, submitting a draft bill to the Home Office in February 1955. After several failed attempts to push a bill through Parliament, a committee finally succeeded in creating a viable bill, which was introduced to Parliament by Roy Jenkins and given the Royal Assent on 29 July 1959, coming into force on 29 August 1959 as the Obscene Publications Act 1959. With the committee consisting of both censors and reformers, the actual reform of the law was limited, with several extensions to police powers included in the final versio ...
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