Latest news with #AlexDaviesJones
Telegraph
a day ago
- Politics
- Telegraph
Strangulation in pornography to be made illegal
Pornography depicting any act of strangulation is to be made illegal as part of government efforts to combat an 'epidemic' of sexual violence against women and girls. The move was recommended in a review for the Government by Baroness Bertin, a Conservative peer, who found that porn had effectively established choking as a 'sexual norm'. She said that a belief had taken root that choking a partner during sex was 'safe' because it was not fatal, despite overwhelming evidence that there was no safe way to strangle a person. The Government has already introduced a specific offence for abusers who strangle their partners, with perpetrators facing jail sentences of up to five years. Alex Davies-Jones, the justice minister, said: 'Depicting strangulation during sex is not only dangerous, but also degrading, with real-life consequences for women. 'Cracking down on the appalling rise of strangulation pornography will protect women and send a clear signal to men and boys that misogyny will not be tolerated.' Lady Bertin, who was commissioned to carry out the review by Rishi Sunak, also recommended that harmful online porn that would be illegal on the high street should be banned. The review, published on Thursday, found that violent, harmful and misogynistic porn was common on mainstream platforms. However, the material would be judged as illegal and refused classification by the British Board of Film Classification if it was sold in shops on the high street, according to Lady Bertin's review. It comes ahead of new legally enforced rules requiring websites that host pornographic or other harmful content to have 'robust' age verification in place for UK users by July at the latest. Methods to be required include open banking, photo ID matching, facial age estimation, credit card checks, digital ID services and email-based age estimation. 'No such thing as safe strangulation' Andrea Simon, the director of the End Violence Against Women Coalition (EVAW), said: ' We welcome the Government's decision to criminalise the depiction of strangulation in pornography, a move that reflects years of campaigning by EVAW and other experts who have long warned about the normalisation of violence against women and girls in online content. 'There is no such thing as safe strangulation; women cannot consent to the long-term harm it can cause, including impaired cognitive functioning and memory. Its widespread portrayal in porn is fuelling dangerous behaviours, particularly among young people. 'This is a vital step towards recognising the role violent pornography plays in shaping attitudes to women and regulating an industry which promotes and profits from violence against women. The UK's flagship Online Safety Act must now be updated to ensure online platforms are made to remove this content.'
Daily Mail
a day ago
- Politics
- Daily Mail
'Choking porn' to be BANNED by Labour under new measures outlawing 'any act of strangulation' on sick sex sites
All pornography showing strangulation and choking will be banned within months, Labour has announced. Laws will be brought in to criminalise 'pornography depicting any act of strangulation'. It comes amid growing concern over the act being normalised in adult movies, and the effect it is having on young adults' sex lives. Legal changes will be made as an amendment to the Crime and Policing Bill which is currently going through Parliament, meaning the ban is expected to be in force by the end of the year. Victims minister Alex Davies-Jones said: 'Depicting strangulation during sex is not only dangerous, but also degrading, with real life consequences for women. 'Cracking down on the appalling rise of strangulation pornography will protect women and send a clear signal to men and boys that misogyny will not be tolerated.' A Ministry of Justice (MoJ) source said young people may be unaware of the long-term harm strangulation can have. The Government's Independent Porn Review, led by Baroness Gabby Bertin, found that pornographers had effectively established choking as a 'sexual norm'. The review, published in February, said: 'Non-fatal strangulation pornography (commonly known as 'choking' in pornography) should be illegal to possess, distribute, and publish.' It added: 'Non-fatal strangulation or 'choking' sex is perhaps the starkest example of where online violent pornography has changed 'offline' behaviour. ''Choking' sex is now being normalised with a survey showing 38 per cent of women aged 18-39 have been choked during sex. 'So-called 'choking' content, where there is external pressure on the neck, is rife on platforms that host pornography and is a very popular category of content. 'The review has evidence to show the influence that media sources, including pornography, have had in establishing choking as a sexual norm. An official review found 'so-called 'choking' content, where there is external pressure on the neck, is rife on platforms that host pornography' and called for it to be banned 'People acting it out in their sex lives may face devastating consequences. 'Evidence shows that even a small amount of pressure to the neck can harm the brain, and there is no safe way to strangle a person.' The MoJ spokesman said they were unable to say how the new law would operate, particularly because a large amount of online pornography is on overseas-based websites. But Baroness Bertin's review suggested the Government should amend the Obscene Publications Act 1959 so it 'captures this type of content, so it cannot be published or distributed'. Andrea Simon, director of the End Violence Against Women Coalition, said: 'We welcome the government's decision to criminalise the depiction of strangulation in pornography. 'There is no such thing as safe strangulation. Women cannot consent to the long-term harm it can cause, including impaired cognitive functioning and memory. 'Its widespread portrayal in porn is fuelling dangerous behaviours, particularly among young people.' She added: 'This is a vital step towards recognising the role violent pornography plays in shaping attitudes to women and regulating an industry which promotes and profits from violence against women.' Details of how the ban will work are due to be published at a later date.
The Independent
2 days ago
- Politics
- The Independent
Violent pornography showing strangulation to be banned
Strangulation in pornography will be banned after a review warned violent depictions have effectively established choking as a 'sexual norm'. The government has announced plans to make any pornography showing strangulation illegal as part of their pledge to tackle violence against women and girls. It is already a criminal offence to possess porn depicting life-threatening acts, such as graphic strangulation. But the government is set to tighten up laws, warning 'dangerous online material is perpetuating the growing epidemic of violence against women and girls'. It comes after the Independent Porn Review, conducted by Baroness Gabby Bertin, found that media sources have normalised such acts and created a belief that choking a partner during sex is safe because it is non-fatal. Announcing the changes, minister for victims and tackling Violence Against Women and Girls, Alex Davies-Jones, said: 'Depicting strangulation during sex is not only dangerous, but also degrading, with real lifeconsequences for women. 'Cracking down on the appalling rise of strangulation pornography will protect women and send a clear signal to men and boys that misogyny will not be tolerated.' The move was welcomed by Andrea Simon, director of the End Violence Against Women Coalition (EVAW), who says experts have 'long warned' of the dangers of normalising violence against women in online content. 'There is no such thing as safe strangulation; women cannot consent to the long-term harm it can cause, including impaired cognitive functioning and memory,' she said. 'Its widespread portrayal in porn is fuelling dangerous behaviours, particularly among young people. 'This is a vital step towards recognising the role violent pornography plays in shaping attitudes to women and regulating an industry which promotes and profits from violence against women. The UK's flagship Online Safety Act must now be updated to ensure online platforms are made to remove this content.'
BreakingNews.ie
3 days ago
- Politics
- BreakingNews.ie
UK MPs vote in favour of measures to decriminalise abortion for women
UK MPs have voted in favour of measures to decriminalise women terminating their own pregnancies. Labour MP Tonia Antoniazzi's amendment to the Crime and Policing Bill was supported, with MPs voting 379 to 137, majority 242. Advertisement The Gower MP said it will remove the threat of 'investigation, arrest, prosecution or imprisonment' of any woman who acts in relation to her own pregnancy. She told MPs she had been moved to advocate for a change in the law having seen women investigated by police over suspected illegal abortions. During the Bill's report stage, Ms Antoniazzi assured her colleagues the current 24-week limit would remain, abortions would still require the approval and signatures of two doctors, and that healthcare professionals 'acting outside the law and abusive partners using violence or poisoning to end a pregnancy would still be criminalised, as they are now'. Labour MP Tonia Antoniazzi, who led the amendment to change the law on abortion (Chris McAndrew/UK Parliament) On issues such as abortion, MPs usually have free votes, meaning they take their own view rather than deciding along party lines. Advertisement British ustice minister Alex Davies-Jones said the UK government is neutral on decriminalisation and that it is an issue for Parliament to decide upon in a Westminster Hall debate earlier this month. Winding up for the UK government after Tuesday's debate, Ms Davies-Jones suggested ministers would work to ensure the law change was workable if MPs voted for it. She told the Commons: 'If it is the will of Parliament that the law should change, the Government in fulfilling its duty to ensure that the legislation is legally robust and workable will work closely with my honourable friends to ensure that their amendments accurately reflect their intentions and the will of Parliament, and are coherent with the statute book.' Though the UK government took a neutral stance on the vote, several high-profile cabinet ministers were among the MPs who backed the amendment in the free vote. Advertisement They included energy secretary Ed Miliband, chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster Pat McFadden, work and pensions secretary Liz Kendall, defence secretary John Healey, transport secretary Heidi Alexander, environment secretary Steve Reed, Northern Ireland secretary Hilary Benn, Scotland secretary Ian Murray, Wales secretary Jo Stevens, and Commons leader Lucy Powell. Abortion in England and Wales currently remains a criminal offence but is legal with an authorised provider up to 24 weeks, with very limited circumstances allowing one after this time, such as when the mother's life is at risk or the child would be born with a severe disability. It is also legal to take prescribed medication at home if a woman is less than 10 weeks pregnant. Efforts to change the law to protect women from prosecution follow repeated calls to repeal sections of the 19th-century law the 1861 Offences Against the Person Act, after abortion was decriminalised in Northern Ireland in 2019. Advertisement The measures to decriminalise abortion still need to complete their legislative journey through both the Commons and the Lords before they can become law. The step was welcomed by the British Pregnancy Advisory Service (BPAS). Heidi Stewart, chief executive of the charity, said: 'This is a landmark moment for women's rights in this country and the most significant change to our abortion law since the 1967 Abortion Act was passed. 'There will be no more women investigated after enduring a miscarriage, no more women dragged from their hospital beds to the back of a police van, no more women separated from their children because of our archaic abortion law.' Advertisement The Society for the Protection of Unborn Children (SPUC) said it was 'horrified' by the vote. Alithea Williams, of SPUC, said: 'If this clause becomes law, a woman who aborts her baby at any point in pregnancy, even moments before birth, would not be committing a criminal offence.' She added: 'Our already liberal abortion law allows an estimated 300,000 babies a year to be killed. Now, even the very limited protection afforded by the law is being stripped away.'
Daily Mail
3 days ago
- Politics
- Daily Mail
BREAKING NEWS MPs vote in favour of measures to decriminalise abortion in move to make biggest law change in more than 50 years
MPs have voted in favour of measures to decriminalise women terminating their own pregnancies. Labour MP Tonia Antoniazzi's amendment to the Crime and Policing Bill was supported, with MPs voting 379 to 137, majority 242. The Gower MP said it will remove the threat of 'investigation, arrest, prosecution, or imprisonment' of any woman who acts in relation to her own pregnancy. She told MPs she had been moved to advocate for a change in the law having seen women investigated by police over suspected illegal abortions. During the Bill's report stage, Ms Antoniazzi assured her colleagues the current 24-week limit would remain, abortions would still require the approval and signatures of two doctors, and that healthcare professionals 'acting outside the law and abusive partners using violence or poisoning to end a pregnancy would still be criminalised, as they are now'. On issues such as abortion, MPs usually have free votes, meaning they take their own view rather than deciding along party lines. During a Westminster Hall debate earlier this month, justice minister Alex Davies-Jones said the Government is neutral on decriminalisation and that it is an issue for Parliament to decide upon.
