UK pornography laws in ‘disarray’ after website ban lifted

Pornography laws in Britain are in total disarray, according to a lawyer campaigning for urgent reform following a regulator’s landmark decision to lift the ban on a fetish website.

The government regulator for broadcasting and telecommunications in the UK, Ofcom, has overturned a ban imposed of DreamsofSpanking.com, which was forced to shut down as a result of a legislation change. The Audio Visual Media Services regulations, which came into force in 2014, affected pornography made in the UK, making it fall in line with laws that applied to DVDs and sex shops.

The rules were enforced by the Authority for Television on Demand, a now defunct body whose responsibilities have been taken over by Ofcom.

Pandora Blake, the site owner and prominent protester against the rule change said that UK pornography laws were “inconsistent and hypocritical” and added that “Ofcom’s U-turn was a common sense decision”.

Myles Jackman, a London-based obscenity lawyer, called for legislation to be brought in.

“We need a more unified approach to clarify the law regarding consensual adult content online.

“This ruling from Ofcom signals that the government should conduct a root and branch review of pornography laws that cover adult consensual behaviour.”

He further questioned why the current law meant that certain sexual activities, that are legal when conducted between consenting adults in private, become illegal when filmed – regardless of whether it is broadcast or not.

He added: “There is a particular irony of female pleasure sites being regulated by male regulators.”