Parliament and Pornography: The 1978 Child Protection Act

In: Parliamentary affairs: a journal of representative politics, Band 34, Heft 1, S. 47-62

Abstract

The public & parliamentary campaign for the 1978 Child Protection Act in the UK is analyzed, highlighting the DofL between these spheres that facilitated the bill's passage. While proponents made extensive use of pending legislation & research from the US, little or no investigation appears to have been done on the extent of child pornography in the UK; the role of Mary Whitehouse's Viewers & Listeners Assoc (VALA) in orchestrating PO is discussed within the context of blacklash against the so-called "permissive statutes" of the late 1960s & 1970s. The cautious response of the Home Office & Government & its exploitation by the Conservative Opposition are examined; the "bulldozing" presentation of the bill to Parliment through the sponsorship of Cyril Townsend is also documented. The complementary role played by VALA & Townsend & the unusual speed with which the Act was passed are discussed, noting that further backlash legislation may be introduced through the same process. L. Whittemore.