LONDON—Regulatory officials of the U.K. government announced on Friday the soon-to-be official prohibition of simulated taboo and illegal "step-incest" pornography categories in the country's jurisdiction.
"We have been clear that vile online pornography has real-life consequences for all of us and I’d like to thank every brave campaigner who has worked with us to deliver this vital step," stated Alex Davies-Jones, the minister for victims and tackling violence against girls, in a press release.
"Today we are sending a powerful message: we will stamp out misogynistic and harmful content online and create a safer world," Davies-Jones added.
Such measures, baked into the national Crime and Policing Bill, are intended to be sweeping in nature with outcomes that could chill freedom of legal sexual expression far beyond the jurisdiction of the United Kingdom with implications for U.S.-based adult entertainment industry stakeholders as it relates to simulated taboo categories.
According to the Home Office in this morning's press statement, "[these] crucial changes are the latest measures from the Government to halve violence against women and girls in a decade and protect children from the scourge of sexual abuse."
First, the amendments to the Crime and Policing Bill will officially prohibit and outlaw pornography that depicts sexual conduct between step-family members. This is a move that targets "illegal sexual conduct."
With more directed oversight of otherwise legal categories of pornography, the bill will prohibit virtual child pornography, which is traditionally defined as young-looking adult performers acting and depicting themselves as minors but actually being legal and consenting. Further, the amendments ban depictions of sexual activity between "step and foster relations" where one person is "pretending" to be under the age of 18.
"A further amendment will criminalise the publication and possession of pornography where an adult is roleplaying as a child," notes the Home Office in the statement.
"This announcement appears to focus on criminalizing two specific categories of content: pornography depicting actual or simulated incest between family members, and pornography involving adults roleplaying as minors," adult industry attorney Corey Silverstein told AVN.
"Based on the language released so far, it does not clearly extend to all adult step-family content where the participants are depicted as adults and no minor roleplay is involved," he clarified. "However, the scope of these proposed offences remains unclear."
Silverstein explained that terms like "incest," "step and foster relations" and "pretending to be under 18" are not yet official concepts in U.K. statutes.
"There is a real risk that overly broad or imprecise definitions could capture lawful adult content unintentionally," Silverstein added. "From an industry perspective, clarity will be critical. Platforms and creators need to understand exactly what is prohibited so they can comply without over-censoring lawful material."
Additional amendments to the Crime and Policing Bill bring forth liability for tech executives and owners of platforms that permit such categories of harmful porn on their sites. In the announcement, the Home Office explained the government's new measures hold this class of individuals criminally and civilly responsible if they fail to meet the compliance and enforcement demands of Ofcom, the U.K.'s digital regulator tasked with taking on child sexual abuse imagery and other non-consensual intimate imagery mitigation and prevention.
"Too many women have endured the distress of having intimate images shared online without their consent," said Kanishka Narayan, the online safety minister.
"Today the Government has answered our calls for change, and I am delighted that once again the U.K. is leading the way on regulating this high harm industry," added Baroness Gabby Bertin, the author of the controversial independent pornography review commissioned by Parliament that called for prohibitions on otherwise legal and consensual practices, like certain kink play and choking depictions. AVN had reported previously that consensual choking was additionally targeted in the Crime and Policing Bill.
"I commend the Government for their work in this area and look forward to continuing to work with them as we make the online and offline world safer for everyone."
The legislation is still awaiting royal ascent, meaning it is still in final amendment phases. This is a developing story.
