Pornographic Websites: Age Verification

Lord West of Spithead Excerpts

Monday 5th November 2018 Lords Chamber

[Lord Ashton of Hyde]

One of the reasons this has taken so long is that it is complicated. We in the DCMS, and many others, not least in this House, have spent a long time discussing the best way of achieving this. I am not immediately familiar with exactly what section 6 says, but when the statutory instrument comes before this House—it is an affirmative one to be discussed—I will have the answer ready for the noble Earl.

[Lord West of Spithead (Lab)]

My Lords, does the Minister not agree that the possession of a biometric card by the population would make the implementation of things such as this very much easier?

[Lord Ashton of Hyde]

In some ways it would, but there are problems with people who either do not want to or cannot have biometric cards.