Page 1014 - Week 06 - Wednesday, 26 July 1989
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Mr Speaker, the Rally will not support this amendment going forward. The amendment can go; the Rally does not comment on the substance of the amendment, other than to say that it is structurally unsound; it is improper to move it at this stage of a full sitting day; and the Rally, for those reasons, and not for any concluded view on the substance, opposes it.
MS FOLLETT (Chief Minister) (5.33), in reply: Mr Speaker, I take it that in speaking I will, in effect, close the debate?
MR SPEAKER: Either that or you can also speak to the amendment.
MS FOLLETT: Let me try to do both. The Government will oppose the amendment that has been moved by Mr Stefaniak. Basically, the reason why we would do that is that the amendment is confused. It confuses "X-rated" and "excessively violent" film. There are quite clear differences between those two classifications or those two categories of film. I will repeat yet again that X-rated films are classified by the Commonwealth film censor. They contain explicit depictions of sexual acts between consenting adults. There is no depiction of sexual violence, coercion or non-consent of any kind.
Mr Speaker, I have not seen one of these films, so I cannot speak from experience, but apparently some members can. I have no doubt whatsoever that I would find such films offensive. I find many things offensive. I have no doubt that I would find such explicit sexual depiction offensive, and I would not seek to watch it. I have that choice as an adult, and I think that it is a very important choice. So, if members opposite believe that I do not want to ban X-rated videos because I like them, they are totally wrong. I have never seen one; I have no desire to see one.
Excessively violent film, I believe, is a completely different matter. I think that is something that should be of concern because there is some apparent evidence that that is harmful, particularly to young people, and that it is in a different category. Also I think that there is another class of film which is totally non-classified. Clearly, the Commonwealth film censor has thought, for one reason or another, that this film is so bad and has no redeeming features that it is not even classified; it is illegal.
A member: It is refused.
MS FOLLETT: It is refused any sort of classification. So, this amendment does not deal with any of those niceties or with the fact that X-rated film is legal and is classified by the Commonwealth film censor. It is just a very sloppy sort of amendment that the Government simply cannot support.
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