British Board of Film Classification (Accountability to Parliament and Appeals) Bill

The hon. Gentleman is right. The legislation governing these matters is the Video Recordings Act 1984, which in section 7 makes provision for classification certificates to be issued by the designated authority. Certificates must contain details such as the title and the statement that the video is suitable for general viewing or for over-18s, or that it should be supplied only in licensed sex shops. The designated authority is dealt with by section 4, which clearly states:"““The Secretary of State may by notice under this section designate any person as the authority responsible for making arrangements””." It then sets out in detail how that should be done. Obviously, Mr. Deputy Speaker, it would be wrong of me to go through all that now, but under that provision the Secretary of State has designated the BBFC—certainly, the officers are designated, I think by name. If there is evidence and a view in Government or in the House that the BBFC is not doing its job properly, ultimately the Secretary of State could withdraw that designation.