 The
Top Shelf Report, commissioned by Labour MP Claire Curtis-Thomas,
will next week recommend that popular men's magazines and newspapers
such as the Daily Sport be given age-appropriate "16" and "18"
certificates.
A nationwide investigation has revealed that newsagents across the UK
are flouting current guidelines and displaying what are, in effect,
adult magazines at the eye-level of children aged six to 15 – which has
led to a government proposal that they be subject to the same age
classifications as films, with some titles off-limits to under-18s.
The display of lads' mags is currently governed by a voluntary code of
practice drawn up by the Periodical Publishers Associations (PPA) and
the Home Office, which recommends that retailers display them well above
children's eye level and away from children's titles or comics.
The report, which has cross-party support from MPs, points out that
films screened or sold in the UK are classified by the British Board of
Film Classification (BBFC) and that TV broadcasters must adhere to a 9pm
watershed that prevents programmes unsuitable for under-18s being shown
before this, yet nothing similar exists for the mainstream press.
Ben Todd, the editor of Zoo, said: We should be treated like a cheeky
seaside postcard. In our case, the most revealing aspect is topless
pictures, which is no more than you see in The Sun or the Daily Star.
So, if any sort of age-restrictions are going to be introduced, I'd
expect them to include those papers, too.
The report recommends that the Daily Sport be given an "18" certificate
due to the numerous adverts for prostitutes which it contains.
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