Film certificates may be replaced by consumer advice

The days of the 18-certificate horror flick might be numbered. Britain's chief censor yesterday predicted the demise of the 90-year-old system that restricts access to films to particular age groups, and its replacement with a regulatory regime based purely on consumer advice.

Andreas Whittam Smith, in his valedictory comments after four years as president of the British Board of Film Classification, said that while there were few signs of new digital media overtaking film and video, the role of the board would inevitably change in the 21st century.

"I believe that over time the public will wish the board's decisions to be advisory rather than mandatory," he said.

The board has run a pilot project in Norwich, exploring the case for making the "12" certificate at the cinema a guide for parents rather than an outright prohibition based on age. Mr Whittam Smith said the response had been favourable and the board would now embark on a second round of consultation.

However, there is unlikely to be a classification free-for-all for several years. For an advisory certificate to work, Mr Whittam Smith said, "it would be essential for film distributors routinely to provide consumer advice with all advertising and promotional activity".

When The Lord of the Rings was released in December, it carried national publicity with advice that it might not be suitable for children under eight.

The board is working with the film industry towards encouraging more widespread consumer advice, particularly for junior categories, over the next year.

Mr Whittam Smith, founding editor of The Independent, is leaving the board to become the first Church Estates Commissioner. During his tenure he has led the board's efforts to make decisions more open and consistent with public opinion.

He oversaw the formulation of new guidelines and relaxing them for adult viewers, while protecting children, following a landmark legal ruling that sanctioned more graphic material than the board had previously allowed. That led to the rise of the R18 certificate which allows stronger material and real sex scenes to be included in videos.

One of the consequences was a massive rise in the number of videos being put before the board, from 7,500 in 2000 to 9,000 last year and a corresponding increase in the number of cuts required. These were mainly for violence.

Robin Duval, the board's director, said: "The number of works cut by the BBFC rose slightly to 2.8 per cent of submissions. Many of these were sex videos which showed an increase as a result of the relaxation in the guidelines."

No cinema films were refused a certificate last year and only one video was rejected, when the distributor of The Last House on the Left declined to make cuts stipulated.

The BBFC often suggests cuts to allow a film to get a lower rating, which was in the case of most of the 14 cinema films which were cut. Just one 18-rated film, Baise-Moi, was cut and that was for scenes of sexual violence.

The annual report shows that the number of films, videos and DVDs submitted has more than doubled in four years.