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LATE-NIGHT ‘SEX lines’ should be banned, a Dáil Deputy has said.
Deputy Derek Keating asked the Minister for Communications Deputy Pat Rabbitte about the chat lines this week, saying there are “effectively sex lines, that is 1500 numbers being advertised on TV3 in the late evening time”.
He asked the Minister if “following the exposure of the trafficking of young women from Europe to Ireland for the sex trade and prostitution, if he will consider banning these phone lines and introducing legislation to govern standards in advertising”.
Minister Rabbitte told Deputy Keating:
Chat line services of the type to which the Deputy refers are not defined as sexual entertainment services, but rather as virtual chat services. However, the code of practice addresses services of a sexual nature, in section 8.4. Consequently, it includes provisions governing the promotion of such services. It also stipulates, under section 5.2 and, in particular, section 5.2.3, that service providers must ensure services are not used in any way to promote or facilitate prostitution.
Deputy Keating said he could not accept that the ads are not sexually entertaining services.
To me it’s very clear that this is a front for other services that I believe we should not be promoting and I believe we should be taking every measure to exclude from our screens.
He said that “from the information available, prostitution is rife in the country and a service is readily available in every city, town and village” and that this is inextricably linked with sex trafficking.
The regulation of premium rate telephone numbers and their advertising is a matter for the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland, BAI and the Commission for Communications Regulation, ComReg. ComReg has a code of practice in place for the regulation of premium rate services (PRS).
Deputy Keating suggested that the Government could be of assistance if it drafted new or additional legislation to empower ComReg in dealing with such ads. He said he had received an outpouring of support for his suggestion. Deputy Keating told TheJournal.ie that he is asking TV3 to “consider its position in this matter” and the effect the ads are having on society.
Minister Rabbitte said he finds it “difficult to think of anything positive that one could say about the advertisements in question”.
They are demeaning of women and, unfortunately, as the Deputy said, there is an issue affecting this as well as every other country of young women being trafficked. It was believed, even at the time the Bill on human trafficking was enacted, that it was an issue that affected other member states but not this country to the same extent.
Minister Rabbitte added:
If it is his conviction – I will not press him on the source of his information – that the chat lines are a cover for prostitution, it would be appropriate to refer the advertisements to the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland.
TV3 commented that it completely agrees with the Minister that this is a matter for ComReg.
TV3 only carries advertisements for premium rate telephone services that are licensed by the regulator. ComReg has only recently examined these services and under a new Code of Practice coming into force in a month’s time, chatline services remain lawful and heavily regulated. TV3 has always held the highest standards of advertising copy clearance and will continue to fully adhere to all regulatory requirements.
The BAI said that – under any of its codes – has not received any complaints from the public in terms of this ad campaign.
Under ComReg’s regulations, ‘sexual entertainment service’ means:
PRS and promotional material must not facilitate or encourage anything which is any way unlawful. ComReg’s code of practice states:
Compliance with the code does not guarantee compliance with any legal requirement or relieve a PRS provider of any requirement to obtain any consent, licence, authorisation or permission that may be required under law.
If ComReg becomes concerned with the legality of a PRS or its promotion, it may seek an opinion from an appropriate body or authority.
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When can I stop paying 5% on my insurance to cover Sean Quinns gambling debt?
Around about the same time as you stop paying the levy that was put on premiums for PMPA (that company collapsed in the 80′s )Insurance.
I’m rich, rich I tells ya. Oh, no, wait, I’m not. I’m less marginally less poor.
Lol. Paid myself a salary today. So much better off! NOT. I am a communee. A victim of fitting into a certain bracket. When you can’t even take home half your salary, you really need to think about getting out.
An extra €3.35 a week. Nearly the price of a pint in my town. Heartbreaking!!!
So that’s a fiver a week back… Can I have the other €100 taken on me through wage cuts, taxes and levies… Seeing as “the recovery” is going so well.
I can nearly stop checking down the back of the couch now.
Lower income taxes, lower USC, lower property tax for many, cheaper petrol at the pumps. Even when you consider the water charges, the vast majority of people will be better off this year compared to last.
Are you on drugs!!!!
Its going to great, the whole country will be splashing out with there newly recovered wealth. The boom time is back!
An extra €5 in children’s allowance Ian!
MGL@…the guy you are addressing is not on drugs. You can only be slightly better off proportional to what you contribute in the first place. You cannot get blood from a stone. At the same time, blood does not return to a stone to produce Ruby…
On an individual level that 5e won’t make much difference so it would have been better off just saving it and diverting it elsewhere.
Sure who can afford drugs?
I don’t think families would be financial better off.The higher rate decreased by 1% and USC decreased by 0.5% across 3 bands of taxation (as far as I know).The water charges will ensure that families don’t feel the reduction of tax.Furthermore,2019 will bring normal back the normal rates of the water charge.This,in turn,makes me believe that the budget did no justice for the working class people.
Thanks for the fiver. You certainly won’t be getting it back for the water!
Free GP care for under 6′s, as per Budget 2014, seems to have been forgotten
Changes to tax rates? Only tax bands, or so I thought?
Income tax band increased by €1000 and the top rate dropped to 40%.
You on overtime today Reg?
Feck all on the telly Norman.
Thought so Reg,nice to see you’re talking up the budget on behalf of the government again,they really fecked up with the water charges though buried all the budget good news.Don’t forget to mention how better off you are with the changes,that might swing a few votes for FG.
Just answered Jason’s question with a couple of facts. Didn’t comment on the pros and cons of the budget.
But since you asked my household will be over €1000 better off than last year with the tax changes and children’s allowance increase excluding water charges. I’ll take that!
Reg gets some amount of stick from shinnerbots these days. Reg is like me, looking out for the realistic, hard working, self employed mofos…keep up the good work Reg.
Thanks for the support Gavin!
Gavin really anyone that doesn’t cheer lead for the government is a Shinner? Grow up.
I didn’t ask Reg I just reminded you to mention it.On one post you claimed €800 but then you upped it to a €1000.
I explained this to you previously Norman but you continue to repeat to try and discredit me. I said that the net effect of the tax changes it will be €800 (both of us on average enough salaries) but when you add children’s allowance it will be over €1000. Surely that’s not too difficult for you to understand?
Reg not trying to discredit you,just seems I have a better memory than you.
Reg, Norman is one of the people who are afraid things will get better & he’ll have nothing to moan & cry about!
Protect I don’t cry,moan very subjective really.Its only a moan because you disagree with the comment.
Thanks reg!
Nothing on the telly,boi ?!?!?! Top of the Pops : 1980 – Big Hits on BBC 4 ,boi !! Mirror in the Bathroom,like!
I’m all 80s out CorkBoi…..got a best of 80s CD for Christmas!!
Under this government budget & water plan, our household (average household income) is €220 per year better off.
Under the Shinner budget/water plan we would have been worse off by around €160.
Not keen on electioneering giveaways.
But I’m even less keen on unnecessary tax rises.
Let’s forget Shinners for a second and focus on those who cannot add. I have been asking this for months now. Can anyone, for the love of God, please explain their “Robin Hood” wet dreams/ “passed down cliches” as to how we don’t have an extremely progressive tax society. I will even give you a head start and say “start with the VAT” as that is the only theory that is not totally berserk. Real numbers (I will let you round them to real numbers) will suffice for this little experiment! Ps. If you don’t come out with real figures, you lose the argument and my search will go on…
VAT is high in Ireland. And often bizarre – for instance, while books are zero-rated, ebooks, which are more and more common as the way we read books, are rated at 23%. Insane.
A LACK OF EMPATHY just proves one thing, this government could do anything and the majority here just say what can we do, do they not realise that we the voters are the governments employers, that the government works for us and not their cronies or party donators or even the plutocrates in Frankfurt, Brussels or Berlin?
One foot forward 5 steps back – getting dizzy with the Government shuffle or we should we just do “the hussel” :-((
So what.
have your say