Labour MP Keith Vaz, a frequent critic of violent video games, quizzed Prime Minister Gordon Brown on the issue in Parliament yesterday.
While Vaz pushed for a meeting on the topic, the PM deferred to the upcoming, government-commissioned report of Dr. Tanya Byron.
The Prime Minister did, however, suggest that “changes in the law” might be necessary based on the outcome of the Byron study.
Here is the exchange between Vaz and Brown:
MP Keith Vaz:
On Monday, the Prime Minister said that he was very worried about the content of video and computer games. Some of those games, such as Manhunt 2, depict scenes of torture and murder using hammers, knives and guns. They seem to make a virtue of gratuitous and graphic violence.
Will he meet a delegation of Members, including the hon. Member for Canterbury (Mr. Brazier), who has a private Member’s Bill on the subject, to see what further steps the industry can take to show better responsibility? Does my right hon. Friend, as a parent, agree that—
Prime Minister Gordon Brown:
My right hon. Friend is right, and this is an issue that concerns all parties in the House and every parent. It is right that we look again at the classification system for those games and at what is happening on the Internet in influencing young children.
That is why the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families has set up the Byron review, in which Dr. Tanya Byron is looking at these very issues. We want children to be able to enjoy the benefits of the internet and video games, without being influenced by the pornography or violence of them.
Dr. Byron will report in March 2008 and while it would be premature for me to say what she is likely to recommend, the classification system is one of the things that she is looking at. I hope that when we get the report we can have a debate in this House. I would be happy to meet my right hon. Friend’s delegation and move forward whatever changes in the law are necessary.
