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British Video Recordings Act 1984 Invalid

Posted by timothy on from the slight-reprieve dept.

chrb writes "BBC News is reporting that the British Video Recordings Act 1984 is invalid due to a 25 year old legal blunder. The Thatcher government of the day failed to officially "notify" the European Commission about the law, and hence it no longer stands as a legal Act. There will now be a period of around three months before the Act can be passed again, during which time it will be entirely legal to sell any video content without age-rated certifications."

7 of 340 comments (clear)

  1. This is absurd by mpeskett · · Score: 4, Interesting

    How exactly do 25 years pass without anyone noticing that a law, that's supposed to be official and in force, hasn't actually been enacted?

    It's beyond a joke... although I'm sure there will be plenty of jokes.

    1. Re:This is absurd by Rayeth · · Score: 3, Interesting

      Oh what a coincidence! I think this is the same strategy the US uses for drug and patent policy. It all makes so much sense now.

    2. Re:This is absurd by Aladrin · · Score: 3, Interesting

      More importantly ,what about anyone convicted under that act while it wasn't really an act? Do they get their time, money, etc back?

      --
      "If you make people think they're thinking, they'll love you; But if you really make them think, they'll hate you." - DM
  2. No, Police will probably pretend law is valid by rolfwind · · Score: 3, Interesting

    during those 3 months until Parliament can scramble together a Save the Children act.

    I heard that the FBI kept on relying on parts of the (un)Patriot(ic) Act long after the Supreme Court overturned those same parts of it. Business as usual, carry on.

  3. Re:Hang On by commodore64_love · · Score: 4, Interesting

    >>>the EEC (now the EU) is designed to allow freer trade between countries. You can't do that if you're implementing standards that you're not telling other people about
    >>>

    Well that's stupid.

    The State of Utah can ban playboy from bookstores (and they have), but they are not any obligation to inform the other 49 states or the U.S. Congress about this change in law. It's called sovereignty - Utah does whatever it pleases within its own boundaries. I'm surprised to hear that the UK has less power over its own laws than does Utah, and I wonder if the EU may be exerting too much power.

    Aside-

    One cool example is when Delaware passed a law forbidding building new chemical plants without the DE Legislature's permission. Well just a few years later New Jersey built a new plant along the Delaware Bay. Delaware immediately sued NJ, and the NJ governor told delaware to fuck off, and so on. The U.S. Supreme Court dug-out 400 year old documents, reviewed the original charters, and proclaimed Delaware was correct - they own that beachfront. So New Jersey was forced to dismantle their construction and restore the waterline to its original appearance.

    --
    "I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it." - historian Evelyn Beatrice Hall
  4. Re:OMG, freedom. by cayenne8 · · Score: 4, Interesting
    So, am I understanding it correctly, that a sovereign nation over there in Europe, cannot pass their own law without it also being reported (and I assume approved) by an outside entity??

    If so...doesn't that make you a non-sovereign nation then?

    --
    Light travels faster than sound. This is why some people appear bright until you hear them speak.........
  5. More freedom - no copyright now?! by chrb · · Score: 5, Interesting

    I added this as a comment to the original submission but it didn't get picked up.

    According to The Telegraph this also means that there is now no copyright on DVDs. I'm not sure of the reasoning for this since copyright is supposed to be enforced by the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, but that's the legal system for you.

    So, apparently the UK is now (unwittingly) running the first national experiment in the abolition of copyright and age controls on DVDs. Should be interesting!