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The new commercial television code that will enable M-rated applications to air earlier is facing resistance from the Federal Government backbench.
The changes are due to come into impact on December 1 and will allow films or applications rated MA15+ to be broadcast on free of charge-to-air channels from 8:30pm instead of 9pm.
Applications rated M will be in a position to begin from 7:30pm, an hour earlier than the present rule.
Liberal MP Rowan Ramsey is fighting the alterations, saying they send the wrong message to young children and are at odds with efforts to tackle domestic violence.
“It is not that hard to draw the lines among early and easier access to much more violent and explicit tv and the way unfortunately and sadly many ladies are treated in relationships,” Mr Ramsey stated.
“The notion now that folks are going to have to have their young children in bed or away from the tv or completely supervised prior to 7:30pm in daylight saving in southern Australia I think is just beyond the pale.”
The new code has been submitted by the industrial cost-free-to-air tv business (Totally free Television) and approved by the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) earlier this month.
Mr Ramsey is amongst a group of Coalition MPs meeting a representative from Cost-free Tv in Canberra today.
The business argues the new code of practice reflects the modern digital media landscape, even though ACMA has pointed out content material can now be viewed from a assortment of sources and platforms.
But Mr Ramsey said that was not a good sufficient argument.
“My counter-argument to that is that we know that our kids however can access drugs out in the industry to but we never go and place them in all the cafes so they can access them much more very easily,” he said.
He stated he had strong assistance from his Coalition colleagues and was calling on Totally free Tv to withdraw the code ahead of it begins.
“If they fail to, I will take into account the possibilities of bringing some thing forward by way of the Parliament that we enforce, what I think about the will of the individuals,” Mr Ramsey stated.
Subjects: television-broadcasting, youngsters, government-and-politics, australia