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Online checks controlling whether children are accessing pornographic sites have been defined as a breach of human rights by a United Nations (UN) official.
The British government announced last year that any porn site failing to implement
age verification checks before people can view explicit content will be immediately blocked.
But David Kaye, the UN's special rapporteur on the promotion and protection on the rights to freedom of opinion and expression, has now urged politicians to reconsider, as the proposal could be in breach of "international law."
A series of bans on pornographic content available to the public have been implemented by the Tory government since taking office.
Depictions of sexual acts such as spanking, face-sitting and female ejaculation are now banned in British porn, and internet providers could be hit with fines if they fail to block websites identified by the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) as contravening the law.
Age verification checks will be made compulsory by amendments to the new Digital Economy Bill, which is currently being examined by the House of Lords.
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