British Video Recordings Act 1984 Invalid

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."

Re:Of course, Obligatory

[Anonymous Coward]

Great post! Slashdot really needs a "+1 refers to '1984' somehow" mod option.

Re:Hang On

[camperdave]

Ah! So if they up their standards they are legally required to tell other countries "Up yours!"

Re:Just watch...

[pete-classic]

Isn't the Labour party in power? Aren't they the good guys? Won't they pass a sensible, populist law?

-Peter

Re:so who will

[Hognoxious]

Mr Patel from the corner shop - he already does.

Re:Another implication

[Anonymous Cowar]

Only after tea but before supper.

RAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAA

[fireylord]

mod this +1 funny!

Re:This is absurd

[Xphile101361]

I think by now you've ran out of continents to ship these people off to

Re:OMG, freedom.

[Tanktalus]

+1, Car Analogy.

Re:OMG, freedom.

[Kokuyo]

I applaud your use of monster trucks as an allegory to human genitalia ;).

Re:OMG, freedom.

[interkin3tic]

Those "no-longer restricted videos" have as much to do with teaching sex as a monster truck rally has to do with teaching you how to drive.

Exactly: it will teach you how to do it THE AWESOME WAY.

Re:OMG, freedom.

[Anonymous Coward]

It's not a big truck... it's more of a series of tubes.

Re:OMG, freedom.

[theaveng]

If I was a French citizen and I was sitting in jail due to a nullified-UK law, I'd be pissed.

I'd immediately file a case with the Supreme Reichstag (or whatever the EU equivalent of the Supreme Court might be). EU citizens should not be punished by laws that are voided.

Re:OMG, freedom.

[cheftw]

If I were you, the "Supreme Reichstag" would not be the first place I would go to file a case.

Unless, of course, you usually file your legal cases in the House of Representatives sixty years ago.

If that's what you do then you're fine.

Re:OMG, freedom.

[Sensiblemonkey]

Those "no-longer restricted videos" have as much to do with teaching sex as a monster truck rally has to do with teaching you how to drive.

Exactly: it will teach you how to do it THE AWESOME WAY.

But only on Sunday, SUNDAY, SSUUUNNNNNNNDAAAAY~!!!!!

Great!

[G-Man]

Gordon Brown can finally play those Region 1 DVDs he got from Obama! Oh, happy day.

Re:Scandalous

[Anonymous Coward]

What are you talking about? Britain doesn't even have a constitution.

No problemo. They can take ours. We're sure not using it.

It's ok, we have one, we just haven't told the European Commission about it.

Oh crap.