Only one A-G in favour of R18+ Rating; Others remain silent

Thursday, February 25th, 2010

In the previous post, we announced that the majority of submissions to the Discussion Paper were in favour of an R18+ rating for games. (The figure has since risen to over 16,000 thanks to EB Games.) The consultation ends on Sunday. Before the deadline comes and goes, GameSpot has asked for the opinion of each Attorney-General whether or not they support an R18+ game rating, with only one A-G standing up and saying that he supports the R18+ rating: The Australian Capital Territory’s Simon Corbell:

“The ACT Government supports the introduction of an R18+ classification for video games, similar to that of films and television. This position has been conveyed at meetings of commonwealth, state, and territory ministers on a number of occasions. There is general support in Australia for an R18+ classification, and the ACT would encourage anyone with an interest in this issue to have their say by making a submission to the discussion paper. I expect that the support that exists for film and television classifications translates into [support for] classifications for computer and video games. The ACT Government is supportive of introducing an R18+ rating for video and computer games and will take into account the views of consumers through the consultation process.”

The others, including Victoria’s Rob Hulls, remain tight-lipped about their stance, while the Northern Territory’s Delia Lawrie declined to comment.

This does not mean they will oppose the R18+ rating. The Discussion Paper is proof that they are willing to listen to the majority of people who want to see a change in video game classification; and with a majority of submissions in favour of the rating, there is a good chance that change might be on the way.

Online Discussion Paper Submissions

Friday, December 18th, 2009

Grow Up Australia has put together an online submission form for the R18+ Games Discussion Paper. This form allows you to create a submission for the discussion paper quickly and easily, which will then be collated and sent to the Federal Government in time for the deadline.

You can find the online submission form by clicking here.

This is an excellent move and offers a convenient way to make your voice heard. Please pass it on to as many people as possible so that they can contribute to a safer, fairer ratings system for all Australians.

R18+ Discussion Paper Released

Monday, December 14th, 2009

After 18 months of waiting, Brendan O’Connor, Federal Minister for Home Affairs, has finally released the discussion paper for R18+ classification. The discussion paper and the submission template are both available for download here.

While neither he nor the Government had formed a view on whether the Classification Scheme should include an R18+ classification for computer games, Mr O’Connor encourages “everyone with an interest in this issue to contribute to the discussion so the Government can ensure all community views are considered.”

Submissions for the discussion paper close on 28 February, 2010.

R18+ Discussion Paper “Under Consideration”

Wednesday, October 21st, 2009

An unofficial response from the Attorney-General’s Department to an enquiry from a Senator’s office reveals that the upcoming discussion paper on the issue of an R18+ rating for video and computer games in Australia is “under consideration”.

Under consideration is public-servant speech for “don’t expect any action on it for a long time”.

The discussion paper represents the best chance of the wider public having their views heard on the issues. Once the discussion paper is released for public consultation organisations and members of the public are invited to make submissions outlining their views and arguements on the matter. As it stands the issue of an R18+ classification is just too small for it to be seriously considered by politicians, particularly with other far larger hot topics such as the economy and the recently reignited immigration debate. Once the discussion paper is released, the state governments will no longer be able to ignore the evidence-based arguments being presented by those in favour of the introduction of an R18+ rating.

The Standing Committee of Attorneys-General (Censorship) first agreed in principle to release a discussion paper in March 2008, however this was then nearly derailed by opposition from South Australian Attorney-General Michael Atkinson later on in the year. He then withdrew his opposition on the matter a few weeks later and the departments agreed to prepare the paper with a view to releasing it in early 2009. After they were unable to come to an agreement at the Standing Committee meeting in April 2009, the federal Attorney-General Department took over. It was then planned to be released by mid-2009 under the Minister for Home Affairs, the Hon Bob Debus – however this, too, was cancelled when the Hon Brendan O’Conner replaced him in June of this year.

Since then there has been no news about it, and the latest response from the department indicates it will be a long while until there is.

Thanks to our anonymous inside tipster for this information.