CARE welcomes "groundbreaking" review urging action on extreme porn

LONDON February 27, 2025 – A government-commissioned review urging action on extreme pornography has been welcomed by CARE.

The independent review on pornography, launched in 2023 and overseen by Baroness Bertin, makes 32 recommendations to government and the industry.

These include making online porn involving choking, adults dressing as children, and degrading, violent and misogynistic themes explicitly illegal.

The review also suggests a ban on so-called ‘nudification’ apps and making it an offence to take non-consensual intimate images or create them via AI.

It’s suggested that a body should be established to audit online platforms and ensure that they remove vile content, with sanctions if they fail to do so.

'Groundbreaking'

Social policy charity CARE has campaigned for tougher action on big porn for more than a decade and spearheaded calls for a ban on ‘nudification’ tech.

Tim Cairns, CARE’s policy lead on online safety, commented: “Baroness Bertin and her team should be commended for a detailed and wide-ranging review, and we would urge the government to expedite an implementation plan.

“By actioning the recommendations in this groundbreaking review, Ministers will end a lax approach to big porn that has contributed to a rising tide of sexual violence against woman and children. This work is overdue and is especially important given emerging AI technologies.

“Education and public health initiatives will also be required to alleviate the damage caused by pornography in our society – a public health crisis. Pornography addiction is prevalent, and the consumption of extreme content is fuelling harmful attitudes and behaviours.”

Public opinion

Polling for CARE has demonstrated wide public support for actions that rein in the porn industry. Last year, a Savanta study of 2,000 UK adults found that:

> 7 in 10 support the appointment of a Pornography Commission to ensure that illegal or violent porn is removed from websites and social media.

> 8 in 10 think directors of companies that own porn sites should be held responsible for illegal material on their platforms and face fines or jail.

> 6 in 10 agree that laws on porno should be the same for content viewed offline, such as DVDs, and content viewed online, such as porn sites.

Whilst a poll of more than 1,000 UK adults on behalf of CARE found:

> 7 in 10 think websites and apps that use AI to simulate sexually explicit content such as undressing women and children should be banned.

ENDS

About CARE

Christian Action Research and Education (CARE) is a social policy charity, bringing Christian insight to the policies and laws that affect our lives.

Contact us: press@care.org.uk