Your Daily Film

Ofcom has issued new censorship rules to broadcasters about politicians presenting news

The guidance, which comes into force immediately, reflects the modern news landscape and sets guardrails for broadcasters who use politicians as presenters in programmes that include news.

Specifically, our revised guidance explains the interaction between our due accuracy and due impartiality in news rule (5.1 under the Broadcasting Code), and the rule which prevents politicians from presenting news programmes (5.3). It also updates the definition of politician to provide greater clarity.

Access to duly accurate and duly impartial news on television and radio is fundamental to a democratic society. As such, broadcast news is afforded a higher level of protection under UK law compared to non-news content.

The news landscape has evolved in recent years. The distinction between news and current affairs content has become more blurred for audiences [3] , and while politicians presenting current affairs programmes isnt new, it has become a more established editorial practice.

Responses to our consultation were polarised, reflecting the broad range of views overall, and there was a high level of consensus amongst broadcasters in favour of retaining the wording of Rule 5.3. Many respondents were concerned that amending Rule 5.3 would introduce significant practical challenges and operational uncertainty for broadcasters, and that it would inadvertently result in a de facto ban on politicians presenting any kind of programmes.

Our decision in detail

The wording of Rule 5.3 will remain unchanged. Instead, we have decided that there is sufficient protection for audiences through the existing combination of Rules 5.1 and 5.3, but we have issued amended Guidance to make the relationship between them clearer, and more relevant to the modern news landscape. Specifically, we have decided to:

update our Guidance to Rule 5.1, which states that news, in whatever form, must be reported with due accuracy and presented with due impartiality.

Our amendments make explicit that if an MP presented news in a non-news programme, then their status as an MP would likely be a relevant factor in considering whether that news was presented with due impartiality. We explain that we would also take into account all other relevant factors -- including, for example, the nature and subject of the news in question and the MPs political position on that issue. The new guidance also signposts that where politicians present news in news programmes, Rule 5.3 applies.

update our Guidance to Rule 5.3 , which states that no politician may be used as a newsreader, interviewer or reporter in any news programmes unless, exceptionally, it is editorially justified . In that case, the political allegiance of that person must be made clear to the audience.

Our amended guidance offers further clarification on the meaning of exceptional circumstances -- defined as those which cannot be controlled or foreseen by the broadcaster. We also make clear that we would expect such situations to be rare, and for licensees who use politicians as presenters to put appropriate contingency arrangements in place to avoid these situations.

update the definition of politician in our Guidance

The new definition now includes a reference to members of the House of Lords and representatives of political parties, while the reference to activists has been removed.

These changes to the Guidance come into force from today. Politicians as presenters in non-news programmes, including current affairs programmes

There is no Ofcom rule that prevents a politician from presenting or appearing on a TV or radio programme -- providing they arent standing in an election taking place, or about to take place, and that the programme otherwise complies with the Broadcasting Code

Thriller: A Cruel Picture is a 1973 Sweden action thriller by Bo Arne Vibenius (as Alex Fridolinski).
Starring Christina Lindberg, Heinz Hopf and Despina Tomazani.

The Original/Festival Version including director approved hardcore inserts was banned by the Swedish films censors for cinema release and was subsequently significantly cut to obtain a cinema release. The film was also heavily cut in the US for an MPAA R rating. This US Version was banned by the BBFC from a 1974 cinema release. Heavy cuts were then made to obtain an X rated UK cinema release in 1976. The Original Version was submitted to the BBFC in 2026 but the BBFC cut the hardcore inserts for a cut 18 rated Blu-ray release. There are several other versions featuring a mix of material from the above versions.

UK: The Original Version was BBFC 18 rated for sexual violence for sexual violence after BBFC cuts:

• 2025 Screenbound Pictures Blu-ray (rated 28/07/2025)

The BBFC commented in board meeting minutes [pdf] from darkroom.bbfc.co.uk :

The Classifiers discussed Thriller: A Cruel Picture, a Swedish crime drama, from 1973, in which a woman is forced into prostitution and later seeks violent revenge against her abusers

The film was previously submitted to the BBFC, in a pre-cut version, for cinema release in 1974 and found unsuitable for classification. It was resubmitted in 1975 203 following a change in BBFC leadership 203 and classified X in 1976 after further cuts were made to scenes of violence and sexual violence. It has not previously been classified for home video release

The film has now been submitted for a video rating, in its original uncut version.

The Classifiers focused in particular on two scenes of sexual violence, which depict the protagonist participating in sex work with male and female clients while under the control of a pimp who has forcibly addicted her to heroin. The scenes include explicit images of unsimulated masturbation, vaginal and anal penetration, and ejaculation.

The BBFC supports adults' right to choose their own entertainment as long as it remains within the law and is not potentially harmful. However, where a film or video raises issues or concerns that cannot be addressed by classification at a particular category, we may require cuts or other changes as a condition of classification.

Our Classification Guidelines state that such cuts may be required to portrayals of sexual violence that make rape, other non-consensual sexually violent behaviour or sadistic violence look appealing.

The Classifiers noted that the volume and detail of the real sexual activity in Thriller: A Cruel Picture far exceeds previous, and very rare, precedents for unsimulated (or apparently unsimulated) sexual activity during scenes of sexual violence in films classified by the BBFC. They unanimously agreed that the nature and quantity of the explicit and unsimulated images, in the context of scenes of sexual violence, is such that their effect is to eroticise rape in a manner that poses a risk of harm to viewers under the Video Recordings Act 1984.

The Classifiers determined that the scenes breached the BBFC's Guidelines and policy on depictions of sexual violence, and that cuts were therefore required to remove all explicit imagery in order to make the film suitable for classification at 18.