Written question asked by Chris Ruane (Labour) on Thursday, 19 April 2012, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Monday, 23 April 2012. It was answered by Lord Vaizey of Didcot (Conservative) on Thursday, 26 April 2012 on behalf of the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.

Television

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport what government-funded studies have been carried out into the impact of television and screen violence on actual violence, giving (a) the amount spent on each study, (b) the name of the university or research institution that carried out the study and (c) any Government scheme that resulted from these studies in each of the last five years for which information is available.

Answer: No Government funded studies have been undertaken into the impact of television and screen violence on actual violence in the last five years.In relation to television, the rules on broadcast content standards are the responsibility of Ofcom who are independent of Government, it is for Ofcom to assess the sort of material that is appropriate for different audiences and they have put in place strict rules to ensure that broadcast content is appropriately scheduled and children are not exposed to inappropriate material. Ofcom's rules must be robust and based on the best evidence, if new evidence which clearly showed existing levels of TV violence as a major problem in the UK then Ofcom would need to consider this fully and act accordingly.Similarly, in relation to cinema films and DVDs, while no Government funded studies have been undertaken, we keep in touch with academic research on the subject.

Secondary information