SOCIETY FOR PROMOTION OF COMMUNITY STANDARDS INC.
Media Release 31/01/06
In a letter dated 30 January 2006 the Minister of Internal Affairs, the Hon. Rick Barker, has replied to the Society’s questions regarding the positions of Deputy Chief Censor and Chief Censor, currently held respectively by Ms Nicola McCully and Mr Bill Hastings. The Minister’s answers to questions put by the Society’s secretary, on behalf of the executive committee, are highlighted below in bold.
Monday, 30 January 2006
by David Wilson, Senior Policy Advisor, Department of Internal Affairs
Social Policy Journal of New Zealand Iss. 19, Dec. 2002
http://ics.leeds.ac.uk/papers/ks/exhibits/52/NewZealand_Policy.pdf
Media Release 27/01/06
Ms Nicola McCully was appointed to the statutory position of Deputy Chief Censor of Film and Literature on the 17th September 2002 for a period of three years, commencing 1st October 2002. According to the 2003 Annual Report (p. 89) Ms McCully receives a salary package of between $130,00 and $140,000 and the The Chief Censor, Bill Hastings, receives a salary package of between $180,000 and $190,000 (“Total Remuneration and benefits”).
Otago Daily Times
January 10th 2006 pg 4.
By Rebecca Fox
The time it is taking the censor’s office to rule on the September “Offensive Issue” of University of Otago student magazine Critic makes a farce of the process, Society for the Promotion of Community Standards spokesman David Lane says.
The Office of Film and Literature Classification received multiple submissions from the public about the issue, which caused concern over an article on drug rape that was labelled a “how to guide”.
Saturday, 12 November 2005
The Chief Censors’ Office – the Office of Film and Literature Classification (OFLC) – notes in its Annual Report 2005, recently tabled in parliament, that the two films most complained about by members of the public over the last year, were “9 Songs” and “Irreversible”. Both were films that the Society sought unsuccessfully to have banned or cut, by seeking reviews of the classifications by the Film and Literature Board of Review. In both cases the Board unanimously upheld the R18 classifications issued by the Classification Office. The OFLC Report 2005 states: