Violent pornography, including strangulation porn, would be effectively banned under a new law that will be considered by the Government this week. Minister for Justice Jim O’Callaghan will this week ask the Cabinet to approve his plans to ban the possession, production or sharing of pornography that depicts extreme or violent acts or acts of necrophilia.The proposed legislation would ban videos of extreme or violent acts being perpetrated against real people, but it would also cover pornography generated using artificial intelligence (AI) programmes.The High Court recently identified a legal loophole, which means no offence exists in the State regarding the possession of extreme pornographic material. It followed two extradition requests for offences relating to the possession of bestiality material. O’Callaghan is bringing forward a proposal to address the existing gap in legislation and to address concerns within the Department of Justice about the harm being caused by people having access to violent pornography. “There is growing recognition that violent and extreme pornography is now one of the most influential, accessible, and commercially powerful forces negatively shaping sexual development and behaviour,” said O’Callaghan. “I will introduce a new offence that will criminalise the possession of extreme and violent pornography.” The Council of Europe defines extreme or violent pornography as material that graphically portrays scenes of “degradation, sexual violence, torture, murder, necrophilia or bestiality for the purposes of sexual arousal”. Its parliamentary assembly had previously called on member states to introduce new laws to criminalise the production, distribution and possession, including for personal use, of violent or extreme pornography.An Garda Síochána last year told the Department of Justice there had been a “significant” increase in cases of child-on-child online sexual abuse. Concerns have been raised about the influence that violent pornography is having on young boys and men in particular. Organisations such as Women’s Aid have also said children could be at an increased risk of fatal strangulation due to the influence of so-called “choking” or “breath-play” pornography. It is understood that the proposed legislation will include a ban on the possession, sharing or production of pornography depicting non-fatal strangulation or suffocation causing serious harm, which are already offences under Irish law. O’Callaghan is expected to use the State’s presidency of the Council of the European Union to argue for a shared definition and approach to extreme and violent pornography across the bloc, possibly through a new EU-wide law.