London, November 17 : Movies that are rated suitable for children viewing contain a “scandalous” amount of swearing, according to a survey.

The survey revealed that the films categorised as 12A by the British Board of Film Classification (BBFC) exposed children to staggering levels of indecent language.

The surveyors, who studied 10 films deemed as suitable for children viewing, found that all in all, f*** and its derivatives were used 17 times, while b***h, a** and s*** were used 20, 56, and 77 times, respectively.

The films studied by the surveyors included ‘Ghost Town’, which saw the use of the f-word twice and the s-word four times, and ‘Shotgun Stories’ that featured the f-word three times and the s-word 20 times.

The survey further revealed that only 0.9 percent of the total lot of films received had been subjected to cuts - the lowest percentage since records began in 1914.

“It is absolutely terrifying that the BBFC considers it appropriate to subject our children to this level of effing and blinding,” the Telegraph quoted Sue Palmer, the educational consultant and author of Toxic Childhood, as saying.

However, a spokesman for the BBFC said: “All our age category guidelines are based on extensive consultation with the public, so our classifications are a direct reflection of what the public think.

“At present, the use of the f-word up to four times in a 12A film is considered acceptable. These guidelines are currently being looked at again, in a public consultation of more than 11,000 people, and if the public tell us that there is too much swearing at the 12A level, we will take this into account.” (ANI)