Description
Who: Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council, UK
What: Climate-harming products banned in ad policy.
When: unclear.
Advertising that promotes climate-harming products has been banned in Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council's Advertising and Sponsorship policy in a leading step among UK councils.
Ads for fossil fuels and other goods or services that contradict the council's climate change and air quality strategies, and advertising which "conflicts with the council’s wider promotion of healthy and active lifestyles", will not be permitted on ad sites managed by the council, including billboards and their own social media.
Basingstoke and Deane declared a climate emergency in 2019, setting ambitious targets for the council to become carbon neutral in its operations by 2025 and for a net zero carbon borough carbon by 2030. The council's advertising policy is among the first in the UK to introduce a policy aligning the region's advertising with the council's commitments to reducing emissions, removing the contradiction seen in other councils where advertising for private SUV cars undermines council objectives to clean up the air and promote active travel.
Policy wording: An advertisement will not be accepted if, in the reasonable opinion of the council, it:
- is inappropriate or objectionable
- may result in the council being subject to prosecution
- promotes gambling
- promotes payday loans
- refers to tobacco or similar products
- promotes the misuse of alcohol or promotes the use of alcohol to children
- might be deemed inappropriate for children, for example, violent films
- could promote goods or services that contradict the climate change and air quality strategy for examples promotion of fossil fuels
- appears to influence support for a political party or candidate
- appears to conflict with the council’s wider promotion of healthy and active lifestyles
- appears to promote racial or sexual discrimination, or discrimination on the basis of disability, faith, gender, sexual orientation or age
- is the subject of a complaint to the Advertising Standards Authority and upheld by such authority as a legitimate complaint.