Council
Agenda Item 50
Subject: Restricting unethical and carbon intensive advertising
Date of meeting: 24 October 2024
Proposer: Councillor Pickett
Seconder: Councillor Hill
Ward(s) affected: All
Notice of Motion
Green Group
This Council notes:
1) Brighton & Hove currently restricts the advertising of High Fat, Sugar, and Salt (HFSS) products on all council owned and managed advertising spaces across the city.
2) Some companies are getting around this such as by advertising other non-HFSS junk food, particularly sugar free sodas.
3) Our support for cities such as Sheffield that have adopted wider bans on their advertising. This includes carbon intensive products such as airlines, airports, fossil fuel powered cars and fossil fuel companies as well as HFSS and gambling advert bans.
4) The importance of prioritising climate action and the health and wellbeing of people within the city over financial profits of advertisers.
5) The need to limit wherever possible exposure to advertising for gambling, betting and cryptocurrency linked trading platforms .
6) An increase in advertising preying on the financially vulnerable as a result of the cost-of-living crises.
7) The Council can only directly influence advertising on Council properties and that national legislation change is needed to influence other advertising spaces in a local authority area.
Therefore, resolves to:
1) Request that Place Overview & Scrutiny Committee considers creating a Task & Finish group to define an ethical advertising policy to recommend for adoption by Cabinet.
2) Request that the CEO of BHCC writes to the Prime Minister to request action on national policy on ethical advertising in line with our position. In addition, to ask for changes to planning laws to allow local councils to have planning powers over new advertising sites.
Supporting Information:
[1] New Sheffield ad ban shows how councils can act on harmful advertising - Adfree Cities
[2 We’re #BetterWithoutBillboards, and it’s time MPs took action - Adfree Cities
[3] democracy.sheffield.gov.uk/documents/s66761/
[4] The Hague will ban street ads for fossil fuels from January | Reuters