The Advertising Standards Authority has thrown out more than 1,000 complaints from MPs and members of the public who claimed a Marie Stopes International television advert promoted abortion.
The advertisement, which featured three women of different ages in different every-day situations with the caption that each was “late” and encouraged women whose periods were late to contact the charity, drew complaints of being harmful, offensive and misleading and is the second-most complained about advert the ASA has dealt with this year.
Among the many different issues raised by the complainants was that the advertisement promoted abortion, encouraged promiscuity, treated fathers’ views as invalid and offended religious beliefs.
The ASA was moved to refer the case to Ofcom as some complainants suggested the advert amounted to a political campaign to get the law around abortion changed.
But Clearcast upheld Marie Stopes’ defence that the advertisement neither promoted nor mentioned abortion. The charity said that it provided advice on a range of sexual health and reproduction issues, and within its scope it would also refer women who wanted an abortion to appropriate specialists.
The 1,054 complaints – 327 of which were received before the advert went to air – were accompanied by 3,296 postcards, which were sent as part of a petition organised by the Society for the Protection of Unborn Children.
Tracey McNeill, Marie Stopes International vice president for UK and western Europe, said the charity welcomed the ruling.
“We took every possible care to ensure that our 'Are You Late?' advertisement complied with the Advertising Code of Practice and was sensitively produced.
“We believe that our decision to advertise our not-for-profit services was justified and in the interest of women everywhere. Experiencing an unplanned pregnancy can be an isolating and frightening experience, especially if the woman concerned is uncertain about whether or not to continue it.
"By advertising on national television we aimed to bring the issue out into the open and direct women to a safe, confidential and supportive service which aims to provide them with all the information they need to make the best choice for them."
