ASA Non-broadcast Adjudication: Charles Robertson (Developments) Ltd

Complaint

An ad in The Tavistock Times Gazette, for Trago Mills shopping centre, featured boxed text that stated "THIS IS A CUT-DOWN VERSION ... of a recent article apparently from a national newspaper and I felt you might be interested. The headline was 'Immigrants Not Brits Must Adapt' ... 'Since the July 7th terrorist attacks we have experienced a surge in patriotism by the majority of Brits. However, the disgust about the attacks had barely settled when the politically correct crowd began complaining that our patriotism was offending others ... I am not against immigration. However there are a few things that those recently arrived in our country, and apparently some born here, need to understand. This idea of multiculturalism has served only to dilute our sovereignty and our national identity. We speak ENGLISH, not Indian, Urdu, Arabic, Chinese or any other language. If the Union Jack offends you, or you don't like our Queen you should seriously consider a move to another part of the planet. We are happy with our culture and have no desire to change, and we really don't care how you did things where you came from. Our laws give every British citizen the right to express their opinion, and we will allow you every opportunity to do so. But once you have finished complaining, whining, and griping about our flag, our government, or our way of life, I highly encourage you to take advantage of one other great British freedom, the right to leave. It is time for Great Britain to speak up. If you agree, pass this along. If you don't, delete it' ... All I can suggest is that you take the author's advice, whatever your opinion. As you can see, I've passed it along." The complainant objected that the ad was offensive and irresponsible because it was likely to provoke racial tension.

CAP Code (Edition 11)

Adjudication

Complaint not upheld

Trago Mills Regional Shopping Centres (Trago Mills) said the ad appeared in 24 publications across the South West of England, which had a combined circulation in excess of 600 000 copies. They maintained that it was likely that around one million people had seen the ad and pointed out that the ASA had received only one complaint. They also said they were not aware of any other complaints about the ad. Trago Mills maintained that the piece in the ad was balanced and thus unlikely to cause offence. They said the ad had been seen by the various publishers' legal teams prior to publication.

Tavistock Newspapers Ltd said the ad traditionally carried political comment and they had received no complaints about it.

The ASA noted ads for Trago Mills traditionally featured comment and opinion from Charles Robertson, the Chairman of Trago Mills and others with like-minded views. We noted the piece was described as an "article" and placed in a box separate from the body of the ad, which related to products sold by Trago Mills. We also noted the quote was cited as the view of David Challice, who was chairman of the Exeter Branch of the UK Independence Party and a UKIP candidate in the 2005 local elections, and did not refer to a specific racial group. We accepted that Charles Robertson should, within reason be free to express his opinions and that those opinions might be seen as controversial and objectionable to some readers. We considered that the ad did not exceed the prevailing standards of decency and was likely to be seen by most readers as a forthright opinion on a contemporary political issue. We concluded that, although some readers might object to the views expressed in it, the ad was unlikely to cause serious or widespread offence or provoke racial tension.

We investigated the ad under CAP Code clauses 2.2 (Responsible Advertising), 5.1 (Decency), 8.1 (Matters of Opinion) and 11.1 (Violence and anti-social behaviour) but did not find it in breach.