Broadcasting Act 1990

9 Control of advertisements

(1) It shall be the duty of the Commission—

(a) after the appropriate consultation, to draw up, and from time to time review, a code—

(i) governing standards and practice in advertising and in the sponsoring of programmes, and

(ii) prescribing the advertisements and methods of advertising or sponsorship to be prohibited, or to be prohibited in particular circumstances; and

(b) to do all that they can to secure that the provisions of the code are observed in the provision of licensed services;

and the Commission may make different provision in the code for different kinds of licensed services.

(2) In subsection (1) “the appropriate consultation” means consultation with—

(a) the Radio Authority;

(b) every person who is the holder of a licence under this Part;

(c) such bodies or persons appearing to the Commission to represent each of the following, namely—

(i) viewers,

(ii) advertisers, and

(iii) professional organisations qualified to give advice in relation to the advertising of particular products,

as the Commission think fit; and

(d) such other bodies or persons who are concerned with standards of conduct in advertising as the Commission think fit.

(3) The Commission shall publish the code drawn up under this section, and every revision of it, in such manner as they consider appropriate.

(4) The Commission shall—

(a) from time to time consult the Secretary of State as to the classes and descriptions of advertisements which must not be included in licensed services and the methods of advertising or sponsorship which must not be employed in, or in connection with, the provision of such services; and

(b) carry out any directions which he may give to them in respect of such matters.

(5) The Commission may, in the discharge of a general responsibility with respect to advertisements and methods of advertising and sponsorship, impose requirements as to advertisements or methods of advertising or sponsorship which go beyond the requirements imposed by the code.

(6) The methods of control exercisable by the Commission for the purpose of securing that the provisions of the code are complied with, and for the purpose of securing compliance with requirements imposed under subsection (5) which go beyond the requirements of the code, shall include a power to give directions to the holder of a licence—

(a) with respect to the classes and descriptions of advertisements and methods of advertising or sponsorship to be excluded, or to be excluded in particular circumstances, or

(b) with respect to the exclusion of a particular advertisement, or its exclusion in particular circumstances.

(7) The Commission may give directions to persons holding any class of licences with respect to the times when advertisements are to be allowed.

(8) Directions under this section may be, to any degree, either general or specific and qualified or unqualified; and directions under subsection (7) may, in particular, relate to—

(a) the maximum amount of time to be given to advertisements in any hour or other period,

(b) the minimum interval which must elapse between any two periods given over to advertisements and the number of such periods to be allowed in any programme or in any hour or day,

(c) the exclusion of advertisements from a specified part of a licensed service,

and may make different provision for different parts of the day, different days of the week, different types of programmes or for other differing circumstances.

(9) The Commission shall—

(a) in drawing up or revising the code, or

(b) in giving any directions under subsection (7),

take account of such of the international obligations of the United Kingdom as the Secretary of State may notify to them for the purposes of this subsection.