Our Ref:         FOI-0502-1920

Thank you for your request received on 20 May 2019 asking for information about the ads refused under our policy restricting advertisements featuring food and drink products high in fat, sugar or salt (HFSS).
 
Your request has been considered in accordance with the requirements of the Freedom of Information (FOI) Act and our information access policy. We hold some of the information you require.

Childhood obesity is a serious problem facing the capital with 40% of London's children aged 10-11 are overweight or obese, and the Mayor is determined to do all he can to tackle it. It is not our intention to restrict adverts for products which genuinely do not contribute to childhood obesity, however we will restrict advertisements featuring HFSS food and drink products that contribute to child obesity. When making these decisions we are using the Nutrient Profiling Model from Public Health England. Advertisers can request an exception if they can demonstrate a product doesn’t contribute to the problem – for example, if it is not generally consumed by children or could be considered a medicinal product. Such requests will be considered carefully.

You asked:
 
1.    Can you tell me since the restrictions on HFSS products was introduced on TfL, how many adverts have been banned by TfL, on the grounds they were not HFSS compliant?

We work closely with advertisers. Since the introduction of the restrictions, we have requested that 17 campaigns be amended before running on our network. Of those 17, 11 were revised and subsequently ran, six were not amended.
 
2.    For each of the banned ads, can you please tell me the name of the advertiser and the name of the advertising campaign? And if appropriate, the date the ad campaign was supposed to run?
 
The name of the six advertisers who submitted the ads that did not run, and the campaign to which they relate, is commercially sensitive until the point at which the applications are approved and the campaign have run on our network. Disclosure of this information is therefore subject to a statutory exemption to the right of access to information under section 43(2). In this instance the section 43(2) exemption has been applied as disclosure would be likely to prejudice our ability to achieve best value from our advertising estate as well as affecting advertisers who wish to advertise on our estate. This information could potentially be obtained and utilised by the applicants’ competitors who may wish to use this information to gain knowledge of current and future plans, adversely affecting their ability to operate in a competitive market place. We do not hold information on when these ads were going to run.
 
The use of this exemption is subject to an assessment of the public interest in relation to the disclosure of the information concerned. We recognise that knowing further details surrounding our advertising processes would provide a greater level of transparency and insight. However, the potential effect on the ability to operate in a competitive market and the fact the it may lead to some brands being reluctant to submit anything to us in the future prejudicing our ability to achieve best value from our advertising estate, outweighs the possible benefits disclosure might bring.

Additionally, the names of the campaigns have been withheld under section 41 of the FOI Act because the information was provided to us on the basis of an understanding that it would be held in confidence and there was no expectation that this information would be routinely made public. Therefore it possesses the necessary quality of confidence to justify exemption. This exemption is an absolute exemption, which is not subject to an assessment of whether the public interest favours application of the exemption.
 
3.    Can you also please send me details of why each of the campaigns was banned?
 
As stated above, each of these campaigns will have been refused because they were not compliant with our policy regarding HFSS products.
 
Please see the attached information sheet for details of your right to appeal.

Yours sincerely

Gemma Jacob
Senior FOI Case Officer
FOI Case Management Team
General Counsel
Transport for London

[email protected]