Marie Stopes: 1 in 3 UK women will have an abortion in their lifetime

The first ever commercial for unplanned pregnancy and abortion advisory services will be aired on British television, but not Northern Ireland.

The commercial, to be screened first on Channel 4 , is part of a new campaign by Marie Stopes International.

Independent YouGov research revealed that only 42% of UK adults affirmed that they would know where to go for specialist advice (other than going to their GP) if they or their partner were faced with an unplanned pregnancy.

The survey also showed that over three quarters of UK adults (76%) believed that commercials about unplanned pregnancy advice services should be permissible on TV within appropriate broadcasting times.

The campaign asks ‘Are you late?’ and directs women facing unplanned pregnancy to Marie Stopes International’s 24hr helpline, where they can receive support, advice and services.

Julie Douglas, head of marketing at Marie Stopes International, said :

“We feel television is the best place to let women know who to contact if they need help. The campaign will encourage people to talk about unplanned pregnancy and abortion more openly and honestly.”

Michaela Aston, a spokeswoman for anti-abortion charity Life, said:

“By suggesting that abortion is yet another consumer choice, it trivialises human life and completely contravenes the spirit of the 1967 Abortion Act, which was supposed to allow for a small number of legal abortions in a limited number of hard cases, but has been twisted and distorted to allow for mass abortion on demand.”

An Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) spokesman said:

“Any ad that airs has to comply with all the relevant rules in the Advertising Code, which aims to ensure that ads are not misleading and socially responsible.”

The commercial will be subject to a legal challenge from the Society  for the Protection of Unborn Children  which points to the clinics having a:

“financial interest in drumming up demand for abortion.”

The commercial will air on Channel 4 from May and throughout June.

Jonathan Gabay

www.brandforensics.co.uk

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In an unprecedented move to bolster the workforce, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown will today announce that McDonald’s, Network Rail and Flybe will become the first three companies to have the authority to grant Level 3 status qualifications (equal to GCSE, A Levels or even specialised diplomas).

Some academics are already complaining that the diplomas will not be as academically thorough as traditional ones. According to reports, four out of 10 university admissions tutors said they will refuse students who had taken the new diplomas that will come into effect next autumn.

From this month, McDonald’s will be piloting their basic shifts manager course. In summer FlyBe will offer courses covering the work of cabin crews, engineers and call centre staff, some of which will reach Level 4 – degree level.

Network Rail will initially offer track engineers courses up to A-level or Diploma standard.

Whilst any boost to our country’s education system is welcomed (especially one combining practical ‘real-life’ qualifications with theory) from a branding prospective, I can’t help feeling like a burger without a filling about this: Consumers may start believing that yet another core tenets of our society – this time, education- is under threat from becoming a commercial sponsorship opportunity.

With falling high value perceptions of their image, McDonald’s have recently re-assessed all aspects of their brand positioning, including re-positioning themselves as a healthy food option café bar to compete with the likes of Starbucks.

In USA, McDonald’s sponsors primary school progress reports; rewarding free ‘Happy Meals’ to children attaining good grades and class attendance records.

Also in Oakbrook, Illinois USA, McDonald’s runs its own ‘Hamburger University’ recoginsed by the American Council on Education. Additionally it has ‘Hamburger University’ campuses in Sydney, Munich, London, Tokyo, Hong Kong and Brazil.

In the UK, advertisers annually spend around £300 million targeting the classroom. In just one case, mint brand, ‘Mentos’ offers schools free sweets, a teaching pack and a chance to win £2,000 of science equipment.

With the new increased competition in the academic market for students, perhaps one day soon we’ll see the likes of ‘Oxbridge’ advertising a choice of either snack-size or even super-size diplomas; both with a free T-shirt branding their Alumni – now there’s food for thought.

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