The ASA has this week upheld complaints against an RSPCA ad that
suggested badgers in cull areas would be "exterminated".
The poster showed a picture of a badger, a bullet and a vaccination
needle, asking: "Vaccinate or exterminate?" The ad's
text stated "The UK Government wants to shoot England's
badgers. We want to vaccinate them – and save their
lives". After receiving 119 complaints, including from
Conservative MP, Simon Hart, the Shadow Minister for Rural Affairs
in Wales, Antoinette Sanbach, and the Farmers' Union of Wales,
the ASA deemed the word 'exterminate' misleading as
"consumers were likely to interpret the claim...to mean that
all badgers would be eradicated in cull areas". In truth, a
target has been set for marksmen to kill at least 70% of badgers in
each specific cull zone, therefore leaving the exact figure
uncertain. The ASA has stated that RSPCA should not use the ad
again in its current form.
