The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has upheld 42 complaints about posters used by Just Stop Oil. The ASA ruled that the posters cannot be used in their current form and that changes to the wording are required if they are to be used again.
In their judgement the ASA said that the clear implication of the slogan was that ‘just’ stopping oil is the only action needed to avert disastrous changes to the climate. The wording ‘stop oil’ would have been acceptable, but ‘just stop oil’ was not.
The ASA said that the case for the defence was undermined because Just Stop Oil had also registered trademarks for Just Stop Gas, Just Stop Nuclear, Just Stop Burning Wood and Just Stop Buying Cucumbers Wrapped In Plastic. In this context, the use of the word ‘just’ was clearly untruthful.
A spokesman for Just Stop Oil expressed disappointment. He said, ‘We take our protesting very seriously and have processes in place to ensure compliance - as far as possible - with all relevant laws and guidance. We aim to protest peacefully, but the Establishment is against us. This decision is, ironically, Unjust.
‘We are considering our position and are planning to launch a new campaign called Just Stop The ASA.’
Photo by Juan Fernandez on Unsplash