Ad showing
Islamic preacher burning dollars banned in blow for Khan’s TfL
Advertisement approved by transport body risked ‘serious offence’, regulator rules
Adverts showing an Islamic preacher burning US dollar and euro banknotes have been banned from tubes and buses, overruling a decision by Sadiq Khan’s Transport for London (TfL) to allow them.
The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) on
Tuesday said it had banned six posters for online Halal investment company
Wahed Invest after concluding that they could have “caused serious offence”.
The ASA pointed out that the Wahed Invest adverts
showed the words “the United States of America” in flames and that the TfL
service is “regularly used by tourists”.
It said: “Due to the vast number of people who used
TfL services and because London was a tourist hotspot, people from the United
States or eurozone countries would have seen the ads.
“We considered some viewers, particularly people
from the United States or eurozone countries, would have viewed their nation’s
currency as being culturally significant and a symbol of their national
identity.”
Several of the adverts feature images of Ismail ibn
Musa Menk, a Muslim preacher and motivational speaker, known as Mufti Menk,
surrounded by flaming US dollar notes.
The ban comes despite TfL’s prior approval of the
adverts and its insistence during the ASA investigation that they did not break
any rules. TfL, which is chaired by the Mayor of London, said it believed the
ads complied with its advertising policies.
The decision to approve the adverts contrasts with the network’s strict stance on posters that breach its junk food rules. Ed Gamble, a comedian, last year had to swap a picture of a hot dog for a cucumber in adverts for his stand-up tour. TfL also banned an advert for an artisan cheese shop in 2023 after deciding that the dairy product was too unhealthy.
Susan Hall, a Conservative member of the London Assembly and former mayoral candidate, told GB News last year: “The Wahed advert on TfL services begs a lot of questions about the Mayor’s policing of advertising.”
The adverts were seen on London tubes and buses in September and October last year, during which time the ASA received 75 complaints about the posters. TfL paused the campaigns pending the outcome of the ASA’s investigation.
Wahed Invest said the burning banknotes were meant
to signify that when inflation grew faster than the rates of savings rates,
money was effectively “going up in flames”.
The finance company argued that popular phrases
such as “money to burn” and “burning a hole in my pocket” were often used in
relation to cash. It told the ASA that while it acknowledged that currencies
were a symbol of national identity, burning of banknotes were often seen in
films and TV programmes.
However the ASA said the “burning of banknotes
would have caused serious offence to some viewers”.
One poster showed a man holding an open briefcase
filled with US dollar and euro banknotes on fire, while another included the
same briefcase image with a large heading stating “withdraw from exploitation”.
The advertising regulator said the ads must not
appear again in this format.
A TfL spokesman said all adverts were reviewed
against its policy “as well as the Committees of Advertising Practice (Cap)
Code before being approved to run on the network” and added: “We will apply the
findings when considering any future campaigns.”
A Wahed spokesman said the organisation understands
“that visuals like those included in our campaign can elicit strong reactions”
and appreciates the ASA’s feedback on the use of international currency.
He added: “Our imagery sought to visually and
metaphorically highlight the impact inflation has on savings. Many of our
clients elect to not receive interest income on their savings due to religious
prohibitions on interest and yet still feel the effects of inflation, thus
‘burning’ their purchasing power.
“While our intention was to spark thought and
awareness, we recognise the importance of ensuring that messaging resonates
positively with the diverse audiences that may consume them.”
https://telegraph.co.uk/gift/5118579b3c8f746d
