Anti-smoking advert 'is too frightening'

The Advertising Standards Authority received 744 complaints about the Department of Health TV commercials and posters.

A TV advert showed a woman folding clothes while a child watched TV. The next second the woman was dragged from the room by a fish hook attached to a wire.

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The advertisements and posters for the Department of Health campaign are said to have shocked and frightened children

A man walking down a street was also seen being dragged along the ground and over a car bonnet by a hook and wire into a shop selling cigarettes.

The aim was to demonstrate the addiction to tobacco and highlight a Government campaign to help smokers kick the habit.

A series of billboard posters showed smokers with pained expressions and a taught wire pulling on hooks embedded above their lips.

The campaign attracted the highest number of complaints to the Advertising Standards Authority for two years. Today, the authority criticisesthe handling of the Government-health initiative.

The official watchdog said most of those who complained considered the images were "offensive, frightening and distressing", particularly to children.

It ruled that the commercials cannot be shown during children or family viewing times. It seems the posters will be banned outright.

The Department of Health said the adverts were designed to confront smokers with the controlling nature of their addiction and were not meant merely to attract attention or to be gratuitous.