Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of regulating the advertising of average upload speeds.

The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) is the independent regulator for advertising in the UK and enforces the ‘CAP Code’ and ‘BCAP Code’, which set the standards for non-broadcast and broadcast advertising, respectively. These codes include specific rules intended to protect consumers from misleading marketing communications. If advertising includes the omission, exaggeration, or ambiguous presentation of information, it can be considered misleading. The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has also set guidance about how companies advertise broadband speeds. The ASA recommends that companies show the average speed that at least 50% of their customers receive at the network’s busiest time (8-10pm) to not be considered misleading.

If an advertisement is found to be in breach of the codes, the ASA will instruct that it be withdrawn or amended, and in some cases may escalate to the appropriate statutory backstop.