Question to the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps he is taking to ensure that advertisements by oil and gas companies are not political advertising under Section 321 of the Communications Act 2003.

Political advertising on television and radio is prohibited under the Communications Act 2003.

Section 321(2) of the Act provides that an advertisement contravenes the prohibition on political advertising under section 319(2)(g) if it:

• is placed by, or on behalf of, a body whose purposes are wholly or mainly political;
• is directed towards a political end; or
• is connected with an industrial dispute.

The meanings of objects of a political nature and political end are defined in section 321(3) of the Act.

Ofcom is responsible for enforcing this ban and determining whether a particular advertisement falls within the statutory prohibition. Any assessment is made against the statutory criteria on the facts of each case.