A High Court judge this week frustrated a charity’s attempt to have
a ruling against it by the Advertising Standards Authority declared
illegal.
He threw out claims of ’irrationality and bias’ by the International
Fund for Animal Welfare, which had asked for a judicial review of the
ASA’s order that it should withdraw an ad urging an end to Canadian
tinned salmon sales in the UK.
Mr Justice Dyson also refused the charity leave to appeal against the
ruling provoked by the press ad, which called on Tesco to stop selling
the product as a protest against the alleged clubbing to death of seals
by Canadian fishermen.
IFAW said it was talking to its lawyers about taking the case to the
European courts and would call on the ASA to change its codes which, it
claimed, prevented pressure groups from publicising their causes
effectively.
IFAW executives claimed the ASA’s ruling was biased because of the
involvement of two members of its council - Richard Bradley, a director
of L’Oreal, and Len Sanderson, deputy managing director of the Telegraph
- which the charity says have been hostile towards it.
An ASA spokesperson said: ’We are glad to see our procedures have been
vindicated.’
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