Ban on police’s ‘crying baby’ ad warning 999 timewasters

Campaign’s ‘ambiguous’ message could discourage genuine calls about child abuse, say critics

‘Not all calls are policing matters. To report noisy neighbours, contact your council’

A POLICE advert that discouraged people from calling 999 over a baby crying has been banned after critics said it could put people off raising the alarm about cases of child abuse.

The “deliberately ambiguous” advert urged concerned neighbours not to call 999 if they hear a baby crying next door, suggesting they call the local council instead.

Surrey Police said the purpose of the advert was to demonstrate the difference between what was and was not a policing matter.

However, children’s charities described the message as “extremely worrying” and said the protection of children must be prioritised over time wasters. The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) described it as “socially irresponsible” and said the specific scenario presented gave no “clear cut” indication of whether or not harm was being inflicted.

It said: “The consequences of a viewer being dissuaded from reporting an instance where they felt a child might be being abused, if those suspicions turned out to be true, [are] extremely serious and even life-threatening.”

The ban follows growing criticism of the police for bizarre gimmicks such as painting their nails to highlight prob-

‘Any advert that might stop someone picking up the phone could lead to fatal conseqences’

lems such as slavery and domestic abuse.

The police were criticised for poor performance last week as new figures showed that nine in 10 burglaries were left unsolved.

The advert, broadcast in August, depicted a telephone while a baby or young child could be heard crying through the adjacent wall.

The text read: “Hello, Surrey Police 999 emergency.” “My neighbour’s kids are being noisy.” – the word “noisy,” written in blue, was alternated with “abused,” in red – “Not all calls are policing matters. To report noisy neighbours, contact your council. When it is a policing matter Surrey Police will be there for you. Think twice. Is your call a policing matter?”

The complainant said the suggestion that viewers should make their own decision about whether police involvement was necessary was irresponsible.

Peter Watt, director of NSPCC national services, warned that if people waited until concerns were confirmed, it might be too late. “Any advert, however well meaning, that might stop someone from picking up the phone could lead to dangerous, or even fatal, consequences.”

Surrey Police said it was “really disappointed” with the decision, noting that research had demonstrated high public understanding of the deliberate juxtapositions of the campaign.

It said the ad was part of a wider advertising campaign launched after officers were deployed on 10,000 calls over 12 months that did not require police attention.