The Hague to ban fossil fuel ads

The Hague to ban fossil fuel ads

UN chief Antonio Guterres has urged every country to ban ads for fossil fuel companies
UN chief Antonio Guterres has urged every country to ban ads for fossil fuel companies. Photo: Kenzo TRIBOUILLARD / AFP/File
Source: AFP

The Dutch city of The Hague has become the first in the world to pass local laws banning advertisements for fossil fuels, petrol cars and long-distance air travel, officials said Friday.

The administrative city of over 500,000 residents late Thursday adopted groundbreaking local legislation to outlaw ads including for cheap last-minute holidays and cut-price electricity contracts.

The law comes into effect on January 1.

"The City Council of The Hague adopted two proposals to ban fossil advertising in outdoor spaces," council spokesman Jordy Kruse said.

The first proposal will inform advertising agencies that fossil fuel advertising is not permitted, while the second completely banned all fossil fuel advertising in public spaces, Kruse told AFP.

"We believe that adopting binding laws to ban fossil-fuel advertising through local legislation is a world-first," Leonie Gerritsen, a Hague council member for the Party for Animals (PvdD).

Read also

Germany joins criticism of EU anti-deforestation law

"We hope that this law will also give a signal to other cities to do the same to fight climate change," Gerritsen, one of the main drivers of the legislation, told AFP.

Other cities in the world have moved against fossil fuel adverts but The Hague is the first to enact binding legislation.

In June, UN chief Antonio Guterres urged every country to enact bans on ads for fossil fuel companies, which he called "the Godfathers of climate chaos".

Oil, gas and coal are the biggest contributors to climate change, accounting for the bulk of greenhous gas emissions.

In 2022, the Dutch city of Haarlem, near Amsterdam, agreed to outlaw ads for intensively farmed meat on public places like buses, shelters and screens.

PAY ATTENTION: Сheck out news that is picked exactly for YOU ➡️ find the “Recommended for you” block on the home page and enjoy!

Source: AFP

Authors:
AFP avatar

AFP AFP text, photo, graphic, audio or video material shall not be published, broadcast, rewritten for broadcast or publication or redistributed directly or indirectly in any medium. AFP news material may not be stored in whole or in part in a computer or otherwise except for personal and non-commercial use. AFP will not be held liable for any delays, inaccuracies, errors or omissions in any AFP news material or in transmission or delivery of all or any part thereof or for any damages whatsoever. As a newswire service, AFP does not obtain releases from subjects, individuals, groups or entities contained in its photographs, videos, graphics or quoted in its texts. Further, no clearance is obtained from the owners of any trademarks or copyrighted materials whose marks and materials are included in AFP material. Therefore you will be solely responsible for obtaining any and all necessary releases from whatever individuals and/or entities necessary for any uses of AFP material.