ANTI-ALCOHOL campaigners have branded a new policy banning alcohol manufacturers from advertising near schools as a PR stunt designed more to deflect criticism from the marketing industry rather than an effective way of combating teen drinking.
From March billboard and poster companies will be unable to place alcohol ads within 150 metres of any school, guidelines ratified by the poster industry say.
The peak body for poster companies, the Outdoor Media Association, cited "public concern" about alcohol advertising and said it was "committed to reducing the risk" of such ads inadvertently targeting people under the legal drinking age.
In addition all alcohol ads destined for billboards and posters - regardless of where they are placed - will have to be vetted by an industry-appointed committee to ensure they comply with a self-regulatory code.
But anti-alcohol campaigners and child advocacy groups dismissed the rules as window dressing, saying the guidelines applied only if the ads were within "sight line" of a school or were fixed, leaving trains, taxis and buses free to continue carrying alcohol ads. Neither buses nor trains restrict them.
The guidelines carry another caveat; ads can still go up near schools if there is a pub, club or bottle shop nearby.
Daryl Smeaton, the chief executive of the Alcohol Education and Rehabilitation Foundation said the move was "insignificant".
"It's really just surface treatment of the issue," he said. "The ads will still be on display in areas where young people walk and they will still visibly link alcohol to having a good time."
Mr Smeaton said the issue was not where the ads were placed, but rather the power they had to link alcohol with sexual success and popularity.
Elizabeth Handsley of Young Media Australia, questioned the policy's effectiveness and the motives behind the announcement. "I'm not aware of there being any serious community concerns about this issue," Associate Professor Handsley said.
"If there are concerns, those would be more about what's in the ads rather than where they are placed.
"Anyone who is really worried about addressing the issue of ads targeting children should be looking at the content of the ads.
"It is fairly easy to look to be doing something, with actions that in fact have very little impact.
Others welcomed the move. A spokeswoman for the NSW Federation of Parents and Citizens Associations said it "made good sense" but added it would have liked to have seen the rules come into force earlier.
Trish Worth the chairwoman of Drinkwise, praised the industry for acting. "It shows that they are doing something and are raising the issue," she said.
The chief executive of the Outdoor Media Association, Helen Willoughby, rejected any criticism. "The industry could have done nothing but we decided to take what is a significant step.
"If we take bus shelters, posters and larger format [billboards] then we are talking about 60 per cent of the revenue.
"It is just not practical to implement this policy on transit advertising."
Ms Willoughby was unable to say how many ads would have to be moved from near schools because of the policy.
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