Assembly wants TfL advertising space for public health messaging

The Mayor should make better use of non-commercial advertising space across the TfL network to deliver vital public health messages, including on HIV awareness and mental health support, without any loss of revenue to TfL.

The London Assembly has today urged the Mayor to work cross-party with Assembly Members to identify and roll out agreed public health campaigns using City Hall’s existing advertising allocation, following confirmation from TfL and the GLA that this space can be used for public health purposes.

Emma Best AM, who proposed the motion, said:

"The Mayor of London is sitting on a significant resource for public health messaging in the form of TfL advertising space, which he can levy as he needs.  

“I am pleased the Assembly has backed this cross-party motion today calling on Sir Sadiq Khan to use these resources for public good, and improve the lives of Londoners."
 

Caroline Russell AM, who seconded the motion, said:

“I’m glad this motion has passed because it reflects the evidence-based recommendations the Assembly has made repeatedly through its Health Committee work. For years we have called on the Mayor to use TfL’s reach to deliver public health messaging on issues like gambling-related harms or organ donation, with no loss of revenue to TfL.

“This motion is about ensuring those cross-party and scrutinised recommendations are acted on, and that the Assembly has a meaningful role in shaping public health campaigns that address health inequalities and make a practical difference to Londoners’ lives.”

The full text of the motion is:

This Assembly wishes to recognise the importance of the TfL advertising estate, both in terms of providing a valuable revenue stream for London's transport system, and as a platform for delivering important public messaging.

Adverts across the TfL estate fall into two categories: commercial and non-commercial space. Non-commercial space is currently used for a mix of TfL operational messaging, and a quarterly allocation provided to City Hall. This quarterly allocation is currently used by the Mayor and the Greater London Authority (GLA) for a series of advertising campaigns around the Mayor's priorities, and to promote the Mayor's policies.

Given the Mayor’s statutory duty to address health inequalities, this Assembly believes the non-commercial allocation on the TfL network could be used far more effectively for the benefit of Londoners, without any loss of revenue to TfL. With a substantial reach to millions of Londoners across all forms of the capital's transport network, this space could provide essential public health messaging on important subjects like HIV awareness and mental health support, helping to make a tangible and practical difference to the lives of Londoners.

This Assembly wishes to note the outcome of the Health Committee's meeting of 22 January, during which representatives from the GLA and TfL confirmed that City Hall's allocation could be used to promote public health messaging.

The Assembly, therefore, calls on the Mayor to:

• Work with the Assembly on a cross-party basis to utilise non-commercial space on the TfL network for public health messaging, with no loss of revenue to TfL.
• Work with the Assembly, informed by experts and the third sector to identify a series of public health campaigns which can be rolled out across the non-commercial allocation of the TfL advertising network.
• Support the rollout of a public health campaign through the non-commercial allocation of the TfL network if recommended by the London Assembly's Health Committee.
• Review TfL's current non-commercial operational messaging campaigns as the organisation's Chair, and identify opportunities that could be used more effectively to deliver public health messages on the network.

The meeting can be viewed via webcast or YouTube.

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