When a publisher is paid by a brand, subsequent posts should make this clear by displaying a prominent label. If there is payment but no editorial control by the brand, the content is subject to consumer protection law under the Competition and Markets Authority. But when a brand has paid a publisher, and also has editorial control, the content is classed as an advertorial or advertisement feature and is regulated by the ASA.

The revised advice comes from the Committee on Advertising (CAP), the sister organisation of the ASA, which states that marketing communications must be obviously identifiable. For advertisement features particularly, even if they are designed to resemble the editorial style of the title they appear in, they should be differentiated from strictly editorial content.

Typically, a label is a simple way to indicate this to consumers. The CAP Code specifically suggests the label “Advertisement Feature” – but it is also likely “Ad”, “Advert”, “Advertising”, “Advertisement”, and “Ad Feature” are likely to be considered acceptable. The ASA advice states that the term “sponsored” is open interpretation – as such, they generally advise against using the term in this context.

In relation to magazines and newspapers specifically, recent ASA advice noted that previous examples – not an exhaustive list – of the following labels were not clear enough for users:

• “Sponsored section”
• “In association with”
• “Brand Publisher”
• “Promotion”

The prominence of the label is crucial, but also visual and contextual signposts are important.

Advertisers and publishers for which this is relevant should read the updated advice in full. Please note, neither this article nor the ASA advice page constitute legal advice. It does not bind CAP, CAP advisory panels or the ASA.

Of particular note to publishers, it has been announced that the government will bring forward the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumer Bill – the legislation that will empower the Digital Markets Unit (DMU) – to parliament in the current parliamentary session. Meanwhile, the proposed Online Sales Tax has been abandoned.

The Chancellor acknowledged that the UK is now in a recession and that the economic climate would worsen in the short term. However, the blame for this was placed on international factors and comparisons were given on the economic situation other comparable countries were also facing.

On inflation, Hunt says that this was his “enemy” and would be a focus of his to tackle. Again, comparisons to the inflationary environment of countries were given by Hunt to provide context and demonstrate the UK was not an outlier in the situation it faced.

According to the Treasury, a fiscal “black hole” of around £54 billion exists in the public finances, with the Chancellor confirming wide-ranging spending cuts coupled with tax rises in response. In total, £55 billion of tax increases and spending cuts have been announced today.

In attempting to restore the public finances, the Chancellor said that the Autumn Statement will also seek to restore the UK’s economic stability and reassure markets following September’s “mini” budget which was correct to identify growth as a priority. Hunt affirmed that in taking these decisions, the most vulnerable will be protected and future economic growth should not be sacrificed.

Three priorities guide the Chancellor’s Autumn Statement: stability, growth, and public services. He stated that “the UK, like other countries, is now in recession”, however “but because of our plans the recession is shallower, and inflation is reduced.”

Shadow Chancellor Rachel Reeves MP (Lab) began by stating that the country found itself in a “worse place than we started the year” given the changes in Prime Ministers and other positions. She attributed the economic outlook not only to “12 weeks of Conservative chaos but also 12 years of economic failure”. She accused the Chancellor of offering the same old failed policies despite dismal economic growth, investment going down, wages being squeezed, and public spending crumbling, saying working people were paying for his failure.

She urged the need to break free from the cycle of stagnation, advocating for fairer choices and a proper plan for economic growth. Ms Reeves stated the Government has no coherent plan for growth, reflected by the Office for Budget and Responsibility’s decision to downgrade growth in the months and year ahead. She asserted the need for a long-term plan that would produce “a fairer, greener, more dynamic economy”, putting working people at the forefront and an industrial strategy “which gives business certainty, unlocks investment, and means that Britain can once again lead the world in the industries of the future”.

Key Announcements

Tax

Personal:

• There will be a freeze on both the basic and higher rates of income tax threshold until 2028.

• The highest rate of tax (45p) will also see its threshold lowered from £150,00 to £125,140. This measure is expected to immediately move 250,000 people into the highest bracket. This constitutes a raise of £1200 for these individuals

• Income tax personal allowances and the higher rate thresholds will be frozen until April 2028, as opposed to rising with inflation

• National Insurance and inheritance tax thresholds will also be frozen for a further two years (until April 2028)

• The allowance for capital gains tax will be lowered significantly, from £12,300 to £6,000 and then down to £3,000 in 2024

• All three rates of dividends tax (basic, higher and additional) will rise, and the tax-free allowance will be cut in half, down to £1,000 and then further to £500 in April 2023

• The energy bill cap will rise by £500 in April 2023, setting the new ceiling at £3,000

• Kwasi Kwarteng’s stamp duty cut will remain in place, but only until 2025, when a rise is expected

Business

• The energy company windfall tax (Energy Profits Levy) has been extended until 2028, with a 10% rise (from 25% to 35%)

• A temporary 45% tax will be levied on all companies that generate electricity. This will come into effect January 2023

• Councils will be permitted to raise taxes by up to 5% without the need for a local referendum

• The main rate of Corporation Tax will increase to 25% from April 2023

• Implementation of the OECD Pillar 2 rules, to deliver a global minimum corporate tax rate of 15%.

Spend

International

• Whilst defence spending will be reviewed, there was no announced rise in defence spending. It will stay at 2% of this statement period.

• Aid spending will also not return to the previous 0.7% levels, remaining at 0.5% for the next 5 years

Public Sector and Infrastructure

• £8bn will be given to the NHS and social care sectors. The NHS will receive at least £3.3bn this year and the next as part of this, whilst social care will receive £1bn this year and £1.7bn the following

• The education sector will be allocated £2.3bn per year for the next two years

• Projects such as the Sizewell C nuclear power plant, HS2, Northern Powerhouse Rail, East West Rail, and gigabit broadband will also be funded

Regional and Devolved Funding

• Additional Levelling Up funding was confirmed, with at least £1.7bn to be allocated by the end of this year

• The devolved administrations will receive additional funding, with £1.5bn allocated to Scotland, £1.2bn to Wales and £650mn to Northern Ireland over 2023-2024 and 2024-2025

Compassion

• The pension ‘triple lock’ will be protected

• Working age benefits will increase by 10.1%

• The national living wage will rise to £10.42 an hour

• The government will issue further cost-of-living support payments, including a means-tested £900, £300 for pensioners and a £150 disability cost of living payment in April 2023

Full transcript available here

The Professional Publishers Association (PPA) is calling on government to refuse Royal Mail’s plans to stop Saturday letter deliveries. The postal company has today announced it has approached government to seek an ‘early’ move to five day letter delivery.

This move will seriously impact long-established weekly magazine titles, making it difficult to operate effectively without a Saturday delivery. Many time-sensitive titles are mailed to land on a Friday or Saturday, and already have to build in an extra day due to Royal Mail processing delays.

Publishers have previously stated that this could even lead to the closure of UK print editions and result in multi-million pound losses due to cancelled subscriptions and reduced advertising revenues.

Changing the Universal Service Obligation (USO) would also have a considerable detrimental impact on publication printing schedules. A reduction in available capacity would cause printing costs to rise and result in bottle necks and scheduling gaps negatively affecting print companies’ profitability, damaging both publishers and the wider supply chain.

The move to a special delivery service on Saturdays will also have a profound impact on deliveries of non-USO mail. Whilst publishers may use Royal Mail’s Publishing Mail product or Wholesale Access (mailing products using other postal services), they are still reliant on Royal Mail operatives in the ‘final mile’ to deliver on Saturdays.

65% of mail in the UK uses Royal Mail’s Wholesale Access services. This includes magazines, bank statements, letters from HMRC, important mail from hospitals and doctor’s surgeries, court documents, and a range of other highly time-sensitive information.

Sajeeda Merali, CEO, PPA commented: “The PPA calls on government to block this move to diminish the USO, which will threaten the sustainability of print titles. Time-sensitive titles will be delayed and face significant losses, whilst the entire industry will be impacted by a reduction in print capacity and higher costs. We strongly urge Royal Mail to reconsider its decision: it is quite clear that financial sustainability can be achieved without the degradation of core, legally mandated services. We will work with our members, government, and Royal Mail to ensure that consumers’ access to time-sensitive information is maintained”.