A Labour council's billboard has been banned for displaying a "misleading claim" that wood-burners and open fires are directly responsible for a rise in pollution.
The Brighton and Hove City Council ad, which was spotted in December, included a graphic featuring a wood-burning stove belching out smoke in the shape of a parent and child.
The accompanying text read: “Harmful particle pollution near four city primary schools was 78 per cent higher last winter compared with last summer.
"Wood burners and open fires... The cosy killer.”
The poster's small print added: “City sensor data comparing December 2024 to April 2025 with May 2025 to November 2025 at Middle Street, Elm Grove Primary, Adlington Primary and Saltdean Primary schools.”
Shortly after it was erected, two complaints were lodged against the council - one from the owner of a chimney sweeping firm.
Chimney sweep Rob Whittingdon accused the council of "stigmatising people who are acting lawfully" and pointed out how "air pollution from solid fuel heating has declined significantly over recent years".
Hove Wood Burners boss Andy Genovese, another complainant, said the council was "wasting taxpayers' funds" and "virtue signalling during a cost of living crisis".
The Brighton & Hove City Council ad included a graphic featuring a wood-burning stove emitting smoke in the shape of an adult and child
|PA
They argued the ad wrongly implied that wood burners and open fires were directly responsible for the particle pollution hike recorded by the council.
However, the council insisted the poster was part of a push to raise awareness of the dangers of particulate matter (PM) pollution from domestic wood burning.
The authority compared the pollution levels to two parts of the year - one covering the winter, when Britons are far more likely to use domestic wood burners, with the other covering the summer months.
Across all eight monitoring sites PM2.5 pollution - particulate matter with a diameter of 2.5 micrometres or less - was 91 per cent higher during the colder period.
The same results showed a 79 per cent hike across the four primary schools between the two periods.
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Shortly after it was erected, two complaints were lodged against Brighton & Hove City Council
|However, the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) ruled that the poster implied there was a direct link between the use of wood burners and open fires, and the claimed jump in particulate pollution, and that those heat sources were the sole cause of the increase.
It said: “While we understood domestic wood burning was a significant contributor to urban PM2.5 emissions, we had not seen evidence in support of the direct link claimed in the ad.
“The ad implied that wood burners and open fires were the cause of the claimed increase in particulate pollution around four city primary schools.
“However, we had not seen evidence to substantiate the claim. We therefore concluded the ad was likely to mislead.”
The regulator added: “We told Brighton and Hove City Council to ensure that robust evidence was held to substantiate any claims where a direct causal link between the use of wood burners and open fires and an increase in particle pollution was stated or implied.”
Councillor Tim Rowkins insisted the risk associated with PM2.5 exposure was 'well-documented'
|GETTY
However, Tim Rowkins, cabinet member for Net Zero and environmental services at the authority, defended the digital poster, insisting it did not intend to mislead.
The councillor said: “We have clear and detailed local data that shows the impact that burning solid fuels has on air quality in our densely populated urban areas.
“The ASA has ruled that, in one of the campaign graphics we used, there was an insufficiently clear link to the evidence.
"There was no ruling against the campaign as a whole, or the other materials that were used."
Mr Rowkins insisted the risk associated with PM2.5 exposure was "well-documented", adding: "We’re working towards cleaner air in Brighton and Hove and will always act to protect the health of people in our city.”
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