Proposition 50K0753

Projet de loi relatif à la publicité pour les véhicules à moteur.

General information ¶

Authors

CD&V Jos Ansoms, Simonne Creyf, Trees Pieters

Submission date

June 23, 2000

Official page

Visit

Status

Adopted

Requirement

Simple

Subjects

motor vehicle industry advertising

Contact form ¶

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Discussion ¶

Nov. 8, 2001 | Plenary session (Chamber of representatives)

Full source

Mr. Speaker, in the government statement, the Prime Minister clearly stated several weeks ago that road safety will become one of the priorities of this government. I am very pleased with this and we will work together to make progress. I only hope that it will not remain with good intentions and devout wishes but that it will effectively happen. After all, we have lost two years in which little or nothing has happened.

Traffic safety requires an integrated approach and a continuous policy that focuses on three aspects. First, it is about the means of transport, the car. Is this car safe enough? Second, it is about road infrastructure, a competence of the regions. Third, it is about the road user. Fortunately, in recent decades, car manufacturers have done a lot to increase the safety of the car. However, we are not there yet. I refer to discussions such as the dead-angle mirror level and whether or not to apply speed limiters. There is also a lot to be discussed on the safety of the car. Fortunately, the time is also far behind us when there was a very aggressive advertising for the sale of cars and gasoline. Remember the slogans "stop a tiger in your tank" and "2000 cc adrenaline". Such spectacular slogans belong to the past. However, there must be something else to happen. Under pressure from the public opinion and the increasing road safety, the advertising for the sale of cars has also been improved. There was even a deontological code drawn up by the automotive manufacturers who decided on a voluntary basis that speed, aggressiveness and force should no longer be used as sales arguments. There should no longer be references to motorsport circuits, and so on. When we submitted the bill two years ago, Febiac responded by organizing something new: on all advertising for the sale of cars, the slogan "private safety" is placed. I do not know if you have already noticed this. You probably haven’t seen it yet. It can also be difficult because it is written in such small letters that it is not visible. Per ⁇ that was also the intention. The result is, of course, that this also has no effect. We know that the sector is under great pressure and that the deontological code is sometimes violated. So we still see posters appearing as I brought one here. You can find them weekly in magazines and sometimes also on signs of 20 square meters. Very recently a poster appeared for the sale of a car of which I will not name the brand but which is manufactured in Antwerp. Here you can see a car with the image of a pitbull, on the leash. Then there is a “leeband not accompanied”. It is clear that there is something behind such a car. I can give other examples. At the moment, the deontological code is still being used. There is still an appeal to aggressiveness with all its consequences. To a certain extent, I understand that. The pressure on the market is very large and the different brands must take all sorts of initiatives to tap certain segments in the market. I have here a recent study of a marketer. He has discovered that another market segment has remained unbounded, namely the segment of female drivers making careers. The study of the marketing agency shows that 30% of those ladies are very sensitive to the speed and power of cars.

It’s stated in the study; I don’t know if it’s true. They have even found a name for that type of ladies, namely the macha or the queens of the road. They are trying to sell cars to the queens of the road in this way.

All this to make it clear that we are not there yet. There is an urgent need for a legislative initiative. I hope you agree with me that there must be a legal provision so that such publicity is no longer possible. We are going one step further. We ask that the advertisement for the sale of cars include a safety message. This message calls for the responsibility of the driver. It should not be too overwhelming. Each advertising message should contain a positive message invoking the driver’s responsibility. One should also not fall into convenience solutions that only refer to, for example, the airbag or ABS. Studies in Germany, meanwhile, have shown that cars with all these safety gaps are more likely to be involved in a serious accident. In the 1980s, cars with such equipment had to pay a lower insurance premium. One has come back to that because those heavy, expensive cars, which are equipped with such snuffs, are often involved in serious accidents.

We have reflected on what has existed in the Netherlands for years in connection with alcohol consumption. On television and on posters, beautiful advertising can be made for all possible alcoholic beverages. However, it is always very clearly stated: "Enjoy and drink in moderation."We have adopted that idea but then focused on the automotive industry. We ask that, in cooperation with the Belgian Institute for Traffic Safety, a positive message be included in every advertising message for the sale of cars.

Is this bullying? We think of not. It is an appeal to the responsibility of everyone. Many of us find it normal to mention on foods whether or not they contain genetically modified raw materials. I don’t know if anyone has ever died from eating such food. Every year there are 1,500 road deaths and 11,000 serious injuries on our roads.

Does it have an effect? One can continue to discuss the effect of advertising. Given that such heavy budgets are being thrown against, I suspect that there is a very large effect from advertising. In addition, the hearing with representatives of the Belgian Institute for Traffic Safety has shown that they are in favor of this initiative because it is a wonderful, powerful and financially very strong support for all kinds of actions of the BIVV. In fact, it does not cost anyone anything. The advertising budgets remain what they are; only the messages will need to contain a little more text and a little less drawings, ladies and pieces of car. However, it will no longer cost the sector. It will no longer cost the government. There is also a positive message for drivers. It will also improve the image of the industry.

Some will say they don’t believe in any effect, but I still think it’s worth it, even if it’s for respect for the families facing deadly traffic accidents. Can you imagine that you, as the father or mother of a child who has been killed, have to look on a poster every day, as I just showed one. It seems to me already sufficient to prevent such situations.

That seems to me to be a reason to avoid such things.

Mr. Speaker, dear colleagues, I am very pleased that we were able to find a broad majority in this committee beyond the party boundaries and beyond the limitations of majority and opposition. I hope that this will be the case in the plenary session and that everyone will approve this bill. Mr. Dufour is not present now, but I want to tell him that it is a false discussion to say that one must maintain or sensitize: one must do both. Occasionally one must maintain, one must shape processes, one must act, but one must also sensitize. The two are not separable from each other. In terms of awareness, we are doing useful work by approving this bill immediately.

As previously stated, 1,500 road deaths are 1,500 too many. We must already do everything we can to reduce this figure, both in respect for the victims and the relatives of the victims. We are supported by the BIVV. Since I do not belong to the 30% macha’s, I can fully say that I would very much like to see more clear messages in car sales. It doesn’t have to be so mandatory. Scientific studies have also repeated that the more safety snoops are applied to cars, the greater the risk that people will feel so safe that they will no longer drive safely. We therefore support this proposal. Enjoy driving, but not too fast.

I think in the same direction. This weekend in Gent, two other young girls were dramatically killed: they were killed. Colleague Ansoms will agree with me that not every road accident is due to lightning or fast cars, but that traffic speed is the big problem. This does not mean that not all the possible efforts should be made to limit the high level of road safety that exists today. This bill can ⁇ meet this, and therefore my group supports this bill and will approve it.