Unicef calls for ban on advertising to under 12’s
A UN report into British family life has warned that parents are consigning their children to a cycle “compulsive consumerism” by giving into their demands for toys and designer labels - and has called for a ban on advertising to under 12's to combat it.
Britain has already been shamed as the worst country in the industrialised world within which to bring up a child and this latest report also accuses it of hosting an overly materialistic society – linking it to recent widespread outbreaks of looting, arson and disorder.
Parents are engaged in a “pointless” exercise in accumulating consumer goods, claim the report authors, as long working hours take their toll on quality family time.
Describing children’s bedrooms as “media bedsits” the report cites televisions for being increasingly used as substitutes for babysitters.
More positively both parents and children were conscious that time was the most valuable commodity they possessed, with children themselves saying saying spending time with their families made them happier.
David Bull, Unicef's UK director, said: “The government needs to make sure parents earn enough to spend fewer hours in work and more time with their children, protect children’s play facilities from spending cuts and consider reforming the laws controlling advertising to children.”