Watchdog bans 'socially irresponsible' Popworld Leeds post on Instagram

Popworld’s venue in the city is among a number of pubs in England and Scotland that have been reprimanded for breaking strict alcohol rules.

The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has banned the post which featured people who appeared to be under 25 years old and was deemed to encourage excessive drinking.

It featured the text: "When your pal hands you another shot and you're not sure you can handle it but you take it anyway..."

Popworld, Leeds acknowledged that the ads "possibly breached the Code" and said they had removed them.

They added that they were reviewing their other social media ads and would remove any that were similar.

Elsewhere, three Instagram posts and a Facebook post for The Hive, a nightclub in Edinburgh, have been banned by the regulator.

They included text such as: "Not only do I dance like nobody is watching, I also drink as if I don't work in the morning," and "Drinks from £1."

City Clubs (Edinburgh), trading as The Hive, said they accepted that the posts were not socially responsible and had removed them.

The ASA noted that all the posts included a caption that gave the prices of drinks alongside details about events that were being held at The Hive.

It said: "We acknowledged that the ads were intended to be light-hearted. However, we considered they nonetheless condoned and encouraged excessive drinking and therefore were socially irresponsible and breached the Code."