A NEW PRO-UNION ad intended to convince Scottish women to vote ‘No’ to independence appears to have backfired after it was branded sexist and patronising.
The advert titled ‘The woman who made up her mind’ is produced by the Better Together campaign and shows a woman taking a break in her kitchen and speaking about her frustration at the ongoing campaign.
During the course of the monologue she refers to the First Minister of Scotland Alex Salmond as “that guy off the telly” and repeatedly mentions her partner ‘Paul’ who “won’t leave off about the referendum”.
The woman says that Paul mentioned the referendum again in the but she chided him saying “its too early to be discussing politics”.
The clip continues to cut between the woman and her children’s items and she expresses doubts about independence saying “I know how important this vote is” before deciding that she “will not be gambling with my children’s future” and decides to vote ‘No’.
The ad is specifically targeted at undecided female voters who are seen as a crucial demographic with three weeks to go ahead of the 18 September vote.
It has however provoked a strong negative reaction, particularly online. #PatronisingBTlady was trending on Tuesday night when the ad was broadcast on BBC and STV with people criticising it for suggesting that women are not only unable to make up their minds on an important political decision, but also unable to research the issues.
As well as spawning numerous memes, spoof videos that ‘translate’ what the ad says have also been produced by those supporting a ‘Yes’ side.
The ‘No’ side is supported by the Conservative, Labour and Liberal Democrat parties but it’s been been a rough few days for the campaign even though it continues to enjoy a healthy poll lead.
Alex Salmond was also widely seen to have won Monday’s final TV debate against Better Together’s Alastair Darling making the final few weeks of campaigning even more crucial.
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