Advertisers should do more to protect bereaved people in run-up to Mother’s Day, says politician

Brands should do more to spare bereaved people pain in the run-up to Mother's Day, a UK politician has said.

Email marketing ahead of the holiday can bring "dread" to people who have lost their mothers, said MP Matt Warman, who lost his mother in 2009. He told the British parliament that grieving people should be allowed to opt out of emails pushing Mother's Day offers. "I know from personal experience the dread that seemingly innocent marketing for Mother’s Day, or indeed Father’s Day, can bring for so many who have lost a loved one," he said. "I was 27. I was not a child but I was, I think, too young to bear some of the sadness I felt in 2009." "Small changes by advertisers to allow people to opt out of related communications will make a huge difference for those who find this day deeply painful." He noted that it's a policy that online flower store Bloom and Wild has implemented. "They have given customers the opportunity to opt out of Mother's Day emails because they recognise it can be a very sensitive time for some. "And if other companies were to follow suit, then the dread, and I do mean dread, around this day might be materially mitigated for many people." It comes after a mum whose baby was stillborn in 2017 expressed her upset that mothers who have lost children are often left out on the day. Hannah Pontillo created a range of cards especially for women like her for Mother's Day. "I am a mum. Like all mums, I went through pregnancy," she said. "I got an aching back and swollen feet. I gave birth. I have a son - you just can’t see him."