Adverts bid to stop teenage boys beating up girlfriends

TEENAGE boys are urged not to abuse their girlfriends violently, in a government campaign launched today.

TV, radio, internet and poster ads will target 13-18-year-olds in an attempt to show the consequences of abusive relationships.

It is part of a wider effort by ministers to cut domestic violence against both women and girls.

Research last year by the NSPCC found a quarter of teenage girls said they had been physically abused by their boyfriends. One in six said they had been pressured into sex and one in three had gone further sexually than they had wanted to.

The TV adverts, directed by the top film-maker Shane Meadows, show a girl being bullied and threatened by her boyfriend.

The posters feature a hoodie with the slogans: "Do you make her weak at the knees because she's scared of you? Does her heart beat faster when you threaten her? Do you charm the pants off her, or does a slap work better?"