Health minister Edith Schippers has scrapped a series of television and radio adverts about changes in the healthcare system after they were criticised by the advertising standards commission for being too positive.

The campaign focused on the shift in responsibility for home care services from national to local government and highlighted a number of fictional characters with different care needs.

However, the commission said in its February ruling ‘the adverts damage the confidence that citizens should be able to have in the accuracy of scenarios spread by the government.’

Unions also complained the adverts did not give a fair reflection of home care services, which they say are being greatly reduced because of government spending cuts.

Schippers had appealed against the ruling but it was upheld by the commission on Thursday. The minister has now decided to scrap the adverts to ‘end further discussion’.