Shock over Church of Scientology advert allowed at London Tube station

An advert promoting the controversial Scientology religion at a London Tube station has caused shock and disbelief among commuters.

The poster, which encourages Londoners to find out more about the group, was spotted over the weekend at a Tube platform.

Scientology has been labelled a ‘cult’ by critics, and has been criticised for its claims about mental health, its finances and even abusive practices.

The Tube advert says in large writing ‘I’m a Scientologist’, accompanied by the picture of a cinematographer called Robert.

The billboard hopes to spark the interest of commuters, asking ‘Curious?’ before directing them to the religion’s website.

The choice of advertising has been slammed by Londoners familiar with Scientology’s controversies.

One Londoner said: ‘TFL doesn’t allow junk food to be advertised, but this is apparently fine.’

Another complained: ‘A cult being advertised on the Underground. Appalling.’

A spokesman for Transport for London (TfL) told Metro: ‘The advertisement was reviewed against our advertising policy and was found to be compliant.’

TfL banned the advertisement of junk foods in 2019 in a bid to tackle child obesity, while their advertising policy also bans any posters which are ‘likely to cause widespread or serious offence to reasonable members of the public.’

Scientology describes itself as a religion that was founded in the 1950s by L. Ron Hubbard.

Members of the group submit to a process called auditing which, through questioning and the use of devise that measures the body’s electric flow, claims to help a person locate areas of spiritual distress.