General election: Lib Dems in ‘fake newspaper’ row over pamphlets disguised as local papers

Controversy comes after widespread criticism of inaccurate bar charts on Lib Dems newsletters, claiming party is poised for victory in those areas

The Liberal Democrats have been caught up in a row over “fake newspapers” after wooing voters with general election pamphlets disguised as local papers.

The Society of Editors rebuked Jo Swinson’s party after it distributed newsletters with titles including “Mid Hampshire Gazette” and “North West Leeds and Wharfedale News”.

Ian Murray, the organisation’s executive director, protested: “It is ironic how it is often politicians who complain about fake news but then set out to at least blur the lines for readers – and in this case voters – by packaging their partial messages to ape independent newspapers.”

He called on all political parties to support the regional and local press by “ensuring their political free-sheets look markedly different to real newspapers”.

“There should also be a requirement to clearly state which party is funding a publication in large, bold typeface rather than hiding such information away in an attempt to deceive,” Mr Murray added.

The controversy comes after widespread criticism of the Libs Dems for the increasingly notorious bar charts on its newsletters, claiming the party is poised for victory in certain areas.

Earlier this month, Layla Moran, the party’s education spokesperson and a former maths teacher, admitted to inaccuracies and that the Lib Dems needed to be more “careful”.

In the latest row, Katie French, who edits the Basingstoke Gazette, condemned the similarly titled “Mid Hampshire Gazette” as the Lib Dems having “shamelessly exploited the trusted format of a local newspaper for their own political gain”.

“This is nothing more than a political advertisement dressed up as a newspaper,” she said, according to the industry website Hold The Frontpage.

“The look and feel of this advertisement is very convincing and readers will have to spot the small print in the top right corner to see the so-called Mid Hampshire Gazette is published by the Liberal Democrats.

“This is a flagrant attempt to manipulate voters by presenting them an advertisement in the form of a front-page news story.

“Frankly it is insulting to the public who deserve better from one of the leading political parties.”

The “Mid Hampshire Gazette” has been produced in support of Paula Ferguson, the Lib Dem’s election candidate for the Winchester seat, 18 miles from Basingstoke.

It describes itself as a “free newspaper” covering several local districts, with the words “Liberal Democrats” appearing in very small print at the top right of the front page.

But the Lib Dems defended the practice, with a spokesperson saying: “This is the Basingstoke editor complaining about something that was not distributed anywhere near her circulation area.

“We remain committed to communicating with people, and tabloid newspapers have been one way of doing this employed by all political parties for decades.”