LOCAL CONSERVATIVES FAKE ELECTION ADDRESS PHOTO

3.25.07pm UTC (GMT +0000) Tue 19th Apr 2005

West Berkshire Liberal Democrats have made an official complaint to Conservative Central Office after it emerged that their first election address for the Newbury Constituency contains a doctored photograph.

Liberal Democrat Agent Leah Darbyshire has written to Michael Howard calling on him to condemn the leaflet, which shows the Conservative candidate in front of the landmark sign for Beynon's Department Store in Newbury Market Place. "BEYNON' has been altered to read "BENYON".

Commenting, Mrs Darbyshire said:

"I am disappointed that Michael Howard's Conservatives should distort our town's history in this way, for political advantage.

"Residents are entitled to expect honesty and straightforwardness from all the candidates seeking election to represent them.

"If Michael Howard's Conservatives are not above faking photographs to suit their own purposes, how can we trust anything else that they say?"

The news comes two weeks after the Chief Constable of Thames Valley Police condemned West Berkshire Conservatives for "misleading" and "unethical" campaign tactics, and one week after the local Primary Care Trust condemned Conservative scare-tactics on health in the constituency.

ENDS

NOTES:

1) The Chief Constable describes the Conservative use of crime statistics as "unethical" and "misleading" (Newbury Weekly News, 7 April 2005). The PCT says that Conservative claims on health are "simply not true" (Newbury Weekly News, 14 April 2005).

2) The text of Mrs Darbyshire's letter to Michael Howard is as follows:

Dear Mr Howard

I am writing to make an official complaint on behalf of local residents and West Berkshire Liberal Democrats about your party's campaigning tactics in the Newbury Constituency.

Your candidate's first election address contains a doctored photograph of one of the town's landmarks - the sign in the Market Place for BEYNON'S Department Store. The photograph has been altered so that the sign, pictured behind your candidate, reads "BENYON" (the surname of your candidate).

I am sure you will agree with me that local residents are entitled to expect honest campaigning from all the candidates seeking election. Indeed, your election agent in the Newbury Constituency wrote to the Newbury Weekly News to pledge precisely this.

Yet within weeks, your campaign has been criticised by both the Chief Constable of Thames Valley Police and the local Primary Care Trust, for being misleading.

I hope that you will take this opportunity to step in and restore some order and dignity to your local campaign, including a condemnation of your party's use of doctored photographs, and an apology to local voters for these attempts to mislead them.

I look forward to your early reply.

Yours sincerely,

Leah Darbyshire

Agent to David Rendel and Newbury Liberal Democrats