Greenwich Labour has been forced to scrap local election leaflets targeting thousands of voters after including a photo of a Liberal Democrat candidate without his permission.
The leaflet, which has been delivered to wards across the borough, summarises the party’s manifesto for the poll on May 7.
But a man seen laughing alongside Greenwich Council leader Anthony Okereke is actually Roger Spence, a candidate for the Liberal Democrats in Middle Park & Horn Park ward and a former chair of the local party.
Greenwich Liberal Democrats complained that the leaflet made “unlawful use of a photo of one of our candidates without his consent”. They say Labour has apologised, agreed to withdraw the leaflets and destroy copies that have not been delivered.
The costly blunder comes as Labour fights its most difficult Greenwich Council election for nearly 60 years. The party has been in charge of Greenwich since 1971, but rivals are talking up the possibility of Labour losing its majority and having to govern with the co-operation of other parties.
One figure from another rival party estimated the mistake could cost £15,000 in reprinting costs, with less than two weeks to go until the election. “That’s a week of leaflet deliveries lost at the worst possible time,” they said.
Mark Pattenden, the party’s election agent, told The Greenwich Wire: “We’re appalled that they’ve used our candidate’s image without his consent. It seems that they don’t have the procedures in place to check this kind of thing.”
He said that party members had spotted the mistake and alerted him, while at the same time Spence found out when his neighbours asked him why he was appearing in a Labour leaflet for Blackheath Westcombe ward. The neighbours also complained to the Labour candidates in the ward, Pattenden said.
The photo blunder is the second row to hit Labour’s campaign this week, after rivals accused the party of presenting confidential council information as new pledges to voters, a claim the party denies.
The Liberal Democrats last won council seats in Greenwich 20 years ago, although briefly had a councillor in West Thamesmead in 2024 after Chris Lloyd joined the party after leaving Labour, before standing down for family reasons.
They are targeting West Thamesmead ward in this poll after coming second there in a by-election following Lloyd’s resignation. Emmanuel Idowu and Mursal Siyid are hoping to claim the ward, where residents of the Royal Artillery Quays development have accused the council of not doing enough to help them in a row with Barratt Homes over the cladding on their buildings.
“It’s going well,” Pattenden said. “We’re finding plenty of people who are fed up with Labour.”
Greenwich Labour has not yet responded to a request for comment.
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