Labour’s ‘Lying Leaflet Scandal’: Lib Dems escalate ‘big fat lie’ to Electoral Commission
Labour’s ‘lying leaflet scandal’ has taken a serious turn after it emerged that Lambeth’s Liberal Democrat group leader Cllr Donna Harris lodged a formal complaint with the Electoral Commission on …
Black News 
Labour’s ‘lying leaflet scandal’ has taken a serious turn after it emerged that Lambeth’s Liberal Democrat group leader Cllr Donna Harris lodged a formal complaint with the Electoral Commission on 27th March, alleging the party’s anti-Lib Dem leaflet may breach the Representation of the People Act.
Despite the complaint, Labour has continued its leaflet campaign – and as Brixton Buzz has reported, distributed separate leaflets across the borough claiming the Green Party had blocked the building of 857 council housing, a claim Green leader, Streatham’s Scott Ainslie called “completely made up”.
Harris’s complaint invokes Section 106(1) of the RPA 1983, which prohibits false statements about a candidate’s personal character or conduct. Misleading claims about party policy are not covered by election law – but Harris argues that by falsely attributing budget cuts, police cuts and bedroom tax to named Lib Dem candidates, Labour has made it personal.
Her complaint singles out the Freedom Pass claim in particular, saying Labour knew the claim was false. She writes that on 21st January, Lib Dem spokesman Cllr Matthew Bryant told the full council meeting that “At the heart of this motion is a big fat lie. The Liberal Democrats support the Freedom Pass: that’s watertight.”
As reported in Brixton Buzz last week, the Freedom Pass review was initiated by London Councils, the body chaired by Lambeth’s own Labour leader Cllr Claire Holland (see sources at end of article).
However, within weeks of that meeting, anonymous Labour sources were briefing the Evening Standard that the Freedom Pass was “under threat” – on the basis of a single comment from a Lib Dem councillor from Kingston upon Thames about the cost of the scheme.
Holland then publicly stepped in to ‘block’ the review she had overseen – in what Inside Croydon’s political editor described as having ‘the appearance of cultivated media management, a political ploy’ to ‘portray Labour in as favourable a light as possible before election day.’
In her letter, Harris points out that the current bedroom tax scheme was introduced by the Conservative government, and that police numbers in London fall under the responsibility of the Labour Mayor.
Brixton Buzz has contacted Lambeth Labour again for comment on what has been dubbed the ‘lying leaflets scandal’ – including specific questions about how the 857 homes figure was calculated, and the Freedom Pass claims.
Primary Sources
London Councils Leaders’ Committee members
London Councils Transport and Environment Committee – 4 December 2025 papers
News coverage
Evening Standard, 14 January 2026: Freedom pass saved! Labour councils block threat to free travel for over-65s in London
Yahoo News mirror (accessible version of the Standard piece)
Inside Croydon, 5 January 2026: £372m Freedom Pass is ‘more than boroughs can afford’
Inside Croydon, 16 January 2026: Labour councils pledge to uphold Londoners’ Freedom Pass
Legal and charity commentary
Lawyer Monthly, 8 January 2026: London Freedom Pass 2026: Legal Locks May Block Tube Cuts
Age UK London, Freedom Pass Campaign 2026
Party rebuttal
Lambeth Liberal Democrats fact-check on the Freedom Pass row
More Info
- Lambeth Council elections: 7 May 2026
- Lambeth Green Party Candidates
- Shake It Up
- Lib Dem Candidates
- Laura Graham Insta
