Tory MP accused of using Lib Dem rival’s name to direct voters to his own campaign site

A Conservative MP in Devon has been accused of deceiving voters by using internet addresses in a Lib Dem opponent’s name that direct web users to his own campaign website.

Three web domains that purport to link to websites connected to the Liberal Democrat candidate for the new seat of Honiton and Sidmouth do, in fact, direct people to the campaign website of Tory MP Simon Jupp, i has found.

Mr Jupp, the current MP for East Devon, and Richard Foord, the Lib Dem MP for Tiverton and Honiton, have both seen their constituencies abolished under boundary changes and they are fighting what is expected to be a tight race in the new seat.

When i visited the richardfoord.uk, richardfoord.co.uk and richardfoord.com web addresses, they all linked directly to Mr Jupp’s website.

It is not known who bought the internet addresses as ownership records currently point to a web domain-buying site based in Worcestershire.

A spokesman for Mr Foord said: “When we talk to people across Mid and East Devon, they tell us they want their representatives to play it straight and be honest.

“Links that look genuine but simply redirect to Conservative websites only serve to arouse suspicion and undermine trust.

“People deserve better from their MP, and at the election they have a chance to demand better by voting Liberal Democrat.”

Mr Foord, who overturned a huge Tory majority in Tiverton and Honiton following the resignation of Tory MP Neil Parish after he was found to have watched pornography in the House of Commons, has the official website address of richardfoord.org.uk.

According to political forecasting website Electoral Calculus Mr Jupp has a 54 per cent chance of winning the Honiton and Sidmouth seat, while Mr Foord is nine points behind on 45 per cent.

Web domains are inexpensive to buy and easy to direct to any website as long as no one has already bought the name.

For example, domain names ending in .uk can cost as little at £10 a year, with the first year coming in at less than £1. A co.uk domain will cost around the same amount and a .com address tends to be a little more expensive at around £18 a year.

Once the web domain name is owned it is a simple process to redirect it to any other website already in existence.

If someone wants to buy a domain that is already tkaen, they can steps to find the owner and negotiate a price.

The redirection of websites in an opponent’s name appear to be a new front in the campaign publicity wars that have long been a part of UK elections.

With the 2 May local elections approaching and a general election expected later this year, campaign leaflets from all parties have begun appearing though voters’ letterboxes.

In recent elections the unpopularity of Conservative candidates in some areas of the country has led to its candidates withholding which party they represent from their campaign material.

All the major parties, including Conservative, Labour, Liberal Democrats and the Scottish National Party, have accused each other of disguising their leaflets at recent elections.

At last year’s local elections the Lib Dems called for an inquiry into Conservative flyers that claimed voters did not require ID to cast their ballot despite rules coming in for the first time demanding acceptable forms of identity at polling stations.

And in the South West of England the incumbent Tory police commissioner has issued flyers that do not state that she is the Conservative Candidate.

Alison Hernandez, the Police and Crime Commission for Devon, Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly, sent out flyers earlier this week boasting of the improvements that had been made under her leadership, but failed to mention she will be the Conservative candidate when she stands again next month.

A spokesman for the Electoral Commission suggested the directing of the domain names to Mr Jupp’s website did not break any election law.

He said: “There is nothing in electoral law concerning the use of website domain names by candidates.

“The content of campaign material does not fall within our regulatory remit so it wouldn’t be for us to investigate.”

Mr Jupp and the Conservative Party were contacted for comment.