Alex Salmond's Alba Party spoken to over leaflets 'breaking electoral law'

Alex Salmond’s party, which was founded last year in advance of the Holyrood elections, receiving less than 2 per cent of the vote, was spoken to by the Electoral Commission about material posted to voters.

It comes after leaflets posted through the doors of voters in Edinburgh failed to include the correct “imprint” – a legal requirement for election materials.

Instead of including a full description of who the material was being produced by and for what reason, leaflets were handed to voters stating: “Promoted by *ELECTION AGENT* on behalf of *CANDIDATE NAME*… Printed by *PRINTER NAME AND ADDRESS.”

Electoral Commission guidance states that printed election campaign material must include the name and address of the printer, the promoter, and who it is being promoted for.

The Electoral Commission is responsible for enforcing the rules around party material, while police are responsible for material promoting individual candidates.

A spokesperson for the Electoral Commission said: “Whenever printed or digital election material is produced, it must contain certain details (known as an ‘imprint’) to show who is responsible for the material. This helps to ensure there is transparency about who is campaigning.

“We have been in contact with the Alba party and have asked them to take steps to ensure their campaign material is compliant with the law.”

Alba Party leaflets may have been uncompliant with electoral law

Chris McEleny, general secretary of the Alba Party, said: “All material issued from the Party centrally includes the required imprint.

"We have sent out a reminder to all our activists of the requirements.”

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