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Letters / Money wasted on leaflets and trips for MSPs

Shetland Labour are astonished at the waste of money spent in the recent by-election, in a time of supposed austerity and waste-saving.

Labour spent just over £4,000 in the election, on leaf letting and advertising, some leaflets being delivered round the doors by volunteers.

In contrast, the SNP spent an eye-watering £99K, the Lib Dems £67K and the Tories £18k. (Congratulations to Ryan Thomson who spent £82!)

The usual limit for a general election or Holyrood election campaign is about £17,000, but, for some reason, a by-election has a limit of £100,000.

This is far too much and leads to ridiculous amounts of spending on plastic signs and paper going through doors that soon finds its way to the recycling bin.

Labour will always spend responsibly and appropriately in an election.

This money could and should be far better spent than being wasted on leaflets, advertising and trips for activists and MSPs who never come to Shetland at any other time.

Gordon Thomson
Secretary and Labour by-election agent, Shetland CLP

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