Scotland Yard is investigating election posters that appeared in Tower Hamlets before Friday’s local elections after a formal complaint alleged they stirred up racial hatred against Jewish people in breach of the Public Order Act.
The posters, which appeared around Shadwell station in the east London borough, depicted what has been described as a “monstrous characterisation” of a religious Jewish man in military uniform beneath the text “Labour’s monsters.” According to the complaint submitted to the Metropolitan Police, the image was “selected to appear menacing” and its characterisation was “anchored specifically in Jewish religious identity markers, not Israeli military conduct generally” — making it, in the complainant’s view, an incitement to hatred against Jewish people rather than a legitimate political statement about Israeli policy.
The posters also raised a separate legal concern. They carried no printer’s imprint or the name and address of a promoter, as required under the Representation of the People Act — an omission that in itself constitutes a potential criminal offence.
Alex Hearn of the campaign group Labour Against Antisemitism urged the Electoral Commission to investigate. He drew particular attention to a second poster in the series that stated “Labour are complicit in genocide,” arguing it appeared to “frame the Labour Party as acting in the service of Israeli government policy.” Mr Hearn said this “activates the antisemitic trope of Jewish or Israeli control over Western political institutions,” adding: “In an electoral district with a large Muslim population, this framing has the potential to inflame community tension by presenting political opponents not merely as wrong on policy but as agents of a foreign power associated with Jewish interests.”
The posters formed part of a broader campaign targeting Labour in the borough ahead of Friday’s vote, which saw Lutfur Rahman of the Aspire Party retain the mayoralty of Tower Hamlets with almost 39 per cent of the vote. Labour’s local mayoral candidate Sirajul Islam was among those targeted by the poster campaign.
Rahman’s re-election is itself not without controversy. Just over a decade ago, the Government was forced to intervene in Tower Hamlets after a report accused Rahman — who was also mayor at that time — of presiding over an administration described as “at best dysfunctional and at worst riddled with cronyism and corruption.” A High Court judge ruled that his 2014 election had been secured through bribery, intimidation, invalid votes and false statements about his rival. Rahman has always denied the allegations. He was banned from public office for five years before returning to the mayoralty in 2022 at the head of Aspire, a party he founded himself.
On Friday, Aspire won an overall majority on Tower Hamlets council, securing 23 of the first 31 seats declared. Labour won four seats, the Greens two, and the Liberal Democrats and Conservatives one each.
A Metropolitan Police spokesman said: “Police received a report of posters which displayed hate messaging on Cable Street, E1, at around 11.50am on Saturday, May 9. Officers are investigating the circumstances. The Met treats antisemitic hate crime with the utmost seriousness and is committed to taking robust action when it occurs.” The Electoral Commission also reminded campaigners of their legal obligation to include identifying imprints on all campaign materials.
