Nigel Farage’s Reform UK deletes Andy Burnham attack ads after legal threat

Lawyers instructed by an illustrator have accused Reform UK of copyright infringement and demanded a public apology after editing artwork of Andy Burnham

Nigel Farage’s Reform UK has withdrawn attack advertisements featuring a portrait of Andy Burnham following threats of legal action from the artist that created the original posters.

Solicitors representing illustrator Stanley Chow have accused Nigel Farage’s party of copyright breach and demanded a public apology regarding the material, which they claimed was “edited without permission”. The imagery was allegedly AI-created and appeared to depict a group of individuals in a dinghy brandishing “Vote Andy For Us” banners displaying Mr Chow’s artwork of the Makerfield by-election contender and Labour leadership candidate.

This development comes as the latest polling suggest a 10% advantage for Mr Burnham in the race, after a catastrophic Question Time appearance where Reform’s nominee was torn apart over his failure to apologise for disparaging comments about women.

Legal practice Brabners contended the artist was entitled to an injunction – or commitments to stop and remove the allegedly infringing material – damages and a public apology, reports the Mirror.

A formal complaint delivered to party offices is believed to have stated the artist, whose original artwork has been prominently displayed throughout the Greater Manchester Mayor’s by-election campaign, would be pursuing a minimum of £5,000 in compensation.

The correspondence also specified that Mr Chow required a public declaration recognising his rights and the alleged copyright violation to be posted across Reform’s social media platforms and website. Mr Chow, a second-generation immigrant from Manchester, said the Reform UK post “misrepresents what the image stands for and what I believe in”.

He added: “For me, this is straightforward – my work has been used without permission to share a message that I fundamentally disagree with. To see my portrait, created to represent something positive about Manchester and Andy’s vision for the city, being used without my permission to push agendas, including an anti-immigration message, is fundamentally unfair and wrong.”

A Reform UK spokesperson insisted the party believes its use of the material, which appeared multiple times across social media platforms, “amounts to fair use” and that “this legal action is politically motivated”. They stated: “However, we have removed the posts in good faith and without any admission of liability on our part”.

The development come safter the wannabe Labour prime minister said he wants to ban Video Assistant Referee (VAR) in football. Burnham reckons the controversial tech review system should be shown a red card because it’s “killing spontaneity [and] it’s not getting decisions right.”

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