Rugby Advertiser comment: A political line has been crossed - and we are angry

Political canvassing has always sailed close to the wind and it is our job, as a trusted local newspaper, to stay neutral and decode the spin.

So you can imagine our concern when we saw a leaflet from the Conservative's Yousef Dahmash, which had an 'endorsement' from us, The Rugby Advertiser.

The good folk of the town will be wondering 'Has our local newspaper suddenly abandoned their position of political neutrality?'.

Let us assure you - no, we haven't. And we are angry.

The 'endorsement' came in the shape of a 'quote', which read: "Someone whose Rugby credentials are not in doubt....". It then went on to list Yousef's credentials and attributed it to The Rugby Advertiser.

Not only did the Tories fail to notify us about using our name on their literature, but they used the quote out of context. For complete transparency, the here is the start of our article (tiled 'Rugby Tories play it safe with candidate for next election') which includes the line they used:"It’s taken more than seven months since Mark Pawsey announced he would not stand at the next general election – and the Rugby party has turned to a member of his office team as their next candidate.

"Yousef Dahmash is county councillor for Hillmorton, as well as being Mr Pawsey’s chief of staff and senior parliamentary assistant.

"It’s been a long wait to see who would be the party’s new candidate, with a host of names in the frame.

"But after taking flak for selecting Lisa Parker to stand again for the borough council in May on the controversial basis that an allotment in Bilton was reasonable grounds for someone who lives in Northamptonshire to represent Rugby residents – and though external candidates are allowed in the parliamentary field - the association has gone for someone whose Rugby credentials are not in doubt."

So why does this matter?

Using a line out of context as an endorsement on political literature is, at best, morally questionable. But at worst, it is damaging to our reputation as a trusted source for local news. And that has consequences for local democracy.

To his credit, Yousef has taken the matter seriously and spoken to me on the phone. However, he disagrees with me and says that there is nothing wrong with the leaflet - in his words, 'it is clear to everyone that the Conservatives have not used the Advertiser's name to endorse their campaign'. We disagree. Why use our name at all if that was the case?

This is not a personal attack against the Conservatives - we hold all political parties to the same high standards.

Yousef said he is keen to address this and point out that The Rugby Advertiser has in no way endorsed his campaign. We have asked the Tories to make a public statement about this and we will not publish any of their press material in the editorial space until the matter is resolved.

With the battle lines being drawn as a General Election draws near, all political parties will start their campaign strategies and it is our duty to maintain our trusted position as a reliable and impartial source of news. Using our name as an endorsement for a candidate is never acceptable and deeply unfair to the people of Rugby. A line has crossed and this must never happen again.

Phil Hibble

Editor