Scottish Labour spend £20k on Facebook ads through 'anonymous page'

SCOTTISH Labour have spent more than £20,000 running Facebook ads through a small page “hiding” its party branding.

Since its launch in January 2025, Scottish Labour have paid around £21,700 for ads targeting voters through a Facebook page called “Scotland needs a new direction”.

The page, which has just 10 likes and 14 followers, uses a Saltire with the same words imposed over it as its profile image. 

The official Scottish Labour Facebook page has around 31,000 followers.

Since January 2025, the party has run 35 ads through the smaller page, with published cost ranges from “<�£100” to “£2.5K-£3K”. The National arrived at the £21,700 total by using the median cost in any given range, and £50 for the <�£100 range.  

In recent weeks, the ads have been specifically targeting voters in postcodes in the Scottish Parliament’s Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse constituency – where a by-election will be held on June 5 to fill the seat left vacant after the death of SNP minister Christina McKelvie.

The ads cover a range of topics, from UK Government policies to Anas Sarwar saying he will do "whatever it takes" to reform the NHS.

Screenshot of the 'Scotland needs a new direction' Facebook page through which Scottish Labour have run some £21,000 worth of ads (Image: Facebook) The “Scotland needs a new direction” page does have Scottish Labour branding on its main profile, with small print on its banner image reading: “Promoted by Kate Watson, Scottish general secretary, on behalf of the Scottish Labour Party, Donald Dewar House, 139 Norfolk St, Glasgow, G5 9EA.”

The words “Sponsored. Paid for by Scottish Labour Party” should also appear on any Facebook advert the small page runs.

It is understood that Scottish Labour also run ads through their main page and through Anas Sarwar's Facebook page. 

SNP MSP Rona Mackay said that running ads through the small group showed that “even Labour are embarrassed to be Labour”. 

She told The National: “In a week where Labour MSPs refused to condemn their London bosses’ plans to cut support for disabled people, it’s no wonder Scottish Labour are hiding behind anonymous pages to peddle their message.

“But this isn’t just bad judgement, it’s an insult to voters who will see right through this stunt."

A Scottish Labour spokesperson said: “Scotland is being badly failed by this tired and out of touch SNP government.

“Scottish Labour will continue to speak to voters across a range of platforms to demonstrate that this isn’t as good as it gets and we can choose a new direction in 2026.”