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Twitter blunder appears to out senior Labour advisor as secretly helping Brexit campaign

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By Tony Connelly, Sports Marketing Reporter

June 6, 2016 | 3 min read

Senior Labour spin doctor, Damian McBride, appears to have revealed that he is secretly supporting the Brexit campaign after accidently sharing a private message to his public profile on Twitter which shows him advising Michael Gove.

Damian McBride

The VAT expert and former advisor to Gordon Brown posted a message on Twitter saying: “V good! BTW, I'll email you another VAT-related idea this evening. Just in case there's a day/interview where MG is looking for a new line."

MG is believed to be Michael Gove, one of the most senior Conservatives campaigning for Britain to vote to leave in the upcoming EU referendum on 23 June.

The message shows McBride, who now works for remain campaigner and shadow defence secretary Emily Thornberry, providing the Brexit camp with policy ideas to influence voters.

The tweet, which was hastily deleted, has led to suspicions that McBride was responsible for an announcement by Vote Leave last week that Brexit would allow the Government to reduce the rate of VAT on fuel in order to reduce energy bills.

Following the slip up Nick Herbert, head of the Conservative Remain campaign, wrote to both Gove and Thornberry demanding they reveal McBride’s role in the Leave campaign.

“Are you able to clarify precisely what contact Vote Leave staff have had with Damian McBride since your campaign launched?” wrote Herbert

“I feel sure that, given Damian McBride’s history of personal smears and underhand tactics against Conservative Party MPs, you would want to disassociate yourself and your campaign from him.”

A senior Remain source said: "It would be extremely concerning if Labour party employees were secretly campaigning for Vote Leave."

With the EU referendum taking place during Cannes 2016 The Drum has created an ad to reminde those attending to register for a postal vote.

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