Tory staff running network of anti-Ulez Facebook groups riddled with racism and abuse

The closed groups – which have a combined membership of 38,000 – have been a forum for Islamophobic attacks on Labour’s London mayor Sadiq Khan, with members calling him a “terrorist sympathiser” and a “khaki punt” and saying they would pay to get him “popped”.

The approach appears to have enabled the targeting of political messages at certain groups without the need to follow Facebook transparency rules, which require formal ads to carry a disclaimer.

Seven Conservative MPs, including Sir Bob Neill and Steve Tuckwell, who held Boris Johnson’s Uxbridge and South Ruislip constituency for the Tories in last summer’s byelection, are also members of groups in the network.

Conspiracy theories – including that the World Economic Forum is using green measures to restrict individuals’ movements and that Ulez cameras are equipped with facial recognition technology – are widespread.

Ami McCarthy, political campaigner at Greenpeace UK, said: “These groups are an absolute cesspit of vile racism and hate speech, as well as a breeding ground for dangerous conspiracy theories.

With highly engaged audiences, private Facebook groups provide an even more effective way to push targeted political messaging without the same scrutiny received by traditional ad campaigns.