JEREMY CORBYN supporters have been slammed for climbing on a war memorial for an election photo stunt.

And after being alerted to the pictures by The Sun, Labour issued a grovelling apology “for the disrespect shown.”

4 Members were snapped with placards and posters posing on the Woodside memorial in Croydon

Labour members were snapped with placards and posters posing on the Woodside memorial in the South London seat of Croydon Central.

Several appeared to have climbed up on the statue erected in 1921 to honour the 206 local men who fell in the First World War.

One campaigner even held his hands in the air and laughed while posing halfway up the memorial to the dead.

4 One campaigner held his hands in the air and posed halfway up the memorial to the dead

4 It was erected in 1921 to honour the 206 local men who fell in the First World War

The Labour team had gathered on Saturday to support local candidate Sarah Jones in her bid to turn the ultra-marginal seat red.

And the controversial snap was then shared widely on social media by the Croydon Labour Party as well as the local branch of hard-left Jeremy Corbyn supporters group Momentum.

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The Conservatives branded the photo opportunity “absolutely disgraceful.”

Top Tory and former Army office Johnny Mercer hit out: “Jeremy Corbyn’s activists have shown complete and utter disregard for those who sacrificed their lives for our country.”

Approached by The Sun, a spokesman for Labour candidate Sarah Jones said: “While kicking off our campaign session one person got overexcited and stepped up onto the war memorial for the photo.

4 Tory Johnny Mercer said it shows a 'complete and utter disregard' to those who sacrificed their lives Credit: News Group Newspapers Ltd

“We would like to apologise for the disrespect this showed.”

They added: “We owe a debt of gratitude to all those who have died in the service of our country.”

But local Conservative campaigner Steven George-Hilley hit out: “It beggars belief that Labour activists are scrambling over war memorials for cheap publicity stunts.”

He added: “Whether it’s praising the IRA, refusing to sing the National Anthem or desecrating sacred war memorials, Jeremy Corbyn’s Labour Party repeatedly treats our armed forces with utter contempt.”