Flurry of ads fronted by new PM may be testing waters before potential early election

The Conservatives have begun testing potential campaign messages on Facebook after the appointment of Boris Johnson as prime minister, giving an indication of how the party could fight a general election.

The Tories have tentatively returned to social media advertising, with dozens of videos and promotions fronted by the new prime minister, with an emphasis on him as an individual and a simple pledge to get the UK out of the EU and increase public spending.

Boris Johnson becomes PM with promise of Brexit by 31 October Read more

“I’m going to deliver Brexit by the 31st of October – so we can invest in the NHS, schools, housing and police,” reads the text on most of the adverts alongside pictures of Johnson. “We’ve got a fresh opportunity to get things done. It’s time to get the UK back on the road to a brighter future.”

Despite suggestions the ads may be gathering data in the event of an early general election, the campaign is being run on a relatively small scale. The party is spending only a few thousand pounds on Facebook and reaching a very small number of people.

This suggests the Tories are trialling potential messages to see how voters respond. The scale of the operation pales in comparison to the enormous sums spent on other political ad campaigns on Facebook, such as a pro-Brexit blitz run by individuals linked to Sir Lynton Crosby’s CTF Partners, who have advised Johnson in the past.

Many of the adverts ask voters to list their biggest concerns and provide contact details, which is a standard political campaigning tactic online. Some parties have been hit hard by the new GDPR data regulations, which forced them to gain explicit consent from the public to be on mailing lists.

The adverts can be seen in the Facebook Ad Library, which shows all the recent promotions as part of efforts to increase transparency after a series of scandals.