This article is more than 1 year old

This article is more than 1 year old

A Facebook account linked to Clive Palmer’s United Australia party paid to disseminate an ad for the Queensland LNP.

On Sunday, a UAP-linked Facebook account named Australia Watch Now spread an ad championing rival candidate, Brad Carswell, who is standing for the LNP in the Brisbane seat of Lilley.

UAP candidates scramble for volunteers as Clive Palmer campaigns from Fiji Read more

The slickly produced video is a 35-second profile on Carswell, detailing his work in abattoirs, pubs, trucking and trimming trees, all with the LNP logo visible in the top right corner.

The Australia Watch Now page appears to be run by the UAP. It uses the party’s distinctive yellow branding, shares UAP campaign material, and is authorised to an “S Sokolova, United Australia Party” in Brisbane.

The ad for Carswell has since been removed.

The LNP ad that was distributed by Australia Watch Now, a Facebook page run by Clive Palmer’s United Australia party. Photograph: Facebook

The UAP did not respond when asked why an ad for the LNP was being distributed via the Australia Watch Now page. The UAP has repeatedly failed to respond to media queries throughout the campaign. Carswell was also approached for comment.

The UAP and Liberal parties struck a preference deal in the early stages of the campaign, and Palmer’s party has seen its primary vote hit about 5% in recent Newspolls, thanks largely to a massive ad spend. The deal could prove crucial in key marginal seats and gives Palmer a greater chance of taking back a Senate spot.

Paid Facebook ads are effective because they can be targeted at a particular audience, but remain largely hidden from the broader public, unless users know where to look.

Questions have been raised about the overlap of the Liberals’ campaign with the UAP, with images emerging of Liberals handing out UAP campaign material, including in the marginal seat of Dunkley.

The UAP’s Victorian Senate candidate Catriona Thoolen said the Liberals were helping the UAP man polling booths.

The promotion of Carswell’s video was detected as part of Guardian Australia’s efforts to monitor Facebook ads during the election.

The monitoring project has also detected a string of ads attacking the Greens as “anti-semitic” and a risk to national security. The ads are emanating from a page called Put Greens Last, which is authorised to an individual whose motivations, party links and background are unclear.

Liberal party stands by candidate who shared anti-Muslim and anti-gay posts Read more

The person behind the page did not respond to requests for comment.

The ads mention the Greens candidate for Macnamara by name, and have also been targeting Instagram users in the electorate, according to a Guardian Australia reader.

A second set of attack ads – this time targeting Labor – have begun appearing from a page named Own Your Vote, which claims to be associated with the Nationals. One of the ads attacks Labor’s gender policies, spreading a News Corp piece and claiming Labor will “offer free sex change procedures”.

The page is also spreading ads criticising Labor’s policies on foreign aid spending and parent visas.