Labour insiders say their press Twitter account was hacked after the party appeared to commit to providing everyone in the country with an owl.

The Labour press team account posted the message: "Everybody should have his own owl."

The party source said they had taken steps to fix the matter, blaming a "bot" for the tweet, which has since been deleted.

The Labour account has since been deluged by puns.

It said: "We had hoped our compulsory owl guarantee would be a head turning policy, but sadly it's no longer going to take flight. #tweettwoo"

Some users of the social media site warned that the link in the tweet contained an update alert designed to install a virus.

Others poked fun at the opposition party.

"For more information about the Labour owl policy, contact their press office on 28 28 20," said @GuidoFawkes.

Some Twitter users decided to realise Mr Miliband's ornithological vision, with a little help from Photoshop.

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Former Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott also joined in, tweeting: "I've always been Owl Labour".

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Author John O'Farrell, a former Labour parliamentary candidate, accused the party of making a U-turn.