Election Labour spent 30% more than Tories in campaign

Labour hugely outspent the Conservatives at the last general election, including more than £12m in advertising on platforms such as Facebook and Snapchat, figures show.

- Rowena Mason

Last year's general election had the highest spending on record, with more than £94m spent by political parties - about a quarter of which went on direct mail to voters.

Overall, Labour spent £30m compared with £23m by the Conservatives, according to data published by the Electoral Commission.

The spending figures showed the two major parties significantly outspent smaller ones, with the Liberal Democrats and Reform spending about £5.5m each.

Labour spent more than £3m advertising with Facebook's owner, Meta, and £2m with Google - with an overall advertising spend of £12m.

They also advertised in print media, platforms such as Spotify, Snapchat and Mumsnet, and billboards.