One of Swindon's two Conservative MPs has defended the use of 'fake newspaper' campaign material as national outcry over the tactic continues. 

Residents have started to see the South Swindon Messenger drop throught their letterboxes. It bears a close resemblance to a new local newspaper reporting on developments happening within the town. 

But it is actually campaign material for the Tories - and also uses green colouring rather than the party's traditional blue. 

This practice - although certainly not new and not confined to the Conservatives - has been heavily criticised as deliberately misleading and manipulative, utilising the trust and legitimacy of a newspaper to make campaign material seem like 'news' instead.

But South Swindon MP Sir Robert Buckland has said he doesn't see a problem with it.

"I'm glad people are talking about it and the positive messages are getting out there about what I’m doing," said the former Justice Secretary.

"This isn't a new thing, all of the parties have done something similar so I don't see what the issue is. 

"It's just another way to promote all the things I'm doing, I've been campaigning for 20 years and have used all sorts of things in that time - leaflets, newspapers, surveys. 

"The way I campaign is positive, and it's a positive thing to be supporting the Conservatives."

On the front page of the South Swindon Messenger there is a story relating to Panattoni's redevelopment of the former Honda site - with a picture of Sir Robert accompanying it. 

There are stories inside that highlight the work of the Conservatives nationally - including 'more police on the beat', 'extending free childcare' and 'extra skills investments'.

These stories all appear in similar campaign material being distributed to different areas across the country, some even using the names of defunct real newspapers. 

Several in the media have criticised this move, while 62 per cent of people said it should be banned in a recent poll. 

One person on Twitter said this was: "Nasty, deliberate and duplicitous sleight of hand by Robert Buckland - presenting opinion and partial fact as independent news."

The Government told journalism news site Hold the Front Page that it is part of the country's "tradition of robust political debate and freedom of speech".

And the Electoral Commission also says that there is nothing that can be done about it

"Whether it's campaign material or communication from an MP, the branding and design of material does not fall under the remit of any regulators," it said.