A CAMPAIGN billboard in Swindon which features the justice secretary’s name has been vandalised to spell an obscenity.

Conservative parliamentary candidate for South Swindon Robert Buckland has fallen foul of a graffiti artist who covered part of the first letter of his surname with white paint so that the first syllable now spells a vulgar profanity.

The altered election campaign poster was spotted near the railway bridge yesterday morning and faces on to a busy main road.

Mr Buckland said: “I have been made aware of the vandalism of my election poster which has appeared on Wootton Bassett Road and will be reporting it to the police.”

Vandalism to political billboards is becoming a common occurrence across the UK.

Graffiti on two Conservative Party billboards in the Cotswolds turned simple signs with the party’s logo and name into the phrases ‘Conservatives kill the poor’ and ‘Conservatives save the rich’.

Mr Buckland’s political opponents criticised the vandalism.

Labour’s parliamentary candidate for south Swindon Sarah Church said: “I don’t agree with or condone defacing things like this. It’s childish.

“That billboard is very well-placed but is very accessible and that leaves it open to vandalism, unfortunately.

“One of the reasons I chose not to have a billboard and decided to spend the money on other things was because I thought there was a danger of something like this happening.”

Liberal Democrat candidate for the same area Stan Pajak said: “I’m very much against it. People’s appreciation of politicians in general seems to be at an all-time low, politics is in a poor state right now and this is symptomatic of that. It’s a very strange election.”

During his re-election bid, Mr Buckland has seen a surge of support from fellow government cabinet members. Health secretary Matt Hancock, chancellor of the exchequer Sajid Javid and secretary of state for digital, culture, media and sport Nicky Morgan accompanied him while door-knocking around south Swindon earlier this month.