A Tory MP has urged his supporters not to 'mention the Conservative Party or David Cameron ' when sending out letters in support of him . Gavin Barwell , who is fighting the key London marginal of Croydon , has asked constituents to sign letters to friends and neighbours supporting his re-election . But Mr Barwell was left red-faced after it emerged he sent out 'sample ' letters designed to make it look like they were written by ordinary constituents . Gavin Barwell , who is fighting the key London marginal of Croydon , has asked constituents to sign letters to friends and neighbours supporting his re-election . The letters , seen by the Evening Standard , all appeared to be written in exactly the same style . They were full of similar phrases – with each beginning with 'Dear neighbour ' and went on to describe an incident where Mr Barwell helped them . They often ended with the phrase : ' I really ca n't recommend Gavin strongly enough . ' In a letter to constituents asking them to endorse him , Mr Barwell writes : ' I 'm not asking you to write a political letter — in fact , it 'll be much more effective if it does n't mention the Conservative Party or David Cameron . ' Asked if he or his team wrote the sample letters , he said : 'People write their own letters , I 've not written anything . These are genuine constituents that we have helped who wanted to write a letter . I think in one case we helped with the drafting . They are not fake letters . ' ' I 'm therefore writing to ask if you would be prepared to write to people in your neighbourhood saying why you think I am a good local MP . ' One Labour MP compared his letter with the bungling Fawlty Towers manager Basil Fawlty telling staff 'do n't mention the war ' in front of German guests . Mr Barwell has urged his supporters not to 'mention the Conservative Party or David Cameron ' when sending out letters in support of him . Labour MP Stephen Pound mocked : 'It 's a case of 'Do n't mention the Tories ! ' Mr Barwell insisted he just did not want the endorsements to be too political and that he had put Mr Cameron on his own leaflets . He said : 'The purpose is not to send political letters . The purpose of the letters is a personal endorsement of my work as MP . 'My own election leaflets will be full of mentions of both David Cameron and the Conservative Party . 'These letters are different . They are from ordinary people telling their story . I do n't think people doing that will be comfortable making party political points . ' But Sarah Jones , the Labour candidate for Croydon Central , told the Standard : 'It 's a sign of real desperation that Gavin Barwell is actively telling people not to call him a Tory . He 's trying to pull the wool over people 's eyes . 'If people were wondering if the Tory brand had become toxic in Croydon , he 's the proof you need . 'However hard he tries , he ca n't run away from his voting record — voting for deep cuts , privatisation of the NHS , the bedroom tax and trebling tuition fees . '
Gavin Barwell is fighting the key London marginal of Croydon in May . He asked constituents to sign letters to friends supporting his re-election . But he said not to 'mention the Conservative Party or David Cameron '