AFTER getting a rap from the Plain English Society for its new election slogan, Labour has been accused of lifting the slogan “Britain forward not back” from The Simpsons.

Labour launched the catch phrase on Thursday without realising it had been pioneered by a character in the television cartoon series.

Alan Milburn, Labour’s election co-ordinator, intended the slogan to indicate that Michael Howard’s Tories are stuck in the past. But it was not long before MPs pointed out that the same phrase had been used by a cartoon version of President Bill Clinton in Treehouse of Horror VII, a Simpsons Hallowe’en special.

Clinton appears during a presidential debate. “My fellow Americans,” he proclaims. “We must move forward, not backward, upward not forward, and always twirling, twirling, twirling towards freedom.”

Last night Labour said it had not deliberately appropriated the slogan from The Simpsons, but MPs said it was another example of a Milburn faux pas. Last week he had to withdraw an advert that portrayed Howard and Oliver Letwin, the shadow chancellor, as flying pigs. Critics said the messages were anti-semitic because both men are Jewish.

Then, barely 24 hours after the “forward not back” slogan was unveiled, it came under fire from the Plain English Campaign. John Lister, the campaign’s spokesman, said it lacked a verb and should read “Britain forwards not backwards”.

This week Labour will launch a pledge card for the election, amid rumours that Tony Blair may call a snap poll before the expected date of May 5.

The party produced policy promise cards in 1997 and 2001, each time making five policy pledges on issues such as health, crime and education. The cards are distributed to voters with election leaflets.

This time there will be six pledges: tough on immigration; cutting NHS waiting times; boosting child care; improving school discipline; low inflation and mortgage rates; and extension of the right to buy housing scheme.

The extent to which Labour is ready to launch its election campaign has been shown in leaked documents which are being distributed by the party’s hierarchy.

The pack of leaflets to candidates has been dubbed the “Noddy file” because it contains draft statements and telephone scripts. Party activists fill in the blank spaces with their own names and constituencies.

The literature instructs candidates on what to say to voters and how to build a website. There is a script for phone canvassers and one memo tells party workers to offer to arrange postal votes.

There is also a “press release for bad news”. It reads: “Proud MP hits back at the opposition’s attack on Anytown people. Local Labour MP xxxxx has launched a website to hit back at recent comments by local opposition candidate xxxxx which appeared to attack Anytown residents.” Another “press release to clinch their votes” declares: “New hospital is the pride of Anytown. The new St Thomas hospital (insert local proud achievement) is the Pride of Anytown — and that’s official. Over the last month residents have had the opportunity to vote for the one thing that makes them most proud of Anytown.”

A Labour spokesman said: “Labour will fight a vigorous campaign to expose Tory plans to cut £35 billion from public services. It is our duty to warn people what they stand to lose if they go back to the negative equity, high interest rates and inflation of the Tory years.”

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