Welsh Reform branch circulated ‘ridiculous’ AI images and bombarded council outside its area with FoI requests

Emily Price 

A Reform Wales branch has been labelled “ridiculous” after it circulated AI-generated images online, passed off a Conservative campaign graphic as its own, and bombarded a council outside its area with Freedom of Information requests.

Reform UK’s official Facebook page for the Afan Ogwr Rhondda constituency has come under heavy criticism from political opponents over its extensive use of disturbing synthetic images depicting political figures, buildings, and even party leader Nigel Farage.

The social media page, followed by over 6,700 people, has submitted 18 FoI requests in five months to Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council – a local authority outside of the branch’s area.

The requests relate to a number of different topics, including questions about communications between the Home Office and the council.

The branch criticised the council’s refusal to comply with the “vexatious” requests and published graphics to its Facebook page that featured AI-generated images of Merthyr Tydfil’s civic centre and the local authority’s logo.

The Reform Afan Ogwr Rhondda Facebook page has also published synthetic images of the Senedd, Welsh castles, Home Office buildings and hospital wards.

In one post highlighting a Nation.Cymru report on Plaid Cymru Senedd candidate Neil Roberts’ past work for a payday loan company, the branch included a poorly created AI-generated image of Roberts wearing a green and yellow rosette.

In another Facebook post the branch criticised the Wales Media Awards, sharing an AI-generated version of the event’s logo alongside claims it is funded by public money without transparency about the journalists and media organisations that attend.

The annual award ceremony is organised by the Journalists’ Charity and is funded through a combination of sponsorship, ticket sales, and donations, with Allwyn – operator of The National Lottery – as the 2025 headline sponsor.

Creative Wales and the Welsh Government also support the event, with the latter contributing £10,000 in sponsorship for each of the 2023, 2024 and 2025 ceremonies.

Information about attendees is publicly available, with finalist shortlists published on the Journalists’ Charity website weeks in advance, and images of winners and guests shared online on the night.

Fake images

In a separate Facebook post, the Reform branch shared a misleading fake photo of Nation.Cymru journalist Martin Shipton outside a house on a street filled bumper to bumper with police vehicles.

The fabricated image accompanied a report about how Shipton’s home was recently searched by police as part of an investigation into the Chinese spying scandal.

Shipton, associate editor of Nation.Cymru, voluntarily gave a statement to officers but was not arrested, and his passport has since been returned.

Another AI-generated image shared by the page depicted American President Donal Trump wearing a “MAGA” hat and holding a placard saying: “I know Starmer is lying about free speech!”

In another post the Reform Facebook page shared an image of Elon Musk alongside an AI-generated image of Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer in a bikini.

The branch wrote: “Elon Musk has stirred up new controversy after posting an AI-generated image of Keir Starmer in a bikini, as tensions continue over claims of ‘censorship’ involving his AI chatbot.

“He might not fit the classic image of a fighter, but you can’t help but admire how hard he pushes back.”

Bizarrely, the branch’s use of synthetic imagery extended even to its own figures, with deepfake-style photos of branch chair Steve Bayliss and party leader Nigel Farage also appearing on the page.

Although Bayliss currently serves as chair of Reform’s Aberafan Maesteg, Rhondda and Ogmore branch, he is standing as a Senedd candidate in the Pontypridd Cynon Merthyr constituency.

One of the few posts on the page not to feature AI-generated imagery appears to have been taken from the Welsh Conservatives Facebook page.

Last week, the Tories shared a graphic on Facebook showing Labour Finance Minister Mark Drakeford alongside the quote: “We have too many hospitals and too many beds.”

On Tuesday (April 7), an identical post appeared on the Reform branch’s page, with the Welsh Conservative branding cropped out.

A Welsh Conservative source said: “Reform candidates in Wales aren’t capable of a single original thought. So much so, they’ve resorted to stealing our graphics and trying to pass them off as their own.

“There’s only one party in Wales with the ideas to Get Wales Working after 27 years of a failed Labour-Plaid duopoly, and that’s the Welsh Conservatives.”

‘Ridiculous’

Nation.Cymru contacted Reform’s Aberafan Maesteg, Rhondda and Ogmore Chair Steve Bayliss and asked why so many AI-generated images were being distributed by his branch’s Facebook page.

We also pointed out that some of the the claims on the page were inaccurate or misleading and that Reform is not clearly marking the content as AI-generated. Bayliss did not respond.

Welsh Liberal Democrat candidate for Afan Ogwr Rhondda Dean Ronan said: “Reform UK are showing us what happens when you parachute candidates into consistencies.

“They have no idea about Afan Ogwr Rhondda or even where the constituency boundaries are.

“The Welsh Liberal Democrats will focus on the things that are important for us – fixing our NHS and helping our businesses.

“What are Reform UK doing to help stop the closure of Maesteg hospital or what are they doing to help restore home to school transport across Bridgend county and RCT?

“These are the things that matter to the people, who like me, live in our constituency.

“I would suggest their time would be better spent out in our constituency, speaking to people who live here rather than trying to stir up hate and making ridiculous images on AI.”