A BASILDON college hosted the unveiling of the Labour party's latest election poster. But within hours the Tories had stolen the idea, with their own version of the Ashes to Ashes image featuring David Cameron.

Foreign secretary David Miliband was joined by his brother Ed, the environment secretary for the event at Prospects College in Crompton Close.

The poster portrayed Conservative leader David Cameron as politically incorrect and sometimes corrupt TV cop Gene Hunt from the 80s based series Ashes to Ashes.

Basildon MP Angela Smith was alongside the brothers as they revealed it was the winning design in a competition won by young Labour Party member Jacob Quagliozzi, 24, of St Albans.

After touring the college which specialises in trade apprenticeships the brothers faced a grilling from the many TV crews at the event.

Within hours of Labour unveiling the poster, with David Cameron's head superimposed over a Gene Hunt figure from the hit TV series, the Tories adopted the image. They replaced the original slogan, Don't let him take Britain back to the 1980s, with: Fire up the Quattro. It's time for change