EU referendum: Controversial 'Operation Black Vote' designed to encourage ethnic minorities to the ballot box

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A provocative poster designed to encourage people from ethnic minorities to vote will be displayed on billboards in London and Manchester in the run-up to the EU referendum.

The ad shows an aggressive white ‘thug’ and a south Asian woman wearing a sari sitting on a see-saw, and was produced by advertising giant Saatchi and Saatchi for campaign group Operation Black Vote.

The poster's slogan “a vote is a vote” is an answer to "the demonisation of foreigners and people of colour” in the Brexit debate, said the group in a statement.

However, some were quick to criticise the poster, with UKIP leader Nigel Farage telling the BBC it was “disgusting” and the campaign group is “trying to divide society”.

Around 30 per cent of the four million black and ethnic minority people eligible to vote in the UK are not yet on the electoral register, compared to around 15 per cent of the overall voting population.

“These potential voters could easily decide one of the biggest questions of the last three decades - whether we remain in the EU or leave,“ said Simon Woolley, director of Operation Black Vote.

“Perhaps the greatest thing about democracy is that one person's vote has no more value than another person's: A vote is a vote.”

The campaign is supposed to show that voting carries as much weight as the more vocal sides of the political spectrum, the group said.

The poster will be displayed on 37 electronic billboards before Britain goes to the polls on 23 June.

Stars such as Tinie Tempah, Sol Campbell and actor David Harewood appeared in a previous Operation Black Vote campaign with their faces painted white before last year's General Election.

The deadline to register to vote in the EU referendum is 7 June.