GORDON HENDERSON MP

The General Election race is hotting up with more and more candidates throwing their hats into the ring. Up until a couple of months ago I was beginning to feel quite lonely, as the only candidate to have been selected, but now the other parties have got their act together. We now have candidates for Labour, Liberal Democrats and UKIP, with a BNP candidate and an Independent hovering the wings.

One or two of my supporters have expressed surprise at the decision of UKIP to put up a candidate against me, one of the most Eurosceptic parliamentary candidates in the Conservtive Party. They seem to fear that their introduction into the race will hit my vote, but I am more sanguine. Although UKIP might well increase its share of the votes, it is equally possible that the party will take votes from Labour too. Anyway, in a democracy anybody is entitled to stand and in some ways, the more the anti-Tory vote is split, the better!

Of course, we are all geared up for a General Election on Thursday May 6th, which is the same date as the Swale Borough Council elections, but don't rule out a snap election on March 25th.

There are a number of very good reasons why Gordon Brown might want to face the country earlier, rather than later.

Firstly the opinion polls are beginning to narrow.

Secondly, the recent growth figures show that Britain is barely out of recession with every chance that the next quarterly figures, to be announced at the end of April, will show we have slipped back into recession.

Thirdly, the next budget, due in March, will have to spell out some pretty unpalitable policies. If Mr Brown calls an early election, the budget will not go ahead.

Lastly, but by no means least; it still festers with Mr Brown that he bottled calling an election two years ago. Calling a snap election when nobody expects one would go some way towards salvaging his reputation!