Bolton may be the Greater Manchester Town of Culture 2024, but its constituents are hoping the town centre sees some change after the General Election.
In the 2019 election, the Conservatives' Mark Logan won the Bolton North East seat with a majority of just 378 votes.
He took over from Labour’s David Crausby, who had represented the constituency since 1997.
Now, both parties have new candidates standing, with Breightmet councillor Adele Warren taking over from Mr Logan for the Conservatives - following his shock resignation from the party last month and public backing of Labour - and Labour's Kirith Entwistle.
The other candidates are Hanif Alli for the Green Party, Rebecca Ann Forrest for the Liberal Democrats, Trevor Jones for Reform UK, Syeda Misbah Kazmi for the Workers Party, and two independent candidates, John Partington and Kevin Allsop.
The latest YouGov poll predicts that Labour will take back the seat with 53.2 per cent of the vote compared to 25.4 per cent for the Conservatives.
But what do people in Bolton think, and what issues do they want to see addressed?
Major regeneration plans are in the pipeline to transform the town centre including the redevelopment of Crompton Place shopping centre.
But some are critical about the current state of the town centre.
Mark Scott, 66, from Horwich, said he will be voting for Labour.
He said: “It’s broken my heart for the past 14 years to see the situation the country’s in.
“Look around you- boarded up shops, not many people spending money.
"Something needs to be done to make sure that we can still retain our town centres.”
Frank Hunter, 75, from Westhoughton, will be voting for Reform after having voted for the Conservatives in 2019.
“They’ve made such a mess of it in 14 years,” he said.
He hopes that voting for Reform will contribute to reducing living costs.
On a local level, he said that the town centre is run down, and hopes that will be improved.
Another said that council services, such as grass cutting, are something she would like to see improved.
“It was a beautiful town, the best town in the North. Everybody used to come here,”she said.
“It was horrible when Marks and Spencer’s shut.
"You might as well have shut the town."
Stella Johnson, 71, from Rumworth, will be voting differently after voting Labour in 2019.
She said: “I’d like to see more people in jobs and more shops open, because it’s not good. We’re going down the pan really.
“When you think of these youngsters growing up today, what’s life going to be like in the future for them?”
Brandon Nugent, 19, from Bromley Cross, is a travel agent.
He hasn’t yet decided how he’ll be voting next week.
“The Conservatives have been in power for years and years," he said.
"They’ve not really done anything to change the country for the better.
“The town centre needs a revamp. It’s just so dull, because everything’s closing down.
“Once everything gets reopened, there’ll be more money in the economy.”
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel