THE new election ballot papers are a doddle for most people - but they could get the elderly in a twist.

That is the message from voters filling out ballot packs in our Bolton Evening News election experiment.

Three out of five people completed the voting packs almost faultlessly within five minutes.

But two pensioners cast their votes incorrectly in our mock election after struggling to cope with the different envelopes and forms.

The Government has brought in postal ballots this year to encourage more people to vote.

But around 10,000 ballot papers were declared void in last year's Bolton Council elections as people did not want to sign the declaration of identity form, fearing it would compromise their secrecy.

Marion Jones, aged 63, from Westhoughton, took more than 10 minutes to finish her voting pack and mixed up the European and local elections voting forms.

She ran into difficulty with envelopes A and B and was not sure which envelope to send back to the council. "It was too confusing," she said. "I put a cross on the European election form. At least, I think that was the right form."

Joyce Cockerham, aged 77, from Tonge Fold, finished slightly quicker in seven minutes.

But she came a cropper when she placed the instruction sheet into envelope B instead of her declaration of identity.

And things really went wrong when she put her two ballot papers into the wrong envelope.

After rectifying her mistake, she said: "It is confusing and it could be difficult for someone living alone to find a witness to sign the form.

"I'd prefer the old method of going to a polling station as it's easier and quicker."

Others, like Jean Pickering, aged 57, from Tottington, raced through the form in three minutes without a second thought.

She said: "It was piece of cake. This will benefit workers who were forced to visit the polling station early in the morning or late at night."

Marc Berry, aged 27, from Farnworth, had no problems casting his vote and completed the process in four minutes.

"I found it fairly easy, but I'm not keen on this new system," he said. "It's complicated and you've got to concentrate to avoid making errors."

First-time voter Natalie Owen, aged 18, is not planning to use her vote and says that the new forms are not encouraging her to change her mind.

She signed her form without reading the instructions and initially struggled to cope with the different envelopes.

"It's too time-consuming and that put me off," she said. "And if you miss the line about putting envelope A into envelope B, you're in trouble."

A council spokesman said: "If there are residents who need help or information, we have set up special assistance points at Bolton Town Hall's One Stop Shop and the area offices at Farnworth, Horwich and Westhoughton.

"Or there is a helpline - 01204 331100."