WHAT they are saying in Bolton

LABOUR

CLLR BOB HOWARTH, the Labour leader believes his group can hold on to power despite their slight majority.

BOROUGH ISSUES: "We come into this election on the back of a Council Tax rise which is less than the national average. Education and social services in Bolton are outstanding and we will have around 61 new police officers on the streets next year. We will also see improved services at libraries, museums and leisure centres."

THE WAR: "The international situation may or may not affect how people vote. It is interesting to note that more people indicated their support for a war when the hostilities started."

KEY WARDS: "We go into this election with the intention to win more seats and we hope we get the support we think we deserve."

CONSERVATIVES

CLLR ALAN RUSHTON, the Conservative leader, is hoping that opposition gains will mean at least one of the other mainstream parties will be sharing power with Labour in the summer. His party has 20 candidates.

BOROUGH ISSUES: "We will improve services without increasing the expense -- it can be done. A listening council would have responded sooner to the public's anger at the car parking problems."

THE WAR: "I don't think this war has done Labour any good. But we do support getting rid of Saddam Hussein.

KEY WARDS: "We are hoping to take the Hulton Park ward and hopefully and the results in Derby, Little Lever and Central wards will also be interesting. If the opposition parties each pick up a couple of seats the political map will be redrawn."

LIBERAL DEMOCRATS

CLLR BARBARA RONSON, the Liberal Democrats leader is aiming to hold on to the group's five seats being put to the vote and to win in another two wards. The Liberal Democrats are putting forward 20 candidates.

BOROUGH ISSUES: "We feel services in Bolton are being cut while Council Tax has gone up. We also stand for transparency in the way funding is spent because more and more the Council is being told how to spend its grants by the Government."

THE WAR: "We were against the war when it started, but we wish our servicemen the best. The sooner it is sorted and everyone is back the better."

KEY WARDS: "Our members on the Council are steadily increasing. Bolton West is our strongest area but I would like to see us take a seat in the north east of the borough."

GREEN PARTY

ALWYNNE CARTMELL is standing as a Green Party candidate in Little Lever. She is hoping to focus the debate on how Bolton's environment can best be protected.

BOROUGH ISSUES: "I'm particularly interested in recycling and reducing waste. The way we are living at the moment just isn't sustainable. We're also campaigning against incineration and for better public transport."

THE WAR: "I meet people who are angry about the war but we can't really alter what's going on there. What we can do is make a difference at home by thinking about what we do in our offices, our homes, our gardens and among our friends."

KEY WARDS: Little Lever is the only ward in which the Green Party is fielding a candidate.

SOCIALIST ALLIANCE AGAINST THE WAR

NEIL Mc ALISTER, campaigns organiser for the Socialist Alliance Against the War, is hoping to capture the votes of those unhappy with events in Iraq.

BOROUGH ISSUES: "We believe it is wrong for cuts to be made to services here while the Government can find an infinite pot to fund a war."

THE WAR: "There is a strong anti-war feeling in Bolton. I believe the best way to support the servicemen who have gone to Iraq is to demand they are brought home immediately."

KEY WARDS: "We are aiming to get a member of our group on to the council but it will be difficult as we have not stood in Bolton before. There are many traditional Labour supporters who no longer bother to vote and we hope to gain their support."

SOCIALIST LABOUR PARTY

DOROTHY EDNA ENTWISTLE, Socialist Labour Party candidate for Derby, said support for her party has been growing in recent years.

BOROUGH ISSUES: "We are against the school and OAP home closures we have seen in Bolton and we are against the creeping privatisation of Council services."

THE WAR: "We oppose the war and I don't believe Britain and America tried hard enough to find a peaceful solution. Saddam Hussein is an evil man but there will be no winners."

KEY WARDS: "I believe we have a good chance in the Derby ward where a lot of traditional Labour supporters have become disillusioned with the party to the point where they elected a Conservative councillor last time around."