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Mum to lodge complaint over Bolton election canvassers
ANGRY single mum Angela Greenfield is to lodge a complaint with Labour party chiefs about the behaviour of "persistent" canvassers on election night.
Miss Greenfield said Labour supporters knocked on the door of her home in Breightmet at 9.30pm on Thursday, offering to take her in a car to vote.
She turned down the offer because she could not leave her two children, Lewis, aged five, and Ellie, aged two - and says one of the group then offered to babysit for her.
Another voter in Breightmet, Jennifer Hall, aged 23, said she answered her door in her pyjamas at 9.20pm on election night and was told to put on her dressing gown as she would be given a lift to the polling station.
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Miss Hall described the canvassers as being "like doorstep salesmen".
Miss Greenfield, aged 31, of Ennerdale Gardens, said: "I wasn't intimidated but they were very persistent, saying the situation for Labour was bad and they needed every vote they could get.
"I was annoyed because they woke my daughter.
"One of them said a woman in the party worked in social services and had been police checked and she could look after my children.
"I said I wouldn't dream of leaving my children in the care of people I didn't know.
"I am going to make an official complaint to the Labour party."
William Gallagher, the unsuccessful Labour candidate in the Breightmet ward which was held by the Tories with a majority of 514, said he had not personally offered to babysit for potential voters.
"We are not in the business of offering childcare for voters, though if someone asked us to do that we might consider it with the proper safeguards," he said.
"I think we did overhear somebody say this but I don't know who it was.
"If this lady is offended, I would like offer my apologies."
Breightmet ward councillor Lynda Byrne said the incident involving Miss Greenfield was merely "banter".
She said: "There was a bit of banter about me looking after her kids because I work in social services, but when she said she wouldn't leave her kids with someone she didn't know, I said I agreed and we left a short time later."
Miss Hall said: "I was disturbed by really loud knocking on my door at 9.20pm. I was in my pyjamas and I told them I hadn't voted.
"The man said Never mind, put your dressing gown on and we'll take you' and he said a lady would look after my daughter."
"They were very persistent and put a lot of pressure on me. It definitely wasn't banter - they were like doorstep salesman who wouldn't go away."
Labour leader Cllr Cliff Morris said: "It's definitely not our policy to offer to babysit the children of voters."
1:27pm Saturday 3rd May 2008
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