POLICE have been called in to investigate a complaint that election rules have been broken in Bolton.

It is part of a probe into allegations of electoral fraud in four Greater Manchester boroughs, which also include Oldham, Rochdale and North Manchester.

While the police cannot confirm what the specific allegations are, they relate to potential breaches of the Electoral Commission’s Code of Practice. One complaint has been made in Bolton.

A spokesman for Greater Manchester Police said: “The reports refer to breaches of the electoral Code of Practice. Officers are working closely with the Electoral Commission and local Election Officers to establish if any crimes have been committed.”

Sean Harriss, chief executive and Returning Officer for Bolton Council, said: “The council will be doing everything in its powers to ensure that these elections are free, fair, and represent the wishes of the people of Bolton.”

Bolton Council received 37,895 postal votes for this year’s election, 1,886 from Atherton, which is now part of the Bolton West constituency.

That compares to 23,807 applications in 2005, the last time both the General Election and council elections took place in the same year. Nationally, there has been a surge in the number of postal vote applications, which could be put down to voters feeling more engaged in this year's contest due to the close opinion polls and the televised leaders’ debates.

But it has led to fears that fake names have been added to the electoral database, which could be the nature of the complaint in Bolton.

Extra security checks were introduced in 2006, and anyone registering to vote by post has to provide their date of birth and signature so this can be checked when their vote is cast.