CASH for education will be a key part of the Government's spending plans in the next Budget, says a Bolton MP.

Students and teachers in Bolton quizzed Ruth Kelly as she prepared for the countdown to the Budget.

The Bolton West MP, and Bolton South-east MP Brian Iddon, met adult students at the Deane and Derby Community and Learning Centre in Board Street.

Ms Kelly, a Treasury minister, was keen to find out if the centre waspopular. It opened two years ago and is one of five UK On-line facilities in Bolton.

She was also interested in ideas on how learning could be made more accessible to people who might have been reluctant to enrol on a course in the past.

The MP faced questions on how the Government could provide more help to people wanting to learn who are on benefits, and how Ministers should encourage British Telecom to reduce the cost of using the Internet. Staff were also keen to know if there were plans to create more centres in Bolton because the demand to use them was so high.

The five community learning centres were created to attract adults with low level or non-existent computer skills, such as lone parents, people from ethnic minorities, unemployed young men and people with mental health problems.

Ms Kelly said: "We are keen to get out and about and see what people want ahead of the Budget.

"I can't make any funding promises, but this centre is obviously very successful and there is a big demand for more schemes to be set up.

"Education and lifelong learning are essential."

Tina Morrissy, from New Bury, started using the centre two years ago after leaving school with no qualifications and beginning work in a packing job.

The mother-of-two, aged 26, is now studying Business Administration and is a community learning ambassador. It means she is responsible for encouraging even more people in her situation to return to education.

She said: "Coming here has really changed my life. My family is very proud of me and now I want to become a Basic Skills teacher."