NOTE that Tory supporter Christine Adams is sniping away at me again (BEN: July 5), alleging, as usual, that I do nothing for Farnworth and its people in my capacity as the Member of Parliament for Bolton SE.

The policies of this Government benefit Farnworthians as they do all the people of this country!

Just to take a few examples -- unemployment under the Tories was over three million; now it is less than one million, and the Labour Government has created one million extra jobs. Under Labour, the funding received by the Wigan and Bolton Health Authority has almost doubled. Queen Street School is about to be replaced. Bolton Council has received more money to repair its roads and footpaths (and, yes, bridges too) than for well over a decade, and it's a similar story for housing, with improvements taking place in the Campbell Street area of Farnworth. And, what about the minimum wage, the Working Families Tax Credit, the statutory right for all workers to get a minimum four weeks' holiday every year, etc, etc? Do the people of Farnworth not benefit?

Our 1997 election pledge on NHS waiting lists was achieved before the 2001 election, and this Government is committed to the NHS, unlike the Tory Party!

My two offices help hundreds of Farnworth people with their many problems! Last Saturday, more than 30 people came to see me at Farnworth Town Hall and we dealt with 25 separate cases.

While Bolton Council has been aware for some time that many bridges -- road and rail -- needed a lot of money spending on them, until the Green Lane railway bridge was inspected very recently, of course I was unaware that that particular bridge was unsafe.

Perhaps Christine Adams can tell me why the Bolton SE Tory Candidate for the General Election failed to attend the Farnworth and District Churches Together Election forum at St John's CE Primary School on Monday, June 4, and why Mr Tyson had to attend for him, totally unbriefed?

Dr Brian Iddon

Member of Parliament

for Bolton South East