CORRESPONDENT Mr Slingsby (March 31) wants to vote for an MP who not only has aspirations for the future of his constituency, but has a record of having delivered. He is right to lay down high standards.

I have always made it clear that I regard it as an honour to have been given the opportunity to represent my home town constituency; an honour which has to be earned through hard work and making a difference and never taking things for granted.

My record is open to public scrutiny and includes:

Offering a full time advice, information and advocacy service which has helped thousands of people across the constituency;

Securing record levels of investment in local schools and the NHS.

Achieving significant Government investment in a new state-of-the-art secondary school for Radcliffe which will be at the heart of the town's regeneration.

Ensuring we have more than 50 extra police officers and 20 community support officers in the Bury division, two new/refurbished Police stations and CCTV in Prestwich and Radcliffe.

Opening a new NHS Walk-in centre in Prestwich, with state-of-the-art medical centres planned for Whitefield and Radcliffe.

Working with the council to attract special government funding to improve local parks and sports facilities.

Lobbying fellow ministers to secure a multi-million pound investment in improving the quality of council housing.

Working with local residents to bring Morrisons to Whitefield.

Joining with other Labour MPs to get Metrolink back on track. The first step will be the upgrade of the existing line and purchase of new trams.

Mr Slingsby appears to resent my role in government. Yet in addition to maintaining my commitment in the constituency, I have had the opportunity to make a difference in my capacity as an education minister.

I have had responsibility for re-building the Apprenticeship system a record 270,000 young people are apprentices this year; three times the number in 1997.

Our Skills for Life programme has encouraged 830,000 adults without basic literacy and numeracy skills to achieve qualifications and a new dignity in their lives.

I have launched with Esther Rantzen an unprecedented and long-term national strategy which aims to attack the menace of bullying in our schools which makes too many children's lives a misery.

All of these issues are about making a positive difference in our community and throughout the country.

As we begin this election campaign it is not part of my case that Labour has got everything right. However, this constituency and country have massively improved since 1997.

Unemployment, mortgage rates and inflation are at record low levels and people's aspirations and ambitions for themselves and their families have never been higher. By Mr Slingsby's own standards, I look forward to his enthusiastic support in the weeks ahead.

IVAN LEWIS MP