SMALL issues often decide who wins East Lancashire’s most volatile Parliamentary seat.

They can be as minor as dog dirt, potholes and in 1992 a shot candidate's pet canine.

Recent election results in both Rossendale and Darwen suggest Tory Jake Berry is on course to win comfortably and tiny majorities are a thing of the past.

His party gained three Lancashire County Council wards from Labour in 'The Valley' last month, including that of the party's candidate Alyson Barnes.

Recent by-elections in Darwen also saw Conservative victories, suggesting Mr Berry's persistent characterisation of the borough as Labour's 'Blackburn Council' is striking a chord.

The seat is a mix of rural villages, homes for affluent Manchester commuters, traditional Labour stronghold Rawtenstall, working class Tory Bacup, and historic Darwen where people used to vote Liberal Democrat in council polls but Tory in general elections.

With just four candidates rather than 2015's eight, battle lines are clearer this week.

Mr Berry, whose majority increased two years ago with a late surge in his favour, said: "I am not complacent.

"There could be a late surge the other way putting Jeremy Corbyn into 10 Downing Street."

Apart from playing the Labour leader card, Mr Berry has a five point plan for the sprawling seat.

It is to invest in transport connections and repair local roads, protect the NHS in East Lancashire, ensure a first-class education for every child, defend the countryside from unwanted developments by promoting building on brownfield sites, backing regeneration projects that retain local heritage and superfast broadband for every home.

LibDem Sean Bonner reckons Mr Berry has piggy-backed many policies, especially in Darwen, on his party's campaigns.

He wants the three-day market hall replaced with an open square and surrounding Victorian units under Railway Road developed as specialist shops and cafes.

The 25-year-old educational charity worker said: "We can make something unique and special out of Darwen.

"Labour is too keen on just demolishing and insensitively rebuilding as we've seen with their plans for Bacup and Rawtenstall town centres."

He believes many Brexit voters are thinking twice and support his party's commitment to a second referendum.

Mr Bonner shares concerns about public transport connections with Green Party candidate John Payne.

The 58-year-old scientist from Lumb puts the environment and climate change at the top of his political agenda.

Mr Payne said: "I'd never joined a party till I did the Greens two years ago and realised this is where I always belonged."

He backs improving the heritage East Lancashire Railway link from Rawtenstall to Bury and then Manchester and boosting bus services to Rossendale's many towns and villages.

Mr Payne wants free bus travel extended to 'get people out of their cars' and more affordable housing for young people.

Rossendale Council leader Mrs Barnes claims the Jeremy Corbyn effect is not as negative as Mr Berry hopes.

She said: "People like what he says and what they see as he gets out and about.

"Parts of the manifesto are going down very well renationalisation, especially of the railways, scrapping tuition fees and extending free child care.

"The big issue here is the Tory cuts to council funding and therefore services and the knock-on impact on roads, buses, and adult social care here, while the government is gives £64billion to big companies in Corporation Tax reductions."

The lack of a UKIP candidate, who polled 6,682 in 2015 is good news for Mr Berry, a referendum reluctant "Remainer'.

Rossendale and Darwen may no longer seem a marginal but remains a political 'weather-vane' seat.

Whether and by how much Mr Berry increases his 2015 majority of 5,564 will indicate clearly whether Theresa's May's snap election was a gamble worth taking or not.

The candidates are: Alyson Barnes, Labour; Jake Berry, Conservative; Sean Bonner, Liberal Democrat; John Payne, Green.

2015 result: Conservative Jake Berry 22,847; Labour Will Straw 17,193; UKIP Clive Balchin 6,862; Green Karen Pollard-Rylance 1,046; Liberal Democrat Afzal Anwar 806; Independent Kevin Scranage; Trade Union and Socialist Coalition Simon Thomas 103; Northern Shaun Hargreaves 45. Majority 5,654. Turnout: 66.4 per cent.