THE big guns have been rolled out in St Helens in the climax to the election campaign. Conservative candidate for St Helens South, Lee Rotherham unveiled his latest political weapon in St Helens on Tuesday, while the Socialist Labour Party conscripted Arthur Scargill and Royle Family star Ricky Tomlinson.

An armoured personnel carrier with an EU flag attached to it was wheeled into the town as the Conservative Party aimed to bring the issue of Europe into the local political spotlight.

Lee Rotherham said: "This is to draw attention to the fact that the Liberal Democrats and Labour want to keep a lid on this issue".

Meanwhile, he has been out among townsfolk stressing the need to cut down the levels of bureaucracy in education, the police and the NHS. He told the Star: "We've been all over town and no areas have been off-limits. Our team is small but highly-effective and we hope we've made our presence felt".

DAVE Watts is calling on the people of St Helens to make their votes count.

The Labour Party candidate and sitting MP for St Helens North said the national press seemed to be giving the impression that the result of the election was a foregone conclusion and he was concerned that peole might think they didn't need to vote.

But he told the Star: "We want everyone to vote and we want every vote that we can get".

BRIAN Spencer, the Liberal Democrat Candidate for St Helens South, is anticipating a close contest after going out and about in town campaigning to win over voters.

Local man Brian, who has been distributing leaflets and meeting potential voters, said that he had received a very positive response from residents concerned with major issues such as health, education and pensions.

ABOUT 150 people attended a meeting at Sutton High Leisure Centre to hear former miners union leader Arthur Scargill and actor Ricky Tomlinson speak in support of Mike Perry, the Socialist Labour Party candidate for St Helens South.

In his speech, Mr Scargill, general secretary of the SLP, pledged to cut military spending by 66 per cent and scrap the Trident Missile along with every other aspect of the nuclear power industry. He said this would save £16 billion per year which could be used to build and renovate schools and hospitals, creating thousands of jobs and improving people's quality of life.

Ricky Tomlinson, meanwhile, called for a national minimum wage of at least £7 per hour, an immediate rise in pensions and the permanent restoration of the link between pensions and earnings.