LIBERAL Democrat Party leader Charles Kennedy?s campaign trail hit West Devon on Tuesday, as the party?s election prospects got a check-up. Appropriately enough for a man whose wife gave birth last week, Mr Kennedy was visiting Okehampton Community Hospital. The party leader, accompanied by West Devon and Torridge?s parliamentary candidate David Walter, and the man he is hoping to succeed on May 5, John Burnett, met hospital staff and toured the £5-million building, opened two years ago. Mr Kennedy stepped off his yellow battlebus to be greeted by supporters carrying placards, a contingent of local Conservative activists and a scrum of press photographers and camera crews. The hospital visit gave Mr Kennedy the chance to outline the Liberal Democrats? health policy, which includes a vow to help half a million ?forgotten people? stuck on hidden NHS waiting lists, by investing £350-million in faster diagnosis. Mr Kennedy said his party would cut the time between referral by a GP and examination by a specialist, to shorten what was a ?very stressful waiting period? for people. Mr Kennedy said funding for increased spending on public services would come from replacing the council tax with a local income tax. He said in an area like West Devon, with relatively low wages and a significant elderly population, people would have the ?most to gain from a local income tax?. Once inside, the Lib Dem leader was given a short tour of the building; visiting one of the wards and talking to patients, including May Chammings. Mrs Chammings told Mr Kennedy she had lived in Okehampton for 60 years and after congratulating him on his new arrival, showed him a picture of her grandsons who attend Okehampton Primary School. Mr Kennedy asked Mrs Chammings if she felt comfortable in the hospital, to which she replied in the affirmative, before he moved on to hear from other patients. David Walter, a one-time speechwriter for Mr Kennedy, said it had been ?terrific? to be able to welcome his party leader to the constituency to see the hospital. He said the fact almost £1-million had been raised for the hospital by local people reflected the ?fantastic sense of community? in Okehampton. Mr Walter said: ?Charles is having a very good personal campaign as well as the campaign itself going so well. ?He was very impressed by the hospital,? he added. Mr Walter said, with two weeks to polling day, he was finding an encouraging response on the doorstep. ?An awful lot of people who voted Labour last time have said they are going to vote for us because they are disillusioned with what the Government has done. They think we took a very principled stance on the war in Iraq for example.? Mr Walter is aiming to hold onto the West Devon and Torridge constituency for the Liberal Democrats, who have held the seat for the last eight years with retiring MP John Burnett. The seat is likely to be one of the most tightly contested in the region. In 2001 the Lib Dems secured a majority of just under 1,200 over the Conservatives. Meanwhile, Conservative candidate Geoffrey Cox said the first two weeks of the campaign had gone very well. He said: ?A large number of people are saying they are either coming back to us or coming over to us for the first time. ?There is a distinct difference from the last election when people voted for John Burnett because he was a local man. Across the constituency we are very hopeful but are taking nothing for granted. We will fight and work until the last minute.? Labour candidate Rebecca Richards said she was ?very busy? trying to maximise the Labour vote. ?I am finding people are very happy with the economy and the way things are going,? she said. ?The big issues seem to be health and education and the investment that is being put into them.? UKIP?s Matthew Jackson said there was a lot of support for his party in the European elections and he hoped to take advantage of that, plus home in on those bored with the traditional parties. He said: ?The turnout for the last general election was not much more than 60 % ? there is a danger that a similar thing may happen this time. We are offering an alternative to those people who might otherwise stay at home.? Publicity officer for the Green Party, Miranda Cox, said candidate Peter Christie was focusing on climate change, renewable energy, effects of supermarkets on local shops and abolition of the benefits system and red tape, in favour of paying everyone a living wage with those who work getting extra. ?Our policies are very practical and we are showing people that serious issues such as saving energy can be addressed if we are just a little more careful ? we do not have to change our lifestyles,? she said. In 2001, the election result was: John Burnett, Liberal Democrat, 23,474; Geoffrey Cox, Conservative, 22,280; David Brenton, Labour, 5,959; Bob Edwards, UKIP, 2,674; Martin Quinn, Green, 1,297. l VOTERS in the Tavistock area will have the chance to see their general election candidates put on the spot tomorrow (Friday) as the town hall hosts an ?Any Questions? evening. The five candidates will share the platform in the event organised by the Dartmoor Tourist Association, which will be chaired by DTA chairman Philip Davies. All are welcome to attend ? the event starts at 7.30pm.
