ELECTION BLOG: Man-in-the-middle leans towards Labour

RPAG chairman Keith Billington was the man in the middle of the panel, chairing a lively debate that centred around the three main parties’ policies affecting old folk.

All three held their own, and even uninvited candidates Peter Thirlwall (Independent) and John Wilkinson (UKIP) chipped in from the audience.

It was a valuable experience for the over-50s who attended, and would have certainly given anyone who was undecided a better idea of who to go with on May 6.

But there was no huge surprise that, in closing, Mr Billington said that it was important not to blame Prime Minister Gordon Brown for the poor state of the British economy.

That’s because Mr Billington has already made another notable appearance during the election campaign—on John Healey’s leaflets, backing the Labour candidate.

He is quoted as saying: “When we were campaigning for help with travel, John was Treasury Minister.

“He took us to see the Chancellor in Downing Street, and got the Labour Government to introduce free bus passes for pensioners in the Budget.”