Prescott jumps on board bus ready for poll battle

John Prescott was kissed by two young women as he hit the campaign trail in Carlisle yesterday – in a new, slimmed-down version of his General Election battlebus.

By The Newsroom

Published 8th Apr 2010, 12:30 BST

Updated 8th Apr 2010, 12:30 BST

The spartan, 11-seat minibus was a far cry from the plush campaign juggernauts he used in the previous three General Election campaigns.

It will carry Mr Prescott and his team on a 4,000-mile tour of 50 key marginal seats to rally Labour support before polling day.

Mr Prescott, who is leaving the House of Commons after 40 years as an MP and fighting 10 general elections, will revisit areas where he campaigned in 1997, 2001, and 2005 – including Dewsbury in West Yorkshire,

The tour will also see the former Deputy Prime Minister hold public meetings and rallies beside the Unite union's joint general secretary, Derek Simpson.

Mr Prescott said: "I'm revving up the battle bus for one last tour. This time it's absolutely vital that we get our core Labour vote out in this election. But now it's going to go to the wire and we need to get every vote out."