'I thought somebody else deserved a chance and the SNP seem to be giving Scotland a stronger voice'

LINDA Muir's five-year-old son has just started school so education is important to her.

She has not voted before, but is considering supporting the SNP because last year, just after the party won the Cunninghame North seat, a new school opened in Dalry giving Lleyton the perfect start to his educational life.

She said: "It's great, Lleyton really likes it. That's one good thing the SNP have done."

But as the SNP cashes in on the feelgood factor created by the new school, Labour members are protesting that they should be receiving the plaudits as they approved the building project when in power.

However, Labour's voice is not as loud as when the school project started, as last year the political map changed in Cunninghame North when the SNP's Kenny Gibson beat Allan Wilson by 48 votes.

And

if the SNP is to take up Alex Salmond's challenge of winning 20 seats to make Westminster "dance to a Scottish jig", it must again be victorious in the North Ayrshire and Arran seat, which includes Cunninghame North. It is the tenth target on the SNP list, but a seat in which it came third in 2005, taking a mere 18 per cent of the vote compared with 43 per cent for Labour's Katy Clark.

In Kilbirnie, Ms Clark's constituency office is in the middle of town not far from the Garrock Labour Club.

Graham MacKenzie, 29, used to vote Labour but is now backing the SNP, as is his partner, Sheena Paterson, 25. They have two children, Cloe, two, and ten-week-old Andrew. Mr MacKenzie said: "I just thought somebody else deserved a chance and the SNP seem to be giving Scotland a stronger voice."

Chris Cameron, 26, an active-living manager at the local community centre, said: "I was impressed with what they (the SNP] have done in terms of restructuring the community funding.

"But who I vote for depends on what the parties have to say about education, my daughter, Leah (four], has just started school."

James Glass, 53, who retired early for health reasons, is another supporting the SNP, although he hadn't noticed much difference in the past year.

A few miles south in Dalry, where Mr Gibson has his office, Stephen McLoney, 44, a self- employed carpenter, nailed his colours to the Labour cause but was hardly encouraging: "Best of a bad bunch. But Gordon Brown is the most useless Prime Minister we've ever had. I wish we still had Tony Blair."

But to some, who's in control matters little. Lorna Herriot, 49, who owns an upholstery and furniture polishing business, said: "The business rates cuts were good and very helpful, but I've got to the point where I don't think it makes much difference who I vote for."

Yvonne Farman, the owner of a café a stone's throw from Mr Gibson's office, is another former Labour voter who switched to the SNP last year and does not intend to return. "I haven't noticed much difference in the last year and I don't know much about Alex Salmond," she admitted. "Labour got as comfortable in their seats as the Conservatives did and stopped doing any good."

Mr Gibson described this effect as part of the feelgood factor. He added:

"Labour have just taken areas like this for granted for years and now people are beginning to understand that there is another choice."

Ms Clark said she was taking nothing for granted, but added:

"Some of the problems experienced locally – like the cuts being made by the council – will eventually rebound on the SNP."