Parties in final push for votes

The three party leaders are all out on the campaign trail

The party leaders are gearing up for a final push ahead of local elections in England and Wales on Thursday.

Prime Minister Gordon Brown's faces his first electoral test since becoming PM while Tory leader David Cameron claims his party has the "momentum".

Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg will be campaigning later in Oxford.

In London, Labour mayor Ken Livingstone will focus on transport, Tory rival Boris Johnson on crime and Lib Dem Brian Paddick on post office closures.

Mr Clegg is also facing his first electoral test as party leader.

Earlier, he told the BBC he was "extremely pleased" with his party's performance in the polls - which were "far higher" than they had ever been "at this point in the political cycle".

'Gossip or rumour'

Mr Brown is in Bolton with Home Secretary Jacqui Smith, to visit a crime prevention scheme.

In an interview with the BBC earlier he shrugged off reports that his predecessor as prime minister, Tony Blair, had said he could not beat Tory leader David Cameron. Mr Blair's office deny he holds such a view.

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Mr Brown said: "I'm going to concentrate on the job ahead, on the priorities that matter for the British people and not on gossip or rumour, or statements made by one or two people."

He said his predecessor's office "has made it clear that this is not an accurate reflection of what Mr Blair has said".

Justice Secretary Jack Straw earlier told BBC Radio 5 Live the government had not anticipated the full effects of scrapping the 10p tax rate - which some MPs fear is hurting the party on the doorstep.

Poor 'getting poorer'

He told one caller who had lost money: "I am sorry that you have been placed in this position and it shouldn't have happened."

Meanwhile Mr Cameron will be campaigning in London, visiting a community drop-in centre near Kings Cross where he will say the government's claims that 600,000 children have been lifted out of poverty do not stand up - and will claim child poverty actually went up by 100,000 last year.

Earlier, Mr Cameron told GMTV the poorest 10% of people were "getting poorer",

He said: "We are saying stop just looking at the money, start looking at the causes of poverty and that is things like family breakdown, drug abuse, persistently being out of work."

The candidates appeared at a Christian-organised hustings

In London the incumbent mayor, Labour's Ken Livingstone, will concentrate on his record on transport.

He will say that on important decisions - like introducing the congestion charge - his Tory rival Boris Johnson was on the wrong side of the argument and massively underestimated the cost of a key policy - returning conductors to London buses.

Mr Livingstone said London would spend £39bn on transport in 10 years: "The first decisive test of the mayor's ability to run the city in the interest of Londoners is to take the right decisions on this huge programme which dwarfs all other spending in London

"In each of the key choices in this the decisions I have taken were proved to be right and Boris Johnson has supported the wrong one."

'Tired and stale'

Meanwhile Mr Johnson's spokeswoman said he would focus on what he thinks is the main issue - crime - and would spell out "how the mayor has failed to protect the most vulnerable in the city".

She added: "Boris Johnson will spend the next few days displaying the choice that London has on Thursday. A choice between the current mayor who is tired, stale and has run out of ideas and Boris Johnson - a man who has set out a range of policies to change London for the better."

Liberal Democrat candidate Brian Paddick will be helping local activists in Highgate, north London, manning stalls and campaigning against the closure of the local post office.

Mr Livingstone, Mr Johnson and the Liberal Democrat candidate Brian Paddick will appear in their final TV debate before the 1 May elections later on Sky News.