King defends post voting mailshot

Ms King says she has done nothing illegal

Bethnal Green and Bow Labour candidate Oona King has defended her use of a postal vote mailshot her Respect party rival George Galloway says is illegal.

Ms King says the postal vote application form with a hand-written note asking for it to be sent back to her office is within guidelines.

"We are working to an agreed set of rules we have had for decades," she told BBC London.

Mr Galloway had called it "dangerous to the operation of local democracy".

He argued the forms should be sent to the local returning officer instead, at a Respect press conference in Bishopsgate, east London.

'Not breaking rules'

Mr Galloway called the campaign "a desperate New Labour machine resorting to smear, resorting to tactics on postal voting that must be close to illegal, if not illegal". He said Respect was taking legal advice.

Mr Galloway was a former Labour MP expelled from the party for anti-Iraq war views.

But Ms King said she had done nothing wrong. "We've done it in the past. Perhaps it should change in the future, but we are not breaking any rules or regulations."

The Electoral Commission says it is lawful for a political party to gather postal ballot application forms.

But other prospective parliamentary candidates support Mr Galloway's views.

Conservative candidate Shahagir Bakth Faruk said: "I agree with George Galloway. I think although the postal vote is still legal you cannot print out your name and your address and you cannot motivate the voters to send it to yourself."

Liberal Democrats candidate Syed Nurul Islam Dulu said: "The Labour Party is asking and they mention in the form that postal forms should be sent to them. I don't know why they are doing these things."

Also standing is John Foster for the Green Party.

Ms King won the seat at the last election.