THE Keighley constituency is one of the ‘central battlegrounds’ set to determine which party emerges victorious from next month’s General Election, says a senior Government figure.

Secretary of State for Justice and former Employment Minister Chris Grayling joined Keighley Conservative candidate Kris Hopkins on the campaign trail in Addingham yesterday.

“The result here will determine whether Ed Miliband is in Downing Street, supported by the SNP, or whether we will have a Conservative government with David Cameron as Prime Minister,” said Mr Grayling.

Keighley, which includes Ilkley as well as rural villages, is traditionally a marginal seat. It was held from 1997 by Labour’s Ann Cryer until 2010, when she chose not to stand for election, and in the last term was held by Mr Hopkins.

Mr Grayling also visited Pudsey constituency, another marginal, supporting Conservative candidate Stuart Andrew, seeking re-election.

On his visit calling on residents of Addingham, Mr Grayling spoke in support of the Conservatives’ economic policies, which he said have seen economic improvement and corresponding fall in unemployment.

He was Minister of State at the Department for Work and Pensions from 2010 until the Cabinet reshuffle of 2012.

“Things are getting better and this is not a time for a change in management,” said Mr Grayling.

Mr Hopkins echoed Mr Grayling’s optimism about the economic recovery, and job creation, following what he described as the ‘broken economy’ taken over by the coalition Government in 2010.

He said the Government needed to continue its work fixing the economy.

“If you look at our constituency, there have been 937 new jobs created since 2010,” he said.

Mr Grayling went on to visit Pudsey in support of Conservative candidate Stuart Andrew, who is seeking re-election.

He praised Mr Andrew in his recent role as Pudsey MP, saying he was ‘not afraid to speak out where Pudsey matters’.

“He’s not afraid to vote against the Government when it’s in the interests of his constituents.”