Declan set up stall at Preston bus station

He's been out on the road during the election campaign with a brief to report on the issues which matter to you, rather than to the politicians.

But, he had a tough time, at his latest stop in Preston, finding anyone who would whole-heartedly back the Iraq war.

Seek and you shall find, says the old phrase.

Well, we sought - high and low.

But we found very little of what we wanted.

We were looking for someone in Preston Bus Station who supported the war in Iraq.

I don't mean someone who glories in blood, guts and slaughter.

I mean someone willing to say they thought the war was right because it deposed a brutal despot who tortured his opponents, gassed his own people and defied the United Nations on weapons of mass destruction.

Or someone who thought the invasion was justified because it removed a dictator who could have posed a threat to other nations in the Gulf region, or may have menaced British security.

Or someone who was overjoyed by the pictures of millions of Iraqis voting in free and open elections - pictures which we showed again this morning.

In short, from the hundreds of people who passed through the main bus station in this traditional Labour stronghold, we wanted people who would back Tony Blair over Iraq.

And we found - one.

Camera shy

Sometimes we find people who will say things to us privately, but won't go in front of the cameras.

We got a lot of that in Swansea last week when researching attitudes towards asylum.

But that wasn't the case today.

Jane Thorpe was the only person we found who unambiguously backed the invasion to remove Saddam. Thankfully, she was willing to appear on the programme too.

(If you're reading this, Jane, we' re very grateful.)

Drawing a blank

It wasn't for the want of trying on our part. We spoke to dozens of people this morning at the bus station.

Apart from Jane - and our earlier guest Martin Wangermann, who had mixed views - they were all anti-war.

We also did some heavy research beforehand.

Without naming names, we spoke to number of military and political groups who we thought would have a vested interest in finding us a supporter of the war.

They couldn't find anyone willing to speak out on our programme.

We called in some favours with the local newspapers, in case people in Preston had written to them about it.

That too drew a blank.

We contacted universities in the region, which sent emails to staff and students on our behalf.

And we also drew on the BBC's formidable local resources. Everyone we asked was delighted to help, and tried their hardest. But ultimately it was fruitless.

Seeing red

Some of you were exceptionally annoyed by our reports this morning.

David Sawtell accused me of staging a "party political broadcast" for the "Saddam Hussein fan club".

Mike Foster said it was "the most anti-Labour piece" he had ever seen.

George in Devon accused me of bias. Fred said the reports were "disgraceful".

Other viewers also sent e-mails and text messages making similar points.

Well, the whole point of our Election Rally is to tell you what voters think.

It's not a platform of politicians or media mouth-pieces. And it's certainly not a place for bias or propaganda.

This morning we gave you the facts - fair and straight.

Divided opinion

According to online polling by Yougov, the war is the reason given most often for not supporting Labour.

The group interviewed more than 1,500 people online for the Daily Telegraph on April 11 - and found 66% said the government was wrong to involve Britain in the Iraq war.

The polling group MORI - which questioned nearly 2,000 people in February for Help the Aged - found 63% disapprove of the Prime Minister's handling of the Iraq situation.

Privately, Labour has been worried that its supporters in places like Preston may stay at home and not vote because of their opposition to the war.

They've also been worried by surveys like those for Yougov which say 60% think Tony Blair has not been honest or trustworthy.

But there is also an encouraging note for Labour, which we also reported.

The same poll found that only 3% say Iraq is the most important issue in this election.

That suggests that while the war is still an uncomfortable issue for Labour, other parties may not be able to take advantage of it.