Phil Woolas, the minister responsible for local government, has hailed local newspapers as "absolutely crucial" in today’s political system.

He was responding to questions from Westminster-based regional press journalists at a Newspaper Conference quarterly lunch.

The Labour MP for Oldham East & Saddleworth, admitted supporting both Manchester United and Gordon Brown, and fielded an array of questions from political editors and lobby correspondents hunting for stories across a range of issues.

He spoke of a close relationship with his local paper the Oldham Evening Chronicle, which he said had helped him achieve an increased majority at the 2005 General Election.

He said: "If you have a daily local paper [in your constituency] you have a huge advantage over other Members of Parliament. Every day, the paper needs you, and you need it to get a message over to the public.

"The second advantage is that the best way of holding a Member of Parliament to account in a positive and constructive way is to have a local daily paper.

"If you say something to them that’s inconsistent with what you’ve said in the past or what you’ve said in the chamber they will ask you about it.

"A strong local paper is absolutely crucial for our system to work best."