WOULD-BE MP Ken Hulme visited sixth formers at Chesham Park Community College to put the Labour message across and came away converted to at least one of their arguments.

What particularly won over Mr Hulme, the prospective parliamentary Labour candidate for Chesham and Amersham, was the pupils' views on student loans.

They told him the loan system, which could saddle a student with huge debts after three years at university, discouraged students from poorer homes from going into higher education.

Mr Hulme said he would be passing their views on to the Labour hierarchy. "I am not a clone out of Millbank and I will make a strong representation about their concerns."

He was very impressed with his audience, who quizzed him on subjects from euthanasia to world debt and child labour.

They were more sparky young men and women than the pupils with "middle-aged" attitudes he had addressed at Dr Challoner's Grammar School, he said.

He also praised the staff at Chesham Park, saying they let the pupils do the talking, whereas at Dr Challoner's teachers had launched into him about comprehensive education.

Mr Hulme is against the grammar school system.