THE big three parties will be hoping anger over MPs’ expenses does not hit them at the ballot box, as the region goes to the polls tomorrow.

Nine seats in the European Parliament will be up for grabs in what is likely to be the last big test of public opinion before the General Election.

In the North-East – a constituency of 1.9 million people stretching from the Scottish border to the Tees Valley – Labour, the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats each have one MEP.

The 3.7 million people of Yorkshire and the Humber have two Labour members, two Conservatives, one Liberal Democrat and one from the United Kingdom Independence Party (UKIP).

Labour is braced for a disastrous result nationally, but it would take a political landslide for the party to lose its North-East seat. Stephen Hughes has been an MEP for 25 years.

Martin Callanan, a North- East Tory MEP since 1999, also looks relatively safe, although large moves to the Greens, Ukip or the British National Party (BNP) could cause an upset.

Lib Dem Fiona Hall, who became the party’s first North- East MEP following the 2004 election, could also face a close fight.

The Greens’ lead candidate is Shirley Ford, a member of the Keep Metro Public campaign, while UKIP has pinned its hopes on Gordon Parkin, an Army veteran and teacher.

Adam Walker, a teacher from Spennymoor, County Durham, is standing for the BNP.

In Yorkshire and the Humber, both Labour and the Conservatives will each be hoping to hold their two seats, although a jump in support could see the BNP make a gain, with Andrew Brons, a retired politics lecturer, the party’s top candidate.

Ukip MEP Godfrey Bloom has had a high profile since being elected in 2004 and has a good chance of winning a second term.

Lib Dem Diana Wallis has twice been the party’s leader in Brussels and has served as vice-president of the Parliament.

Meanwhile, a number of minor parties will be hoping to improve on previous showings or make their first mark on the electoral scene. The Christian Party has nine candidates across the region, while No2EU: Yes to Democracy is fielding Keith Gibson, a leading figure in the Lindsey oil refinery strike in Yorkshire and the Humber.

Pro Democracy: Liberatas.

eu, the Socialist Labour Party and the English Democrats Party are also represented.

The Jury Team is a new “anti-sleaze” party launched in March for independent candidates who would vote according to conscience.

The group’s top candidate in the North-East is South Shields councillor Ahmed Khan, while in Yorkshire and the Humber the number one is Barbara Hibbert, head of history at Harrogate Grammar School.

Mike McGuinness, an elections expert from Teesside University, said tomorrow’s election was particularly difficult to call and the outcome could depend on turnout and whether any of the smaller parties benefit from voters’ anger.

The results will be announced after all Europe’s polls close at 9pm on Sunday.