LABOUR Party activists are growing increasingly confident they can wrest power from the coalition which controls a North-East council.

The party lost its 22-year hold on power on Hartlepool Borough Council in an unexpected result in May 2000.

The Liberal Democrats won five seats, and the Conservatives four, in the council elections to form a coalition of 22 seats against Labour's 21, with the balance of power held by three independents.

Now the balance looks likely to shift when voters go to the polls tomorrow in the town's Jackson ward, in an election called following the resignation of Liberal Democrat Tom Cherry.

A low turnout is expected - and with no Conservative candidate standing, activists expect Bill Iseley, the Labour nomination, to retake the seat.

Mr Iseley, a councillor for 39 years, lost his last seat in the May 2000 election.

Russell Hart, leader of the town's Labour Party, is confident they can win.

He said: "We are quite keen to welcome Bill back on Friday morning. It is hard not to be confident.

"Bill has been a councillor for many years and has a wealth of experience. We are really looking forward to him coming back.

"I think people have become disillusioned with the way the town has been run since last year, and it is time to change that."

At the last election, the seat was won by the Liberal Democrats by 439 votes to Labour's 360.

The hung council could present problems for future decisions such as a possible rise in council tax, which means the three independent councillors could swing the outcome of the decisions.

Stan Kaiser, formerly a Conservative councillor but now an independent, believes Labour will win the seat.

He said: "I think Labour will win it with a small majority on Thursday. A low turnout will benefit Bill Iseley.

"If Labour are elected, the independents in this council will be in control of some of the major decisions."

But council leader Arthur Preece, of the Liberal Democrats, believes a Labour win would not make much difference.

He said: "Technically, it will be a hung council, but technically it is a hung council now because there is no large majority.

"Voting on larger decisions could prove a problem, but only rarely because we don't always have all councillors at every meeting, because of illnesses or bereavements.

"I don't think the independent candidates will make a catastrophic difference in voting."

Mr Preece added: "Even if the Labour Party has the same number of seats as us, it doesn't mean they will manage to get all their people together for votes in full council.