Justice Secretary Chris Grayling made a pit stop in Gravesend today to throw his weight behind Gravesham's Conservative candidate Adam Holloway before the general election.

The Tory cabinet minister hit the campaign trail on Friday, spending the morning in Cliffe to support Conservative hopeful Kelly Tolhurst in her attempts to unseat Ukip’s Mark Reckless.

And, predictably perhaps, he said he envisioned Mr Holloway being re-elected in Gravesham as part of a Conservative government when the votes take place on Thursday, May 7.

He said: "I’m here because Adam is a friend. The issues here are should Adam Holloway be our MP, that is just as important as the national debate.

"I’m confident Gravesham will vote Conservative but we can’t be complacenet, Labour has a strong and determined candidate in Gravesham.

"Adam is a really good guy and is exactly the type of politician we need in Westminster.

"I’ve been talking to people locally and the overall message I’m getting is people are very happy with Adam as their MP.

"I’ve even spoke to people who support Labour but want Adam as their MP because they like him, I don’t believe they want Ed Miliband to be Prime Minister."

Mr Grayling says he feels voters will turn to blue before they make their decision at the ballot box over lingering fears about Britain’s economic future.

He added: "I think we will see something similar to what happened in 1992.

"When push comes to shove people will vote Conservative because they don’t want to jeopradise the economy."

But he also warned Ukip could hamper his party’s bid to form a Conservative majority government by offering Labour a back door entry to Parliament.

Mr Holloway said: "Chris has been very kind to me and is one of the only senior politicians to stop in the corridor and give advice when asked.

"He isn’t someone who just listens to civil servants."

Labour candidate Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi said Mr Grayling's visit highlights how hotly contested Gravesham will be in May.

He said: "It's good the constituency is being taken seriously with many high level visits to Gravesham.

"I think it proves how hotly contested the seat will be. Recently we have had the Europe shadow minister Pat McFadden and former transport minister John Spellar come here.

"It adds to the importance and excitement of the election in Gravesham."

Mr Holloway is standing in Gravesham for the Conservatives against Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi (Labour), Sean Marriott (Ukip), Mark Lindop (Green) and Ann-Marie Bunting (Lib Dem).