A VICAR has been accused of using aggressive tactics to persuade Plymouth politicians to join his campaign against detaining the children of asylum seekers.

The Rev Tim Smith, vicar of St Judes Church, asked three local politicians to sign the Sanctuary Pledge, a campaign by a nationwide Citizens Group to stop children being held in detention centres like Yarl's Wood in Bedfordshire.

At a city centre rally yesterday, Mr Smith and opponents of asylum policy graphically highlighted the fact that Labour MP Linda Gilroy and her general election Conservative rival Oliver Colvile had both refused to sign.

Dr Judy Evans, the Lib Dem parliamentary candidate for the Sutton and Devonport seat, signed the pledge after an exchange of e-mails with Mr Smith. But she protested: "We have been alarmed by the aggressive nature through which you have attempted to engage me."

Mr Smith defended his tactics yesterday. He told The Herald: "As a country, we put 1,000 people into jail who have committed no crime. There are some people who find that offensive.

"We are not offering a solution. We say we should stop doing it. Asylum seekers are not illegal immigrants.

"Trying to get a politician to pay attention requires you to apply some pressure. If they don't take notice, we have to do something to embarrass them."

In e-mails to Dr Evans, he wrote: "... we are looking to you to personally sign the Sanctuary Pledge... If not, there could be every chance your campaign for election could fail", and "If you do not sign, we will let the media know."

Dr Evans replied later: "We have now signed the Sanctuary Pledge, which we have always been happy to do. We have some concerns about the nature of the event you will be hosting and will therefore not be attending.

"We have also been very alarmed by the aggressive nature through which you have attempted to engage me."

Mrs Gilroy said last night: "I support the general aims. It would be misleading and possibly dishonest for me to sign up to precise wording.

"I will continue to work with any group to assist those seeking refuge to have their cases heard in accordance with our obligations under international law.

"I back the work of the all party Home Affairs Select Committee on the detention of children in the immigration system.

"They say that to improve things, the asylum process needs to become fairer, quicker and more transparent to reduce the need to detain small children.

"But they also recognise that the removal of those living in the United Kingdom illegally must be a central tenet of any coherent immigration policy."

Mr Colvile said: "I am very sympathetic to the issue. If a Conservative government is elected on May 6, I will certainly lobby it to take a sympathetic view towards genuine asylum seekers.

"But I don't want to kid people into voting for me by signing a pledge I may not be able to fulfil."