THE Swindon charity boss at the centre of the Gordon Brown bullying row was last night told to come up with the evidence to back up her claims.

Christine Pratt, founder of the National Bullying Helpline, insisted she would trawl through emails to prove her allegations about Downing Street.

Mrs Pratt yesterday linked up with the top publicist Max Clifford who will be representing her amid a backlash against her claims and the resignation of the charity’s patrons.

She has been accused of being influenced by the Conservative Party, of breaching confidentiality and of links between her charity and her husband’s business interests.

Mr Clifford took up her case on the day that Mrs Pratt was scorned by Government minister Phil Woolas as “this prat of a woman”.

The PR agent, who has managed many of Britain’s leading celebrities, said: “She wants to stand up and be counted and I’ve said ‘the only way you’re going to change the public and the media’s perception is to come up with evidence of what you’ve been saying. Can you do that?’ “She and her husband have said ‘Yes, we believe we can’.”

Mr Clifford added that Mrs Pratt and her husband were “going to get busy”, searching through hundreds of emails to back up their claims.

Thr furore intensified yesterday even as the Prime Minister tried to draw a line under the affair with a business-as-usual speech on education.

The immigration minister told Nick Ferrari on LBC 97.3: “It’s a tough business, politics. It’s 18, 20 hours a day that people like the Prime Minister work.

“I think this attack on him by this prat of a woman down in – where’s she from, Swindon? – I think that’s backfiring on her.

“Most people think that Gordon Brown, even if they don’t agree with his politics, they think that he’s a decent man and I can tell you in my experience, he’s a very decent man.”

The developments came as a rival anti-bullying charity condemned Mrs Pratt for breaching confidentiality and said it intends to write to the Charity Commission to complain about her actions.

Liz Carnell, of Bullying UK, said the actions of Mrs Pratt, the founder of the National Bullying Helpline, had damaged the anti-bullying sector where “confidentiality is paramount.”

“We’re disappointed and concerned that the National Bullying Helpline has splashed all over the media that it has been contacted by staff in Gordon Brown’s office alleging bullying,” said Mrs Carnell.

“We’ve had a deluge of complaints about it by email and Twitter.

“We think it’s a serious breach of confidentiality for an anti-bullying charity to reveal details like this where such a small number of people are involved and – much worse – could potentially be identified.

“It will deter other people from coming forward for help if they think that anti-bullying charities are going to splash their employer’s name all over the media.

“It’s important that when people come forward to speak about an issue as distressing as bullying they can do so in absolute confidence and even if their problems are resolved, that they know their confidence will be respected and maintained and not splashed all over the media.”

Another charity who have clear confidentiality guidelines set out on their website is children’s organisation the NSPCC.

It reads: “We always want to keep calls to ChildLine confidential, but if we are very worried about your safety or the safety of others, we will talk to you about whether other people need to know. ChildLine will only take action if we feel it’s an emergency and we will talk to you about this first.”

Another charity the Samaritans provides completely confidential emotional support 24 hours a day by telephone, personal visit, email, and letter, through its branch network.

Its code of practice states: “Our purpose is to enable persons who are experiencing feelings of distress or despair, including those who may be at risk of suicide, to receive confidential emotional support at any time from Samaritans to improve their emotional health and to reduce the incidence of suicide.”