The producers of 'The X Factor' have released a statement about this hoo-hah about ejected contestant Laura White, and the fact that 50,000 or so fans have petitioned OfCom for an inquiry into why she ended up getting the boot on last week's show. Their claims are based, seemingly, on whether the phone votes were properly counted, with some claiming they were unable to register their votes.
Laura Reading, who set up the online petition, said: "X Factor takes the public's money, but doesn't reveal how many votes each artist received. Then, they try to gag young artists and stop them earning a living, because the producers make more money that way. It's a disgrace".
And this is what The X Factor people say: "We would never reveal the voting figures during the competition, as it could give contestants an unfair advantage and spoil the competition for viewers. At the end of the series, we are more than happy to reveal the voting pattern to the public which will very clearly demonstrate who the viewers have been voting for each week. There were absolutely no issues with the phone lines or the voting system which is subject to rigorous procedures and protocols. Our viewers vote for the act they want to keep in the competition and last Saturday, Laura White and Ruth Lorenzo received the least number of votes."
The statement added: "There are no plans to bring Laura back to The X Factor."