Devizes
Conservative hold

The Conservative Party chairman Michael (The Earl of) Ancram should win Devizes again easily, even as his party appears to be heading for a second clear defeat in a General Election. Although affected by the growth of Swindon, the nearest thing we have in England to a boom town as the new century starts, traditional elements still survive here. Devizes itself is one of the most elegant old towns of Wiltshire, with its market square and independent old fashioned tower brewery, Wadworth's; Marlborough is also elegant, pleasantly set beneath the Downs, and has a renowned public school; the Conservatives do not do badly out of Army encampments near the Salisbury plain like North Tidworth. There are plenty of non-Conservatives here, in the orbit of Swindon, in Melksham, a new arrival from Westbury dominated by its Avon Rubber Company tyre factory, and scattered elsewhere. But they are evenly scattered, and even with 43pc of the vote Ancram's majority is still 10,000 in one of the most populous seats in the UK.

Michael Ancram (aka Michael Kerr, Earl of Ancram, heir to the 12th Marquis of Lothian), made Tory Party Chairman by William Hague, has been MP here since 1992. Having earlier represented Edinburgh South and Berwick & East Lothian, he is a classic example of ousted Scots Tories taking the low road south to find somewhere they can get elected. A Scots Advocate, he was born in 1945 and educated at Ampleforth, Christ Church Oxford, and Edinburgh University. He is an Anglicised Scottish aristocrat with an estate in England and married to the daughter of the Duke of Norfolk. Though a One Nation Tory by instinct, he trimmed in 1997, voting for Hague not Clarke, and was rewarded with the Party Chairmanship a year later.

Area Percent GB Percent Index GB=100   Thriving Wealthy Achievers, Suburban Areas 25.21% 14.99% 168.16 Affluent Greys, Rural Communities 3.12% 2.13% 146.68 Prosperous Pensioners, Retirement Areas 2.29% 2.49% 92.29 Expanding Affluent Executives, Family Areas 8.67% 4.43% 195.88 Well-Off Workers, Family Areas 8.68% 7.27% 119.38 Rising Affluent Urbanites, Town & City Areas 0.41% 2.56% 16.09 Prosperous Professionals, Metropolitan Areas 0.10% 2.04% 4.85 Better-Off Executives, Inner City Areas 0.08% 3.94% 1.92 Settling Comfortable Middle Agers, Mature Home Owning Areas 21.31% 13.04% 163.40 Skilled Workers, Home Owning Areas 8.59% 12.70% 67.66 Aspiring New Home Owners, Mature Communities 10.39% 8.14% 127.58 White Collar Workers, Better-Off Multi Ethnic Areas 0.37% 4.02% 9.26 Striving Older People, Less Prosperous Areas 2.38% 3.19% 74.62 Council Estate Residents, Better-Off Homes 7.84% 11.31% 69.35 Council Estate Residents, High Unemployment 0.44% 3.06% 14.24 Council Estate Residents, Greatest Hardship 0.10% 2.52% 3.79 People in Multi-Ethnic, Low-Income Areas 0.00% 2.10% 0.00 Unclassified Unclassified 0.02% 0.06% 33.44

Area Percent GB Percent Index GB=100   £0-5K 7.20% 9.41% 76.44 £5-10K 14.39% 16.63% 86.52 £10-15K 16.11% 16.58% 97.14 £15-20K 14.18% 13.58% 104.38 £20-25K 11.26% 10.39% 108.36 £25-30K 8.57% 7.77% 110.21 £30-35K 6.42% 5.79% 110.83 £35-40K 4.80% 4.33% 110.77 £40-45K 3.60% 3.27% 110.32 £45-50K 2.72% 2.48% 109.66 £50-55K 2.07% 1.90% 108.89 £55-60K 1.59% 1.47% 108.05 £60-65K 1.23% 1.15% 107.18 £65-70K 0.96% 0.91% 106.32 £70-75K 0.76% 0.72% 105.48 £75-80K 0.60% 0.57% 104.66 £80-85K 0.48% 0.46% 103.87 £85-90K 0.39% 0.37% 103.13 £90-95K 0.31% 0.31% 102.42 £95-100K 0.25% 0.25% 101.75 £100K + 1.32% 1.34% 98.44