Dumfries
Labour hold

Dumfries was safely Conservative for many decades before Labour's sweeping victory in 1997, but with only modest inroads into the majority in the 1999 Scottish Parliament elections and the continued malaise of the party north of the border, recovery of representation here still seems highly improbable. It is only just north of the border, and the rolling farmland with its connections with Robert Burns, and the birthplaces of Thomas Carlyle and (reputedly) Robert the Bruce do not suggest a Labour heritage, but Dumfries itself has its council estates, like most Scottish towns, and the mood throughout Scotland is firmly Labour. The Tories halved the gap in the 1999 Holyrood elections, but one suspects this will not be quite enough in the way of progress to suggest a regain in the next Westminster contests. This is one of the areas suffering most severely from the great foot and mouth outbreak of 2001; the electoral impact of this disaster locally remains to be recorded.

Russell Brown, who swept in on Labour's 1997 high tide, was helped there by the resentment toward the One Nation Tory General Sir Hector Monro. One of Labour's dwindling band of proletarians, Brown was an ICI factory worker for 23 years and a well-dug-in local councillor. He campaigns on local issues such as arms dumps in the Beaufort Dyke and the Lockerbie bombing. With shades of Sir Hector, the Tories have selected another old school gentleman farmer in John Charteris of the Royal Scots, and grandson of the seat's MP between 1924 and 1929.

Area Percent GB Percent Index GB=100   Thriving Wealthy Achievers, Suburban Areas 7.00% 14.99% 46.69 Affluent Greys, Rural Communities 8.21% 2.13% 386.22 Prosperous Pensioners, Retirement Areas 2.03% 2.49% 81.76 Expanding Affluent Executives, Family Areas 3.57% 4.43% 80.62 Well-Off Workers, Family Areas 9.58% 7.27% 131.66 Rising Affluent Urbanites, Town & City Areas 1.54% 2.56% 59.89 Prosperous Professionals, Metropolitan Areas 0.06% 2.04% 2.90 Better-Off Executives, Inner City Areas 1.86% 3.94% 47.20 Settling Comfortable Middle Agers, Mature Home Owning Areas 11.10% 13.04% 85.12 Skilled Workers, Home Owning Areas 9.50% 12.70% 74.77 Aspiring New Home Owners, Mature Communities 8.57% 8.14% 105.24 White Collar Workers, Better-Off Multi Ethnic Areas 1.87% 4.02% 46.56 Striving Older People, Less Prosperous Areas 5.17% 3.19% 162.22 Council Estate Residents, Better-Off Homes 19.10% 11.31% 168.90 Council Estate Residents, High Unemployment 3.58% 3.06% 116.86 Council Estate Residents, Greatest Hardship 7.16% 2.52% 284.27 People in Multi-Ethnic, Low-Income Areas 0.00% 2.10% 0.00 Unclassified Unclassified 0.11% 0.06% 170.05

Area Percent GB Percent Index GB=100   £0-5K 10.44% 9.41% 110.93 £5-10K 19.36% 16.63% 116.40 £10-15K 18.78% 16.58% 113.26 £15-20K 14.64% 13.58% 107.78 £20-25K 10.57% 10.39% 101.66 £25-30K 7.43% 7.77% 95.52 £30-35K 5.19% 5.79% 89.61 £35-40K 3.64% 4.33% 84.08 £40-45K 2.58% 3.27% 78.97 £45-50K 1.84% 2.48% 74.31 £50-55K 1.33% 1.90% 70.07 £55-60K 0.98% 1.47% 66.24 £60-65K 0.72% 1.15% 62.78 £65-70K 0.54% 0.91% 59.65 £70-75K 0.41% 0.72% 56.83 £75-80K 0.31% 0.57% 54.26 £80-85K 0.24% 0.46% 51.94 £85-90K 0.19% 0.37% 49.82 £90-95K 0.15% 0.31% 47.89 £95-100K 0.12% 0.25% 46.13 £100K + 0.51% 1.34% 38.11