Sheffield, Hillsborough
Labour hold

Before the last General Election, the Liberal Democrats harboured hopes of taking Sheffield Hallam from the Tories (1992 majority 8,440) and Hillsborough from Labour (1992: majority 7,063). Could they pull off a left and a right, as they say in shooting parlance? Emphatically not. While gaining Hallam easily, Helen Jackson more than doubled her lead in Hillsborough, which now looks very safe despite the LDs' continued dominance here in Sheffield City elections. This has been going on for years, decades even, but it has always represented false hopes in parliamentary terms, and will do so again.

Helen Jackson, elected here in 1992 and PPS to Peter Mandelson until his second going in January 2001 (and before that to Mo Mowlam), is a reconstructed left-winger adapted to the compromises of office. The sister of the one-time Labour MP Chris Price, she was born 1939, was public-school (Berkhamsted) and Oxford (St Hilda's) educated, and was a teacher before becoming a full-time Sheffield City Councillor, where she resisted paying the poll tax until the last moment. Voting for Gould as leader in 1992 and Beckett in 1994, she voted pre-1997 with the hard left on defence cuts, opposed the US in Central America, and campaigned assiduously against privatised Yorkshire Water. As a loyal PPS she now presents a straight bat in defending the Blair government.

Area Percent GB Percent Index GB=100   Thriving Wealthy Achievers, Suburban Areas 5.78% 14.99% 38.56 Affluent Greys, Rural Communities 0.08% 2.13% 3.70 Prosperous Pensioners, Retirement Areas 0.18% 2.49% 7.10 Expanding Affluent Executives, Family Areas 1.79% 4.43% 40.36 Well-Off Workers, Family Areas 14.76% 7.27% 202.86 Rising Affluent Urbanites, Town & City Areas 0.17% 2.56% 6.61 Prosperous Professionals, Metropolitan Areas 0.11% 2.04% 5.34 Better-Off Executives, Inner City Areas 0.57% 3.94% 14.50 Settling Comfortable Middle Agers, Mature Home Owning Areas 17.06% 13.04% 130.82 Skilled Workers, Home Owning Areas 26.34% 12.70% 207.36 Aspiring New Home Owners, Mature Communities 14.42% 8.14% 177.07 White Collar Workers, Better-Off Multi Ethnic Areas 3.39% 4.02% 84.35 Striving Older People, Less Prosperous Areas 6.66% 3.19% 208.92 Council Estate Residents, Better-Off Homes 6.97% 11.31% 61.65 Council Estate Residents, High Unemployment 1.42% 3.06% 46.23 Council Estate Residents, Greatest Hardship 0.32% 2.52% 12.69 People in Multi-Ethnic, Low-Income Areas 0.00% 2.10% 0.00 Unclassified Unclassified 0.00% 0.06% 0.00

Area Percent GB Percent Index GB=100   £0-5K 9.31% 9.41% 98.95 £5-10K 17.52% 16.63% 105.34 £10-15K 18.06% 16.58% 108.96 £15-20K 14.84% 13.58% 109.22 £20-25K 11.12% 10.39% 107.03 £25-30K 8.03% 7.77% 103.35 £30-35K 5.73% 5.79% 98.85 £35-40K 4.07% 4.33% 94.02 £40-45K 2.91% 3.27% 89.14 £45-50K 2.09% 2.48% 84.37 £50-55K 1.52% 1.90% 79.82 £55-60K 1.11% 1.47% 75.53 £60-65K 0.82% 1.15% 71.52 £65-70K 0.61% 0.91% 67.79 £70-75K 0.46% 0.72% 64.34 £75-80K 0.35% 0.57% 61.15 £80-85K 0.27% 0.46% 58.20 £85-90K 0.21% 0.37% 55.48 £90-95K 0.16% 0.31% 52.96 £95-100K 0.13% 0.25% 50.64 £100K + 0.53% 1.34% 39.79