Bolsover
Labour hold

One of few constituency names to become widely known through the activities, or antics depending on one's view, of its MP is that of Dennis Skinner, the "Beast of Bolsover". This unreconstructed and direct old Labour stalwart has a suitable base. This east Derbyshire seat was once the most heavily coal mining seat in Britain, and retains the attitudes generated thereby. There is no large town, but a series of homogeneous communities as well as Bolsover itself with its castle set grimly on a crag, such as Shirebrook, Temple Normanton and Clowne. Nobody has to our knowledge, or would dare, to call Skinner the clown of Clowne, equally alliterative though that is, and he was re-elected here with a 27,000 majority in 1997.

Dennis Skinner, the proletarian conscience of the hard Left, born 1932 and educated at Tupton Hall Grammar School, is one of the Parliamentary Labour Party's 12 ex-miners and has represented Bolsover for 30 years. He was Labour's most rebellious backbencher between 1992 and 1997, and is only slightly more deferential to Labour in power since then. Tolerated by Blair, even re-elected to Labour's ruling NEC, he is grudgingly accepted by the Tories as "Her Majesty's Heckler-in-Chief". He has memorably shouted abuse during moments of high ceremony, as to Black Rod during the State opening, to tell the Queen to read the (republican) Guardian. An MP who will not pair and who avoids the boredom of unpublicised committee work for the greater exposure of the Chamber, he is one of Parliament's best carved embellishments, and few complain he has twice now evaded an earlier promise to retire at 65.

East Midlands Liberal Democrats

Bolsover District Council

Derbyshire County Council

Area Percent GB Percent Index GB=100   Thriving Wealthy Achievers, Suburban Areas 2.20% 14.99% 14.64 Affluent Greys, Rural Communities 0.38% 2.13% 17.72 Prosperous Pensioners, Retirement Areas 0.02% 2.49% 0.80 Expanding Affluent Executives, Family Areas 2.61% 4.43% 58.89 Well-Off Workers, Family Areas 6.41% 7.27% 88.19 Rising Affluent Urbanites, Town & City Areas 0.03% 2.56% 1.27 Prosperous Professionals, Metropolitan Areas 0.00% 2.04% 0.00 Better-Off Executives, Inner City Areas 0.00% 3.94% 0.00 Settling Comfortable Middle Agers, Mature Home Owning Areas 12.63% 13.04% 96.87 Skilled Workers, Home Owning Areas 35.22% 12.70% 277.24 Aspiring New Home Owners, Mature Communities 30.56% 8.14% 375.33 White Collar Workers, Better-Off Multi Ethnic Areas 0.00% 4.02% 0.00 Striving Older People, Less Prosperous Areas 2.53% 3.19% 79.35 Council Estate Residents, Better-Off Homes 6.55% 11.31% 57.92 Council Estate Residents, High Unemployment 0.23% 3.06% 7.62 Council Estate Residents, Greatest Hardship 0.63% 2.52% 25.06 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 13.66% 9.41% 145.11 £5-10K 21.83% 16.63% 131.23 £10-15K 19.15% 16.58% 115.50 £15-20K 13.88% 13.58% 102.17 £20-25K 9.49% 10.39% 91.29 £25-30K 6.40% 7.77% 82.34 £30-35K 4.34% 5.79% 74.90 £35-40K 2.97% 4.33% 68.65 £40-45K 2.07% 3.27% 63.33 £45-50K 1.46% 2.48% 58.77 £50-55K 1.04% 1.90% 54.84 £55-60K 0.76% 1.47% 51.42 £60-65K 0.56% 1.15% 48.43 £65-70K 0.42% 0.91% 45.80 £70-75K 0.31% 0.72% 43.48 £75-80K 0.24% 0.57% 41.42 £80-85K 0.18% 0.46% 39.58 £85-90K 0.14% 0.37% 37.94 £90-95K 0.11% 0.31% 36.46 £95-100K 0.09% 0.25% 35.13 £100K + 0.40% 1.34% 29.53