[Gayle]

As I've said before, I think this seat is up for grabs this year. It's possibly the most winnable for the Tories that it's been for a long time.

With a new candidate standing for Labour - albeit someone who many people know - there would have been a good opportunity for the Tories to take it. But, they would have only managed that with the support of the Tory campaigners and diehards who would have worked endlessly for the right candidate.

If a candidate is imposed then it's quite possible that they won't work so hard, which in turn means that they won't take it. At least if they'd got the candidate they wanted then they would have the commitment from the supporters to campaign as hard as is possible.