Tories select first lesbian candidate

The Tories have broken down a barrier at Westminster by selecting their first openly lesbian candidate to run for Parliament.

Margot James, a millionaire businesswoman, was chosen to fight Holborn and St Pancras against sitting Labour MP Frank Dobson.

She proclaimed her success as a step forward for the Conservatives and said: "No longer can the public see the Tories as representing a narrow band of Middle England. I am glad we are getting the leadership making a commitment to encourage all kinds of people to run for office."

Ms James co-founded public relations firm Shire Hall, which specialised in the pharmaceutical industry. She sold her stake to PR giant WPP in 1999 for a reported £4 million. She lives with her partner Jay Hunt, a stylist who presented the BBC makeover show Would Like To Meet.

The Tories already have an openly gay MP after frontbench

spokesman Alan Duncan came out two years ago. Most Conservative MPs are heterosexual white men, but former chairman Theresa May, who oversaw the party's selection procedures until last year, promised to find the best candidates to stand at the next election, whether they were "rich or poor, straight or gay, black or white".

There is already one openly lesbian MP - former minister Angela Eagle, the Labour MP for Wallasey.

Ms James is unlikely to add to the total at this election. The Tories trailed in third last time in the Holborn and St Pancras seat, which covers the south of the borough of Camden.

Mr Dobson won with a majority of 11,175 over the Lib-Dems. The Tories are unlikely to make much headway in the constituency, whether the former health secretary, who will be 65 by the time of the next election, stands again or makes way for another Labour candidate.

However, Ms James's selection victory means she will be in poll position to fight a winnable seat at the following election. She was in the running for the Kensington and Chelsea nomination, which went to former foreign secretary Sir Malcolm Rifkind last week.

Ms James has a traditional Tory background being educated at Millfield school and living in South Kensington.

She has declared that she is "not the Peter Tatchell type" but she has always made a point of being open about her sexual orientation.

She has said: "My sexuality is not the most important thing. I don't hide it, nor do I broadcast it. It's incidental."