Michael Howard, centre, at Arkells Brewery with Robert Buckland, left, and Justin Tomlinson, right, Swindons two Conservative Prospective Parliamentary Candidates Picture Ref: 77046-15MICHAEL Howard spent more than two hours in Swindon in the clearest indication yet that the town is a key election target for the Tories.

The Conservative leader visited Arkells Brewery and the party's constituency office and then did a walkabout at the Outlet Village yesterday afternoon.

His visit made national headlines as he signed a Labour petition opposing the introduction of charges for hospital treatment.

And he told the Advertiser he thought both Swindon's Tory candidates could win the town's seats from Labour.

"I think they will both be excellent members of parliament," he said of South and North Swindon candidates Robert Buckland and Justin Tomlinson.

"I think people in Swindon realise they have a clear choice."

Asked about the Swindon Council's cuts to keep taxes down and whether a similar scenario would be on the cards if the Tories were elected nationally he said the council had found savings not made cuts.

He quoted the examples of the council decision to stop painting its vans orange and taking cash from the IT budget to clean up graffiti, but did not know about the family centres which saw their grants cut.

"We have spelled out in detail exactly how we are going to find our savings," he said of the national party's policy.

"Most of it is waste, some of it is things that we just don't think the Government should be doing."

He also stood by his claim that violent crime in Swindon had risen. After he made the claim last month Swindon Police accused him of stirring up fear of crime when in fact violent crime had fallen.

But Mr Howard yesterday insisted the figures came from the police and were correct.

"I am afraid the figures were the police's own figures," he said.

"I stand by them and they are correct."

After a tour around Arkells Brewery with managing director James Arkell Mr Howard visited the Conservative constituency office where he met councillors and the party faithful.

He also signed a Labour petition against the introduction of charges for hospital treatment, writing "Vote Conservative" across it.

The white battle bus then travelled to the Outlet Village where Mr Howard met shoppers and staff.

He could never have won the votes of the first people he shook hands with though they were the Olsson family visiting from Sweden.

But other shoppers seemed impressed by the Tory leader.

Chris Martin, 19, from West Swindon, said: "There is a better chance of me voting for him now than before. I believed what he said, he seemed like a sensible bloke."

Isabel Field