SIMON Coombs the former Swindon MP and recent South Swindon parliamentary candidate has been deselected as the party's choice for the 2005 general election.

Instead South Swindon Conservative Association has compiled a shortlist of three women from which one will be chosen to stand against current Labour South Swindon MP Julia Drown.

Gillian Birch, Debbie Lewis and Amanda McLean, who are all councillors in the Bracknell district of Berkshire, will now go head-to-head in the final selection round on Saturday at the Croft Sports Centre in Old Town. Swindon councillors Lisa Hawkes (Highworth) and Jemima Milton (Wroughton and Chiseldon) had put their names forward, but were deselected at the first hurdle.

South Swindon Conserva-tive Association president, Les Hatcher, said: "We've had a very exhaustive and fair selection procedure and had no particular plans to deselect Simon or indeed select a woman candidate. What we did was look at all the candidates and chose our final three strictly according to merit.

"These three women are quite outstanding and real winners.

"They are the highest quality candidates and we're only sorry we can only choose one. But whoever it is we expect her to run an extremely effective campaign and beat Julia Drown."