They are young, chic and professional - and a far cry from the Blue Rinse Brigade.

These are the women who will be standing for the Conservatives at the next general election.

And party officials hope that "Howard's Harem" - as they have been nicknamed by certain non-PC officials at party headquarters - will boost Michael Howard's image in the same way that the "Blair Babes" did for Tony Blair in 1997.

In recent weeks, a series of successful young women have been chosen to stand for the party in a string of constituencies - including crucial targets where Labour MPs have slim majorities.

The selections are being hailed by Tory officials as a sign that the party is finally shedding its male, middle-aged image.

Penny Mordaunt, 31, a communications consultant who lives in Kennington, was selected to fight Portsmouth North - where Labour's Syd Rapson has a 5,134 majority.

She said: "I got interested in politics after doing aid work in Romanian orphanages and saw how problems were caused by bad political decisions."

She said of the recent spring conference in Harrogate: "It used to be a dull affair but there was a young buzz this year."

Sarah Richardson, 30, a freelance journalist living in Pimlico has been selected to stand in the East Midlands for a Euro MP seat.

She said: "My role is to give a voice to people who would struggle to be heard."

Ms Richardson, who is engaged to another Tory candidate, Damian Collins, added: "A lot of my social circle is people involved in the Conservative Party, and they tend to be young women working in the City or the media.

"It sounds a bit of a cliché to say it is glamorous - mostly it is hard work."

And finance manager Justine

Greening, 34, was picked to stand in Putney, one of the key London target for the Tories once held by ex-Cabinet minister David Mellor.

She will take on Labour's Tony Colman, who won a slim 2,771 majority in 2001.

She said: "We are seeing a whole new generation coming through but glamour doesn't matter - what matters is that you talk to people about the things that matter to them.

"The bottom line on the doorstep is whether you have the ideas and commitment to make a difference. The average age of Tory candidates is coming down and there are more professional people with experience of the real world coming through."

The Conservatives have also chosen their first openly lesbian candidate. Margot James, 46, a millionaire businesswoman, will fight Holborn and St Pancras against sitting Labour MP Frank Dobson.

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