Winchester Tories have promised their strongest challenge to the Liberal Democrats in more than ten years - and offered an olive branch over the Internet name hijacking row.

Relations between the two parties were soured after Conservative George Hollingbery registered a fake on-line address for Lib Dem Mark Oaten to lure voters to his own website.

People logging on to www.markoaten.co.uk are diverted to Mr Hollingbery's site. Mr Oaten's site is www.markoaten.com.

Now Mr Hollingbery has offered to end the stunt if he receives a letter from the Lib Dem candidate but was unapologetic about the alleged dirty trick.

As he launched his election campaign, Mr Hollingbery said: "It is not negative. There are no negative messages about him, in fact some positive things."

Mr Hollingbery said he had only received one call about the issue. "A voter called in to say he had been floating but now he's not, meaning I've lost his vote."

Mr Oaten said: "I have no hard feelings about all of this. I like George a lot but don't think it is worth getting into any form of correspondence over.

"I will be bumping into him on Monday and no doubt we can have a chat about it then."

Conservative Central Office was asked to comment on whether they condoned the hijacking, but failed to reply.

Mr Hollingbery, a city councillor, believes his campaign can topple Mr Oaten from the seat he sensationally snatched by two votes in 1997.

He said he would win the election by pointing out "barmy" Lib Dem ideas such as giving prisoners the right to vote and local income tax which would see increased bills for many families.

He said the Conservatives would mount a far stronger challenge this time than in 1997 and 2001.

"There is now clearly an appetite for change. Posters are going up where we have never had them before.

"But I have to prove to people that I can do a better job than the last two Tory MPs, John Browne and Gerry Malone."

A major local issue would be the growing threat to the city's Royal Hampshire County Hospital, with services being diverted to Southampton.

The Conservatives first raised the issue some two years ago and were accused of scaremongering by Mr Oaten, who has recently launched his own campaign to protect the RHCH.

Mr Hollingbery said: "I do think he has let us down. He told us everything was all right when clearly they are not."

His campaign base is the Tory office at Winchester railway station.

The other candidates in Winchester are Labour's Patrick Davies, the UK Independence Party's David Abbott and independent Arthur Pendragon.

For more on the 2005 General Election see pages 8 & 9 of today's Daily Echo.