Halifax (UK Parliament constituency)

Halifax
Borough constituency
for the House of Commons
Boundary of Halifax in West Yorkshire.
Location of West Yorkshire within England.
County	1832–1974: West Riding of Yorkshire 1974–present: West Yorkshire
Electorate	69,126 (December 2010)
Major settlements	Halifax, Sowerby Bridge
Current constituency
Created	1832 (1832)
Member of Parliament	Linda Riordan (Labour Co-op)
Number of members	1832–1918: Two 1918–present: One
Created from	Yorkshire
Overlaps
European Parliament constituency	Yorkshire and the Humber

Halifax is a borough constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament (MP) by the first-past-the-post system of election.

Boundaries

This constituency covers the town of Halifax in West Yorkshire. It also includes the town of Sowerby Bridge which adjoins Halifax but until 1974 was a separate Urban District.

Historical precursor

The parliamentary borough returns two members. The county borough was created in 1888. The municipal borough was under a mayor, 5 aldermen and 45 councillors. Area, 13,967 acres (56.52 km²).

At the time of the Norman Conquest, Halifax formed part of the extensive manor of Wakefield, which belonged to the king, but in the 13th century was in the hands of John, earl Warrenne (c. 12451305). The prosperity of the town began with the introduction of the cloth trade in the 15th century, when there are said to have been only thirteen houses, which before the end of the 16th century had increased to 520. Camden, about the end of the 17th century, wrote that the people are very industrious, so that though the soil about it be barren and improfitable, not fit to live on, they have so flourished ... by the clothing trade that they are very rich and have gained a reputation for it above their neighbours. The trade is said to have been increased by the arrival of certain merchants driven from the Netherlands by the persecution of the duke of Alva.

Among the curious customs of Halifax was the Gibbet Law, which was probably established by a prescriptive right to protect the wool trade, and gave the inhabitants the power of executing any one taken within their liberty, who, when tried by a jury of sixteen of the frith-burgesses, was found guilty of the theft of any goods of the value of more than 13d. The executions took place on market days on a hill outside the town, the gibbet somewhat resembling a guillotine. The first execution recorded under this law took place in 1541, and the right was exercised in Halifax longer than in any other town, the last execution taking place in 1650.

In 1635 the king granted the inhabitants of Halifax licence to found a workhouse in a large house given to them for that purpose by Nathaniel Waterhouse, and incorporated them under the name of the master and governors. Nathaniel Waterhouse was appointed the first master, his successors being elected every year by the twelve governors from among themselves. Halifax was a borough by prescription, its privileges growing up with the increased prosperity brought by the cloth trade, but it was not incorporated until 1848. Since the Reform Act of 1832 the burgesses have returned two members to parliament. In 1607 David Waterhouse, lord of the manor of Halifax, obtained a grant of two markets there every week on Friday and Saturday and two fairs every year, each lasting three days, one beginning on 24 June, the other on 11 November. Later these fairs and markets were confirmed with the addition of an extra market on Thursday to Sir William Ayloffe, baronet, who had succeeded David Waterhouse as lord of the manor. The market rights were sold to the Markets Company in 1810 and purchased from them by the corporation in 1853.

During the Civil War Halifax was garrisoned by parliament, and a field near it is still called the Bloody Field on account of an engagement which took place there between the forces of parliament and the Royalists.

Members of Parliament

MPs 1832–1918

Election	1st Member		1st Party	2nd Member		2nd Party
1832		Rawdon Briggs	Liberal		Sir Charles Wood	Liberal
1835		James Archibald Stuart-Wortley	Conservative
1837		Edward Davis Protheroe	Liberal
1847		Henry Edwards	Conservative
1852		Sir Francis Crossley	Liberal
1859		Sir James Stansfeld	Liberal
1865					Edward Akroyd	Liberal
1874					John Crossley	Liberal
1877 by-election					John Dyson Hutchinson	Liberal
1882 by-election					Thomas Shaw	Liberal
1893 by-election					William Rawson Shaw	Liberal
1895		Alfred Arnold	Conservative
1897 by-election					Alfred Billson	Liberal
1900		Sir Savile Crossley	Liberal Unionist		John Henry Whitley	Liberal
1906		James Parker	Labour

MPs since 1918

Representation reduced to one member, 1918

Election		Member	Party
	1918	John Henry Whitley	Liberal
	1921		Speaker
	1928 by-election	Arthur Longbottom	Labour
	1931	Gilbert Gledhill	Conservative
	1945	Dryden Brook	Labour
	1955	Maurice Macmillan	Conservative
	1964	Shirley Summerskill	Labour
	1983	Roy Galley	Conservative
	1987	Alice Mahon	Labour
	2005	Linda Riordan	Labour Co-operative

Elections

1910s – 1920s – 1930s – 1940s – 1950s – 1960s – 1970s – 1980s – 1990s – 2000s – 2010s

Elections in the 2010s

General Election 2010: Halifax
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour Co-op	Linda Riordan	16,278	37.4	-4.4
	Conservative	Philip Allott	14,806	34.0	+0.8
	Liberal Democrat	Elisabeth Wilson	8,335	19.1	+1.2
	BNP	Tom Bates	2,760	6.3	-0.3
	Independent Voice for Halifax	Diane Park	722	1.7	n/a
	UKIP	Jay Sangha	654	1.5	n/a
Majority			1,472	3.4	-5.4
Turnout			43,555	61.9	+0.9
	Labour hold		Swing	-2.6

Elections in the 2000s

General Election 2005: Halifax
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour Co-op	Linda Riordan	16,579	41.8	−7.2
	Conservative	Kris Hopkins	13,162	33.2	−0.6
	Liberal Democrat	Michael Taylor	7,100	17.9	+3.3
	BNP	Geoff Wallace	2,627	6.6	N/A
	National Front	Thomas Holmes	191	0.5	N/A
Majority			3,417	8.6
Turnout			39,659	61.1	+3.3
	Labour Co-op hold		Swing	−3.3

General Election 2001: Halifax
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Alice Mahon	19,800	49.0	−5.3
	Conservative	James Walsh	13,671	33.8	+1.7
	Liberal Democrat	John Durkin	5,878	14.6	+2.6
	UKIP	Helen Martinek	1,041	2.6	+1.0
Majority			6,129	15.2
Turnout			40,390	57.8	−12.7
	Labour hold		Swing

Elections in the 1990s

General Election 1992: Halifax
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Alice Mahon	25,115	43.5	+0.1
	Conservative	TR Martin	24,637	42.7	+1.4
	Liberal Democrat	IR Howell	7,364	12.7	−2.6
	Independent Nationalist	Ron Pearson	649	1.1	+1.1
Majority			478	0.8	−1.3
Turnout			57,765	78.7	+1.0
	Labour hold		Swing	−0.6

Elections in the 1940s

General Election 1945: Halifax
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Dryden Brook	25,605	46.5	+7.0
	Conservative	Gilbert Gledhill	14,824	26.9	-17.5
	Liberal	A. Gelder	14,631	26.6	+10.5
Majority			10,781	19.6	+14.7
Turnout			55,060	77.4	+0.5
	Labour gain from Conservative		Swing	+11.3

Elections in the 1930s

General Election 1935: Halifax
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Gilbert Gledhill	24,103	44.4	−21.3
	Labour	Arthur Longbottom	21,471	39.5	+9.8
	Liberal	A. Mitchell	8,736	16.1	N/A
Majority			2,632	4.9	−31.1
Turnout			54,310	76.9	−3.6
	Conservative hold		Swing	−15.6

General Election 1931: Halifax
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Gilbert Gledhill	36,731	65.7	+36.0
	Labour	Arthur Longbottom	16,601	29.7	−12.5
	Independent Liberal	Frank Sykes	2,578	4.6	N/A
Majority			20,130	36.0	+23.5
Turnout				80.5	−0.8
	Conservative gain from Labour		Swing	+24.2

Elections in the 1920s

General Election 1929: Halifax
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Arthur Longbottom	22,776	42.2	−0.6
	Conservative	Gilbert Gledhill	16,713	29.7	+3.3
	Liberal	G.Elliot Dodds	15,823	28.1	−2.8
Majority			7,063	12.5	+0.5
Turnout			55,312	81.3	+2.6
	Labour hold		Swing

Halifax by-election, 1928
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Arthur Longbottom	17,536	42.8
	Liberal	Harry Barnes	12,585	30.8
	Conservative	F. S. Crossley	10,804	26.4
Majority			4,951	12.0
Turnout			40,925	78.7	+24.3
	Labour gain from Liberal		Swing

General Election 1924: Halifax

John Henry Whitley (Speaker) returned unopposed

General Election 1923: Halifax

John Henry Whitley (Speaker) returned unopposed

General Election 1922: Halifax

John Henry Whitley (Speaker) returned unopposed

Elections in the 1910s

General Election 1918: Halifax
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	John Henry Whitley	22,136	84.6	N/A
	Socialist Labour Party	Arthur McManus	4,046	15.4	N/A
Majority			18,100	69.2	N/A
Turnout			16,172	53.4
	Liberal hold		Swing

See also

• List of Parliamentary constituencies in West Yorkshire

Sources

•  This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. 
• Victoria County History, Yorkshire
• T. Wright, The Antiquities of the Town of Halifax (Leeds, 1738)
• John Watson, The History and Antiquities of the Parish of Halifax (London, 1775)
• John Crabtree, A Concise History of the Parish and Vicarage of Halifax (Halifax and London, 1836).
• Craig, F. W. S. (1983) [1969]. British parliamentary election results 1918-1949 (3rd edition ed.). Chichester: Parliamentary Research Services. ISBN 0-900178-06-X. 

Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by Penrith and Cockermouth	Constituency represented by the Speaker 1921–1928	Succeeded by Daventry