List of parliamentary constituencies in Bedfordshire
The ceremonial county of Bedfordshire (which comprises Bedford, Central Bedfordshire and Luton unitary authorities) is split into 6 seats - 3 Borough and 3 County constituencies.
Constituencies
| Name[nb 1] | Electorate[1] | Majority[2][nb 2] | Member of Parliament[2] | Nearest opposition[2] | Electoral wards[3][4] | Map | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bedford BC | 71,581 | 145 | bgcolor="Template:Labour Party (UK)/meta/color" | | Mohammad Yasin ‡ | bgcolor="Template:Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color" | | Ryan Henson † | Bedford Borough Council: Brickhill, Castle, Cauldwell, De Parys, Goldington, Harpur, Kempston East, Kempston North, Kempston South, Kingsbrook, Newnham, Putnoe, Queen's Park. |  |
| Luton North BC | 68,185 | 9,247 | bgcolor="Template:Labour Party (UK)/meta/color" | | Sarah Owen ‡ | bgcolor="Template:Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color" | | Jeet Bains † | Luton Borough Council: Barnfield, Bramingham, Challney, Icknield, Leagrave, Lewsey, Limbury, Northwell, Saints, Sundon Park. |  |
| Luton South BC | 69,338 | 8,756 | bgcolor="Template:Labour Party (UK)/meta/color" | | Rachel Hopkins ‡ | bgcolor="Template:Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color" | | Parvez Akhtar † | Luton Borough Council: Biscot, Crawley, Dallow, Farley, High Town, Round Green, South, Stopsley, Wigmore. Central Bedfordshire Council: Caddington, Hyde and Slip End. |  |
| Mid Bedfordshire CC | 87,795 | 24,664 | bgcolor="Template:Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color" | | Nadine Dorries † | bgcolor="Template:Labour Party (UK)/meta/color" | | Rhiannon Meades ‡ | Bedford Borough Council: Turvey, Wilshamstead, Wootton. Central Bedfordshire Council: Ampthill, Aspley Guise, Clifton and Meppershall, Cranfield, Flitton, Greenfield and Pulloxhill, Flitwick East, Flitwick West, Harlington, Houghton, Haynes, Southill and Old Warden, Marston, Maulden and Clophill, Shefford, Campton and Gravenhurst, Shillington, Stondon and Henlow Camp, Streatley, Silsoe, Toddington, Westoning and Tingrith. |  |
| North East Bedfordshire CC | 90,678 | 24,283 | bgcolor="Template:Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color" | | Richard Fuller † | bgcolor="Template:Labour Party (UK)/meta/color" | | Julian Vaughan ‡ | Bedford Borough Council: Bromham, Carlton, Clapham, Eastcotts, Great Barford, Harrold, Oakley, Riseley, Roxton, Sharnbrook. Central Bedfordshire Council: Arlesey, Biggleswade Holme, Biggleswade Ivel, Biggleswade Stratton, Langford and Henlow Village, Northill and Blunham, Potton and Wensley, Sandy Ivel, Sandy Pinnacle, Stotfold. |  |
| South West Bedfordshire CC | 79,926 | 18,583 | bgcolor="Template:Conservative Party (UK)/meta/color" | | Andrew Selous † | bgcolor="Template:Labour Party (UK)/meta/color" | | Callum Anderson ‡ | Central Bedfordshire Council: All Saints, Chiltern, Dunstable Central, Eaton Bray, Grovebury, Heath and Reach, Houghton Hall, Icknield, Kensworth and Totternhoe, Linslade, Manshead, Northfields, Parkside, Planets, Plantation, Southcott, Stanbridge, Tithe Farm, Watling. |  |
2010 Boundary Review
The Fifth Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies resulted in only marginal changes due to revision of local authority wards.
| Name | Pre-2010 Boundaries | Post-2010 Boundaries |
|---|---|---|
 |
 |
Proposed boundary changes
The Boundary Commission for England submitted their final proposals in respect of the Sixth Periodic Review of Westminster Constituencies (the 2018 review) in September 2018. Although the proposals were immediately laid before Parliament they were not brought forward by the Government for approval. Accordingly, they did not come into effect for the 2019 election which took place on 12 December 2019, and which was contested using the constituency boundaries in place since 2010.
Under the terms of the Parliamentary Voting System and Constituencies Act 2011, the Sixth Review was based on reducing the total number of MPs from 650 to 600 and a strict electoral parity requirement that the electorate of all constituencies should be within a range of 5% either side of the electoral quota.
On 24 March 2020, the Minister of State for the Cabinet Office, Chloe Smith, issued a written statement to Parliament setting out the Government's thinking with regard to parliamentary boundaries.[5] Subsequently, the Parliamentary Constituencies Act 2020[6] was passed into law on 14 December 2020. This formally removed the duty to implement the 2018 review and set out the framework for future boundary reviews. The Act provided that the number of constituencies should remain at the current level of 650, rather than being reduced to 600, while retaining the requirement that the electorate should be no more than +/- 5% from the electoral quota.
The Act specified that the next review should be completed no later than 1 July 2023 and the Boundary Commission formally launched the 2023 Review on 5 January 2021.[7] See 2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies for further details.
Results history
Primary data source: House of Commons research briefing - General election results from 1918 to 2019[8]
2019
The number of votes cast for each political party who fielded candidates in constituencies comprising Bedfordshire in the 2019 general election were as follows:
| Party | Votes | % | Change from 2017 | Seats | Change from 2017 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | 156,973 | 49.8% |  0.5%
|
3 | 0 |
| Labour | 107,591 | 34.2% | 7.8%
|
3 | 0 |
| Liberal Democrats | 28,276 | 9.0% |  4.4%
|
0 | 0 |
| Greens | 9,126 | 2.9% | 1.0%
|
0 | 0 |
| Brexit | 3,712 | 1.2% | new | 0 | 0 |
| Others | 9,318 | 3.0% | 1.7%
|
0 | 0 |
| Total | 314,996 | 100.0 | 6 |
Percentage votes
| Election year | 1950 | 1951 | 1955 | 1959 | 1964 | 1966 | 1970 | 1974
(Feb) |
1974
(Oct) |
1979 | 1983 | 1987 | 1992 | 1997 | 2001 | 2005 | 2010 | 2015 | 2017 | 2019 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative1 | 44.5 | 49.7 | 53.5 | 49.9 | 47.8 | 43.8 | 50.5 | 39.7 | 40.4 | 51.3 | 51.0 | 54.2 | 53.2 | 38.6 | 39.4 | 40.6 | 44.7 | 47.2 | 50.3 | 49.8 |
| Labour | 42.4 | 45.3 | 44.7 | 38.8 | 43.9 | 45.6 | 40.9 | 34.0 | 37.3 | 32.9 | 22.6 | 24.2 | 30.3 | 44.0 | 42.8 | 34.2 | 27.1 | 29.5 | 42.0 | 34.2 |
| Liberal Democrat2 | 13.0 | 4.9 | 1.8 | 11.2 | 8.0 | 10.3 | 8.4 | 26.2 | 22.2 | 14.8 | 26.3 | 21.1 | 14.8 | 12.8 | 14.8 | 20.3 | 20.3 | 5.6 | 4.6 | 9.0 |
| Green Party | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | * | * | * | * | * | 0.7 | 3.6 | 1.9 | 2.9 |
| UKIP | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | * | * | * | 3.8 | 13.5 | 0.8 | * |
| Brexit Party | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | 1.2 |
| Other | 0.1 | - | - | - | 0.3 | 0.3 | 0.2 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 1.0 | 0.1 | 0.4 | 1.7 | 4.6 | 3.1 | 4.9 | 3.5 | 0.6 | 0.4 | 2.9 |
1Includes National Liberal Party up to 1966
21950-1979 - Liberal; 1983 & 1987 - SDP-Liberal Alliance
* Included in Other
Seats
| Election year | 1950 | 1951 | 1955 | 1959 | 1964 | 1966 | 1970 | 1974
(Feb) |
1974
(Oct) |
1979 | 1983 | 1987 | 1992 | 1997 | 2001 | 2005 | 2010 | 2015 | 2017 | 2019 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative1 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 3 |
| Labour | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 3 |
| Total | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 |
1Includes National Liberal Party up to 1966
Maps
-
1950 -
1951 -
1955 -
1959
-
1964 -
1966 -
1970 -
Feb 1974 -
Oct 1974
-
1979 -
1983 -
1987
-
1992
-
1997 -
2001
-
2005
-
2010 -
2015
-
2017 -
2019
Timeline
Former constituency Current constituency
| Constituency | 1295-1885 | 1885-1918 | 1918-1950 | 1950-1974 | 1974-1983 | 1983-1997 | 1997-present |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bedfordshire | 1295-1885 | ||||||
| Bedford | 1295-1983 | 1997-present | |||||
| North Bedfordshire | 1983-1997 | ||||||
| North East Bedfordshire | 1997-present | ||||||
| Biggleswade | 1885-1918 | ||||||
| Mid Bedfordshire | 1918-present | ||||||
| South Bedfordshire | 1950-1983 | ||||||
| South West Bedfordshire | 1983-present | ||||||
| Luton | 1885-1974 | ||||||
| Luton East | 1974-1983 | ||||||
| Luton West | 1974-1983 | ||||||
| Luton North | 1983-present | ||||||
| Luton South | 1983-present | ||||||
Historical representation by party
A cell marked → (with a different colour background to the preceding cell) indicates that the previous MP continued to sit under a new party name.
1802 to 1837
1837 to 1885
1885 to 1918
Conservative Liberal Liberal Unionist
1918 to 1974
Coalition Liberal (1918-22) / National Liberal (1922-23) Conservative Labour Liberal National Liberal (1931-68)
1974 to present
Change UK Conservative Independent The Independents Labour
See also
- List of Parliamentary constituencies in the East of England (region)
- History of Parliamentary constituencies and boundaries in Bedfordshire
Notes
References
- ^ Baker, Carl; Uberoi, Elise; Cracknell, Richard (2020-01-28). "General Election 2019: full results and analysis".
{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires|journal=(help) - ^ a b c "Constituencies A-Z - Election 2019". BBC News. Retrieved 2020-04-23.
- ^ "The Parliamentary Constituencies (England) Order 2007, page 4". Office of Public Sector Information. Crown copyright. 13 June 2007. Retrieved 7 November 2009.
- ^ Boundary Commission for England pp. 1004–1007
- ^ "Update: Strengthening Democracy:Written statement - HCWS183". UK Parliament. Retrieved 2020-04-20.
- ^ "Parliamentary Constituencies Act 2020".
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ "2023 Review launched | Boundary Commission for England". Retrieved 2021-01-08.
- ^ Watson, Christopher; Uberoi, Elise; Loft, Philip (2020-04-17). "General election results from 1918 to 2019".
{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires|journal=(help)