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Cannock Chase (UK Parliament constituency)

Coordinates: 52°43′N 1°59′W / 52.72°N 1.98°W / 52.72; -1.98
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Cannock Chase
Borough constituency
for the House of Commons
Map
Interactive map of boundaries from 2024
Map of constituency
Boundary of Cannock Chase in West Midlands region
CountyStaffordshire
Population97,462 (2011 census)[1]
Electorate75,582 (2023)[2]
Major settlementsCannock, Hednesford, Rugeley
Current constituency
Created1997
Member of ParliamentJosh Newbury (Labour)
SeatsOne
Created fromCannock and Burntwood, Mid Staffordshire

Cannock Chase is a constituency[n 1] in Staffordshire represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2024 by Josh Newbury of the Labour Party.[n 2]

Constituency profile

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The Cannock Chase constituency is located in Staffordshire and is coterminous with the Cannock Chase local government district. The constituency is based around the connected towns of Cannock and Hednesford, which together have a population of around 63,000.[3] It also includes the market town of Rugeley and the village of Norton Canes. The constituency is named after Cannock Chase, a forested area lying between Hednesford and Rugeley that has been designated a National Landscape. Like the nearby Black Country, the Cannock area has a history of coal mining.[4]

In Cannock Chase, house prices, income and levels of education and professional employment are all lower than national averages.[5] Parts of Cannock have high levels of deprivation, whilst there are some affluent areas like Heath Hayes and Wimblebury.[6] At the local district council, most of Cannock is represented by Labour Party councillors whilst the northern areas of the district elected Conservatives and Greens. At the county council, the entirety of Cannock Chase is represented by Reform UK councillors. Voters in the constituency overwhelmingly supported leaving the European Union in the 2016 referendum; an estimated 69% voted in favour of Brexit, placing Cannock Chase in the top 30 most Brexit-supporting constituencies out of 650 nationwide.[5]

Boundaries

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1997–2010: The District of Cannock Chase, and the District of South Staffordshire ward of Huntington.

2010–present: The District of Cannock Chase.

The 2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies left the boundaries unchanged.[7]

The constituency contains three towns, Cannock, Rugeley, and Hednesford, with several pit villages, and the Chase itself situated between Hednesford and Rugeley. Since 2010 the seat has broadly the same boundaries as the 1974–1983 seat of Cannock.

Prior to 1997, Cannock and Hednesford were part of the Cannock and Burntwood constituency, while Rugeley was part of the Mid Staffordshire constituency. Between 1997 and 2010 the village of Huntington was part of the constituency though it was part of South Staffordshire local government district.

History

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Created for the 1997 election, the seat has since become a bellwether, often with substantial swings. The Labour Party held the seat for 13 years until Aidan Burley of the Conservative Party was elected at the 2010 general election with a large 14% swing, which was the second largest Labour to Conservative swing at that election. Amanda Milling, who was elected in the next election, subsequently held the seat and increased the Conservative majority in both 2015 and 2017. In 2019, the Conservative majority increased to nearly 20,000 votes. However, the seat was regained by Labour in their landslide victory in the 2024 general election, taking the seat from the Conservatives after 14 years on a 25% swing; it became the largest majority in percentage terms (42.9%) to be overturned in that election.

Members of Parliament

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Election Member[8][9] Party
1997 Tony Wright[n 3] Labour
2010 Aidan Burley Conservative
2015 Amanda Milling Conservative
2024 Josh Newbury Labour

Elections

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Elections in the 2020s

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General election 2024: Cannock Chase[11]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Josh Newbury 15,671 36.5 +11.1
Conservative Amanda Milling 12,546 29.2 −39.1
Reform Paul Allen 11,570 26.9 New
Green Andrea Muckley 2,137 5.0 −1.3
Liberal Democrats Elizabeth Jewkes 1,029 2.4 New
Majority 3,125 7.3
Turnout 42,953 55.8 −5.5
Labour gain from Conservative Swing +25.1

Elections in the 2010s

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General election 2019: Cannock Chase[12]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Amanda Milling 31,636 68.3 +13.3
Labour Anne Hobbs 11,757 25.4 −12.0
Green Paul Woodhead 2,920 6.3 +4.6
Majority 19,879 42.9 +25.5
Turnout 46,313 61.9 −2.3
Conservative hold Swing +12.7
General election 2017: Cannock Chase
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Amanda Milling 26,318 55.0 +10.8
Labour Paul Dadge 17,927 37.4 +3.7
UKIP Paul Allen 2,018 4.2 −13.3
Green Paul Woodhead 815 1.7 −0.2
Liberal Democrats Nat Green 794 1.7 −1.0
Majority 8,391 17.4 +6.9
Turnout 47,872 64.2 +1.0
Conservative hold Swing +3.5
General election 2015: Cannock Chase[13]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Amanda Milling[14] 20,811 44.2 +4.1
Labour Janos Toth[14] 15,888 33.7 +0.6
UKIP Grahame Wiggin[15] 8,224 17.5 +14.0
Liberal Democrats Ian Jackson[16] 1,270 2.7 −14.3
Green Paul Woodhead[17] 906 1.9 New
Majority 4,923 10.5 +3.5
Turnout 47,099 63.2 +2.1
Conservative hold Swing +1.7
General election 2010: Cannock Chase[18][19]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Aidan Burley 18,271 40.1 +10.1
Labour Susan Woodward 15,076 33.1 −17.9
Liberal Democrats Jon Hunt 7,732 17.0 +3.0
BNP Terence Majorowicz 2,168 4.8 New
UKIP Malcolm McKenzie 1,580 3.5 −1.6
Independent Ron Turville 380 0.8 New
Get Snouts Out The Trough Roy Jenkins 259 0.6 New
Independent Mike Walters 93 0.2 New
Majority 3,195 7.0
Turnout 45,559 61.1 +3.7
Conservative gain from Labour Swing +14.0

The vote share change in 2010 comes from the notional, not actual, 2005 results because of the boundary change (loss of Huntington).

Elections in the 2000s

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General election 2005: Cannock Chase[20][21]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Tony Wright 22,139 51.3 −4.8
Conservative Ian Collard 12,912 29.9 −0.2
Liberal Democrats Jenny Pinkett 5,934 13.8 0.0
UKIP Roy Jenkins 2,170 5.0 New
Majority 9,227 21.4 −4.6
Turnout 43,155 57.4 +2.0
Labour hold Swing −2.3
General election 2001: Cannock Chase[22][23]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Tony Wright 23,049 56.1 +1.3
Conservative Gavin Smithers 12,345 30.1 +2.9
Liberal Democrats Stewart Reynolds 5,670 13.8 +5.1
Majority 10,704 26.0 −1.6
Turnout 41,064 55.4 −17.0
Labour hold Swing −0.8

Elections in the 1990s

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General election 1997: Cannock Chase[24]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Tony Wright 28,705 54.8
Conservative John Backhouse 14,227 27.2
Liberal Democrats Richard Kirby 4,537 8.7
Referendum Peter Froggatt 1,663 3.2
New Labour William Hurley 1,615 3.1
Socialist Labour Mick Conroy 1,120 2.1
Monster Raving Loony Melvyn Hartshorne 499 1.0
Majority 14,478 27.6
Turnout 52,366 72.4
Labour win (new seat)

See also

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Notes

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  1. ^ A borough constituency (for the purposes of election expenses and type of returning officer)
  2. ^ As with all constituencies, the constituency elects one Member of Parliament (MP) by the first past the post system of election at least every five years.
  3. ^ Tony Wright, a Chairman of the Public Administration Select Committee (1999 to 2010), was the Labour MP for Cannock Chase from 1997 to 2010, and for Cannock and Burntwood from 1992 to 1997. He announced in 2008 that he would not stand at the 2010 general election, citing ill-health.[10]

References

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  1. ^ "Cannock Chase: Usual Resident Population, 2011". Neighbourhood Statistics. Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 16 February 2015.
  2. ^ "The 2023 Review of Parliamentary Constituency Boundaries in England – Volume two: Constituency names, designations and composition – West Midlands". Boundary Commission for England. Retrieved 30 July 2024.
  3. ^ "Cannock". citypopulation.de. Retrieved 20 December 2025.
  4. ^ L. Margaret Midgeley, ed. (1959). "Cannock: Manors and economic history". A History of the County of Stafford: Volume 5, East Cuttlestone Hundred. Archived from the original on 27 May 2023. Retrieved 27 May 2023.
  5. ^ a b "Seat Details - Cannock Chase". electoralcalculus.co.uk. Retrieved 20 December 2025.
  6. ^ "Constituency data: Deprivation in England". commonslibrary.parliament.uk. Retrieved 4 December 2025.
  7. ^ "The Parliamentary Constituencies Order 2023". Schedule 1 Part 8 West Midlands region.
  8. ^ "Cannock Chase 1997-". Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). Retrieved 2 February 2015.
  9. ^ Leigh Rayment's Historical List of MPs – Constituencies beginning with "C" (part 2)
  10. ^ "BBC NEWS - UK - UK Politics - Labour MP set to quit over health". bbc.co.uk. 21 July 2008.
  11. ^ Cannock Chase
  12. ^ "Cannock Chase Parliamentary constituency". BBC News. BBC. Retrieved 30 November 2019.
  13. ^ "Election Data 2015". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 17 October 2015. Retrieved 17 October 2015.
  14. ^ a b "UK ELECTION RESULTS". electionresults.blogspot.co.uk.
  15. ^ "General Election 2015 - UKIP Cannock Chase Branch Website". ukipbranch.org.
  16. ^ "List of selected candidates". Liberal Democrats. 4 March 2015. Retrieved 15 March 2015.
  17. ^ "List of selected candidates". Green Party. 11 March 2015. Retrieved 17 March 2015.[permanent dead link]
  18. ^ "Election Data 2010". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 26 July 2013. Retrieved 17 October 2015.
  19. ^ "BBC News - Election 2010 - Constituency - Cannock Chase". bbc.co.uk.
  20. ^ "Election Data 2005". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
  21. ^ "BBC NEWS - Election 2005 - Results - Cannock Chase". bbc.co.uk.
  22. ^ "Election Data 2001". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
  23. ^ "BBC NEWS - VOTE 2001 - RESULTS & CONSTITUENCIES - Cannock Chase". bbc.co.uk.
  24. ^ "Election Data 1997". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
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52°43′N 1°59′W / 52.72°N 1.98°W / 52.72; -1.98

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