Parliamentary constituency in the United Kingdom, 1918–2024
Hemsworth was a constituency[n 1] in West Yorkshire represented in the House of Commons since 1996 by Jon Trickett of the Labour Party.[n 2]
Further to the completion of the 2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies, the seat was subjected to moderate boundary changes and reformed as Normanton and Hemsworth, to be first contested at the 2024 general election.[2]
Constituency profile
The constituency comprises former coal mining towns and villages that also provided some of the workforce for the manufacturing bases of the town of Barnsley to the south and cities of Wakefield and Leeds to the northwest. Many constituents still commute to these today. Nearby to the east over the border in North Yorkshire is Kellingley Colliery, which closed on 18 December 2015, marking the end of deep-pit coal mining in Britain.[3] It is one of the Labour Party's longest held seats, having elected its first Labour MP in 1918, and been in continuous existence since that date.
History
From the 1966 to February 1974 general elections (inclusive), Hemsworth was the safest seat for any party in the UK: the Labour vote had peaked in 1966 at 85.39%[4] and consistently exceeded 80% from 1935 until October 1974 when the Liberal Party contested the seat for the first time since 1923. Successive boundary changes removed certain ex-mining communities to the new Barnsley East constituency in 1983: this and the addition of the more Conservative-inclined ward of Wakefield South in 1997 slightly reduced Labour's dominance, but Hemsworth remained a safe seat in the 2017 election. However, in 2019 the majority was cut from over 10,000 to just 1,180 as Labour's vote collapsed in Northern former mining seats, making it marginal for future elections.
Boundaries
Map of boundaries 2010–2024
1918–1950: The Urban Districts of Cudworth and Royston, the Rural District of Hemsworth, and part of the Rural District of Barnsley.
1950–1955: The Urban Districts of Cudworth, Dearne, Hemsworth, and Royston, and the Rural District of Hemsworth.[5]
1955–1983: The Urban Districts of Cudworth, Dearne, and Hemsworth, and the Rural District of Hemsworth.[6]
1983–1997: The City of Wakefield wards of Crofton and Ackworth; Featherstone; Hemsworth; South Elmsall; and South Kirkby.
1997–2010: The City of Wakefield wards of Crofton and Ackworth; Featherstone; Hemsworth; South Elmsall; South Kirkby; and Wakefield South.
2010–2024: The City of Wakefield wards of Ackworth, North Elmsall and Upton; Crofton, Ryhill and Walton; Featherstone; Hemsworth; South Elmsall and South Kirkby; and Wakefield South.
This constituency covered the towns of Hemsworth, Featherstone, South Kirkby & Moorthorpe and South Elmsall, plus the southern part of Wakefield (Sandal, Agbrigg, Belle Vue) and the villages of Ackworth, Crofton, Fitzwilliam, Upton, Sharlston, Streethouse, Walton and Notton in the City of Wakefield district.
Members of Parliament
Election results 1918–2024
Elections in the 1910s
Elections in the 1920s
Elections in the 1930s
General Election 1939–40:
Another general election was required to take place before the end of 1940. The political parties had been making preparations for an election to take place from 1939 and by the end of this year, the following candidates had been selected;
Elections in the 1940s
Elections in the 1950s
Elections in the 1960s
Elections in the 1970s
Elections in the 1980s
Elections in the 1990s
Elections in the 2000s
Elections in the 2010s
See also
Notes
References
- ^ "Constituency data: electorates – House of Commons Library". Parliament UK. 15 June 2020. Retrieved 22 July 2020.
- ^ "The 2023 Review of Parliamentary Constituency Boundaries in England – Volume one: Report – Yorkshire and the Humber | Boundary Commission for England". boundarycommissionforengland.independent.gov.uk. Retrieved 5 August 2023.
- ^ Yorkshire Evening Post, 11 December 2015
- ^ "Richard Kimber's Political Science Resources: UK General Election results March 1966". Archived from the original on 29 September 2007. Retrieved 15 February 2007.
- ^ "Representation of the People Act 1948: Schedule 1", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, 1948 c. 65 (sch. 1), retrieved 23 July 2023
- ^ "The Parliamentary Constituencies (Wakefield and Hemsworth) Order 1955. SI 1955/175". Statutory Instruments 1955. Part II. London: Her Majesty's Stationery Office. 1956. pp. 2177–2178.
- ^ Leigh Rayment's Historical List of MPs – Constituencies beginning with "H" (part 2)
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j British parliamentary election results 1918–1949, FWS Craig
- ^ The Times' Guide to the House of Commons. 1950.
- ^ "Election Data 1983". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
- ^ "Election Data 1987". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
- ^ "Election Data 1992". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
- ^ "Election Data 1997". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
- ^ a b c d e From 1992 notional result
- ^ "Election Data 2001". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
- ^ "Election Data 2005". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
- ^ "Election Data 2010". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 26 July 2013. Retrieved 17 October 2015.
- ^ http://www.wakefield.gov.uk/CouncilAndDemocracy/ElectoralServices/Elections/generalcandidates.htm[permanent dead link]
- ^ "UK > England > Yorkshire & the Humber > Hemsworth". Election 2010. BBC. 7 May 2010. Retrieved 12 May 2010.
- ^ "Election Data 2015". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 17 October 2015. Retrieved 17 October 2015.
- ^ "Hemsworth". BBC News. Retrieved 13 May 2015.
- ^ "Hemsworth parliamentary constituency – Election 2017" – via www.bbc.co.uk.
- ^ "Error" (PDF).
- ^ "Hemsworth Parliamentary constituency, 2019". BBC News. BBC. Retrieved 16 December 2019.
Sources
- Craig, F. W. S. (1983) [1969]. British parliamentary election results 1918–1949 (3rd ed.). Chichester: Parliamentary Research Services. ISBN 0-900178-06-X.
External links
- Hemsworth UK Parliament constituency (boundaries April 2010 – May 2024) at MapIt UK