Kettering | |
---|---|
County constituency for the House of Commons | |
County | Northamptonshire |
Electorate | 76,163 (2023) [1] |
Major settlements | Kettering, Desborough, Burton Latimer and Rothwell |
Current constituency | |
Created | 1918 |
Member of Parliament | Rosie Wrighting (Labour Party (UK)) |
Seats | One |
Created from | North Northamptonshire and Mid Northamptonshire |
Kettering is a constituency [n 1] in Northamptonshire represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2024 by Rosie Wrighting of the Labour Party. [n 2]
Economically, it is predominantly middle-class, well within managerial/directorial commuter zones for London and the West Midlands. Industry continues in some sectors ranging from, for example, lingerie, [2] food production, rigid containers, abattoirs, to the Weetabix factory in Burton Latimer, but the industrial activity of the area, as with the rest of the county, is reduced whereas the wider area's headline gross value added for the area per head has been mostly consistently higher, from £11,667 in 1997 in North Northamptonshire to £17,835. [n 3] [3]
In 2005 The Guardian described it as:
'[A] mixed industrial town in Northamptonshire with good links to London.'
Prior to 1983, the constituency had been dominated not by the eponymous town, but by the nearby industrial town of Corby. The town's general support for Labour made Kettering a reliable Labour seat, as the party won it at every election from 1945 to when Corby was split off to form its own constituency in 1983. In its current configuration Kettering is much more inclined towards the Conservatives, though Labour won it in their landslide victories in 1997, 2001 and 2024.
The constituency covers the major town of Kettering, the smaller towns of Desborough, Rothwell and Burton Latimer together with a number of villages. A semi-rural seat, the preponderance of constituents live in the towns and a minority of the wards form a wide array of rural communities that have civil parish or hamlet status.
1918–1950: The Urban Districts of Desborough, Kettering, and Rothwell, the Rural Districts of Brixworth, Kettering, and Oxendon, and in the Rural District of Northampton the parishes of Great Billing, Little Billing, and Weston Favell.
The constituency created in 1950 included the generally (in the late 20th century) Labour-majority industrial town of Corby until the 1983 general election, when Corby gained its own constituency.
1950–1974: The Municipal Borough of Kettering, the Urban Districts of Burton Latimer, Desborough, Corby and Rothwell, and the Rural Districts of Brixworth and Kettering.
1974–1983: The Municipal Borough of Kettering, the Urban Districts of Burton Latimer, Corby, Desborough, and Rothwell, and the Rural District of Kettering.
1983–1997: The Borough of Kettering, and the District of Daventry wards of Boughton and Pitsford, Brixworth, Clipston, Moulton, and Overstone and Walgrave.
1997–2010: The Borough of Kettering, and the District of Daventry wards of Boughton and Pitsford, Brixworth, Clipston, Guilsborough, Moulton, Overstone and Walgrave, Spratton, and Welford.
2010–2021: The Borough of Kettering.
The Boundary Commission's Fifth periodic review of Westminster constituencies proposed an additional seat in Northamptonshire due to population growth in the county. Parliament approved its recommendations for 2010 which made way for the new constituency of South Northamptonshire. The resulting boundary changes resulted in the loss of the District of Daventry wards from the Kettering constituency.
2024–present: The North Northamptonshire wards of Burton and Broughton, Corby Rural (part), Clover Hill, Desborough, Ise, Northall, Rothwell and Mawsley, Wicksteed and Windmill. [4]
The current Member of Parliament is Rosie Wrighting of the Labour Party. She was elected in 2024 when she defeated the sitting Conservative MP, Philip Hollobone, in an election which nationally saw a landslide win for the Labour Party. Prior to Wrighting's victory, Kettering had been a predominantly safe Conservative seat since the removal of Corby in 1983, as Labour had only won it in their two landslides in 1997 and 2001, by tight margins of just 189 and 665 votes (0.3 and 1.2 percent of the vote) respectively. Her majority was by far the largest for Labour since before Corby was removed from the seat.
Prior to boundary changes in 1918, at least the majority of modern-day Kettering Constituency lay within the Mid Northamptonshire constituency.
Prior to boundary changes in 1885, at least the majority of modern-day Kettering Constituency lay within the North Northamptonshire constituency, which elected two members to Parliament.
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Labour | Rosie Wrighting | 18,009 | 35.9 | +9.0 | |
Conservative | Philip Hollobone | 14,189 | 28.2 | −32.1 | |
Reform UK | Crispian Besley | 8,468 | 16.9 | N/A | |
Green | Emily Fedorowycz | 7,004 | 13.9 | +10.9 | |
Liberal Democrats | Sarah Ryan | 1,357 | 2.7 | −4.0 | |
Independent | Jim Hakewill | 1,057 | 2.1 | −1.1 | |
SDP | Matthew Murphy | 85 | 0.2 | N/A | |
Alliance for Democracy and Freedom | Jehad Aburamadan | 62 | 0.1 | N/A | |
Majority | 3,900 | 7.7 | N/A | ||
Turnout | 50,231 | 63.3 | −5.0 | ||
Registered electors | 79,390 | ||||
Labour gain from Conservative | Swing | +20.6 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Philip Hollobone | 29,787 | 60.3 | 2.4 | |
Labour | Clare Pavitt | 13,022 | 26.4 | 10.1 | |
Liberal Democrats | Chris Nelson | 3,367 | 6.8 | 3.5 | |
Independent | Jim Hakewill | 1,642 | 3.3 | New | |
Green | Jamie Wildman | 1,543 | 3.1 | 0.8 | |
Majority | 16,765 | 33.9 | 12.5 | ||
Turnout | 49,361 | 67.4 | 1.7 | ||
Conservative hold | Swing | 6.25 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Philip Hollobone | 28,616 | 57.9 | 6.1 | |
Labour | Mick Scrimshaw | 18,054 | 36.5 | 11.3 | |
Liberal Democrats | Suzanna Austin | 1,618 | 3.3 | 0.1 | |
Green | Rob Reeves | 1,116 | 2.3 | 1.2 | |
Majority | 10,562 | 21.4 | 5.2 | ||
Turnout | 49,404 | 69.1 | 1.8 | ||
Conservative hold | Swing | 2.6 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Philip Hollobone | 24,467 | 51.8 | +2.7 | |
Labour | Rhea Keehn [9] | 11,877 | 25.2 | −4.7 | |
UKIP | Jonathan Bullock [10] | 7,600 | 16.1 | New | |
Green | Rob Reeves [11] | 1,633 | 3.5 | New | |
Liberal Democrats | Chris McGlynn | 1,490 | 3.2 | −12.6 | |
English Democrat | Derek Hilling [12] | 151 | 0.3 | −1.7 | |
Majority | 12,590 | 26.6 | +7.4 | ||
Turnout | 47,218 | 67.3 | −1.5 | ||
Conservative hold | Swing | +3.75 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Philip Hollobone | 23,247 | 49.1 | +6.2 | |
Labour | Phil Sawford | 14,153 | 29.9 | −12.7 | |
Liberal Democrats | Chris Nelson | 7,498 | 15.8 | +3.6 | |
BNP | Clive Skinner | 1,366 | 2.9 | New | |
English Democrat | Derek Hilling | 952 | 2.0 | New | |
Bus-Pass Elvis | Dave Bishop | 112 | 0.2 | New | |
Majority | 9,094 | 19.2 | +13.2 | ||
Turnout | 47,328 | 68.8 | −0.4 | ||
Conservative hold | Swing | +9.4 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Philip Hollobone | 25,401 | 45.6 | +2.1 | |
Labour | Phil Sawford | 22,100 | 39.7 | −5.0 | |
Liberal Democrats | Roger Aron | 6,882 | 12.4 | +2.2 | |
UKIP | Rosemarie Clarke | 1,263 | 2.3 | +0.6 | |
Majority | 3,301 | 5.9 | N/A | ||
Turnout | 55,646 | 68.0 | −0.1 | ||
Conservative gain from Labour | Swing | +3.55 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Labour | Phil Sawford | 24,034 | 44.7 | +1.4 | |
Conservative | Philip Hollobone | 23,369 | 43.5 | +0.5 | |
Liberal Democrats | Roger Aron | 5,469 | 10.2 | −0.5 | |
UKIP | Barry Mahoney | 880 | 1.6 | New | |
Majority | 665 | 1.2 | +0.9 | ||
Turnout | 53,752 | 68.1 | −7.4 | ||
Labour hold | Swing | +0.45 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Labour | Phil Sawford | 24,650 | 43.3 | +11.4 | |
Conservative | Roger Freeman | 24,461 | 43.0 | −9.8 | |
Liberal Democrats | Roger Aron | 6,098 | 10.7 | −4.7 | |
Referendum | Arthur Smith | 1551 | 2.7 | New | |
Natural Law | Rosemary le Carpentier | 197 | 0.3 | New | |
Majority | 189 | 0.3 | N/A | ||
Turnout | 56,957 | 75.5 | −7.4 | ||
Labour gain from Conservative | Swing | +9.9 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Roger Freeman | 29,115 | 52.0 | +0.9 | |
Labour Co-op | Phil Hope | 17,961 | 32.1 | +12.4 | |
Liberal Democrats | Richard Denton-White | 8,962 | 16.0 | −13.3 | |
Majority | 11,154 | 19.9 | −1.8 | ||
Turnout | 56,038 | 82.6 | +3.8 | ||
Conservative hold | Swing | −5.7 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Roger Freeman | 26,532 | 51.0 | +2.6 | |
SDP | Celia Goodhart | 15,205 | 29.3 | −1.2 | |
Labour | Ashley Minto | 10,229 | 19.7 | −1.4 | |
Majority | 11,327 | 21.7 | +3.8 | ||
Turnout | 51,196 | 78.8 | +2.4 | ||
Conservative hold | Swing |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Roger Freeman | 23,223 | 48.4 | −0.2 | |
SDP | Celia Goodhart | 14,637 | 30.5 | +18.4 | |
Labour | Alex Gordon | 10,119 | 21.1 | −18.3 | |
Majority | 8,586 | 17.9 | N/A | ||
Turnout | 47,979 | 76.4 | −2.9 | ||
Conservative win (new boundaries) |
Note: The boundary changes to the seat for the 1983 election meant that this seat would have been won by the Conservatives in 1979, as parts of the seat were moved into the newly created seat of Corby which was notionally Labour on the new boundaries and thus saw William Homewood attempt (unsuccessfully albeit) to seek re-election there.
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Labour | William Homewood | 31,579 | 45.0 | −4.3 | |
Conservative | Rupert Allason | 30,101 | 42.9 | +11.4 | |
Liberal | G. Raven | 8,424 | 12.0 | −7.2 | |
Majority | 1,478 | 2.1 | −15.7 | ||
Turnout | 70,104 | 79.3 | +6.1 | ||
Labour hold | Swing |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Labour | Geoffrey de Freitas | 30,970 | 49.3 | +3.4 | |
Conservative | G.D. Reed | 19,800 | 31.5 | −0.2 | |
Liberal | A. James W. Haigh | 12,038 | 19.2 | −3.1 | |
Majority | 11,170 | 17.8 | +3.6 | ||
Turnout | 62,808 | 73.2 | −7.9 | ||
Labour hold | Swing |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Labour | Geoffrey de Freitas | 31,659 | 45.9 | −2.3 | |
Conservative | G.D. Reed | 21,872 | 31.7 | −10.7 | |
Liberal | A. James W. Haigh | 15,393 | 22.3 | +13.0 | |
Majority | 9,787 | 14.2 | +8.4 | ||
Turnout | 68,924 | 81.1 | +5.6 | ||
Labour hold | Swing |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Labour | Geoffrey de Freitas | 34,803 | 48.3 | −4.3 | |
Conservative | John Charles Taylor | 30,613 | 42.5 | +6.9 | |
Liberal | A. James W. Haigh | 6,695 | 9.3 | −2.5 | |
Majority | 4,190 | 5.8 | −11.2 | ||
Turnout | 72,111 | 75.5 | −5.8 | ||
Labour hold | Swing |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Labour | Geoffrey de Freitas | 35,337 | 52.6 | −2.6 | |
Conservative | Trevor E.T. Weston | 23,877 | 35.6 | −9.2 | |
Liberal | Anthony Smith | 7,903 | 11.8 | New | |
Majority | 11,460 | 17.0 | +6.6 | ||
Turnout | 67,117 | 81.3 | −0.2 | ||
Labour hold | Swing |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Labour | Geoffrey de Freitas | 36,210 | 55.2 | +2.4 | |
Conservative | J. Hedley Lewis | 29,405 | 44.8 | −2.4 | |
Majority | 6,805 | 10.4 | +2.4 | ||
Turnout | 65,615 | 81.5 | +4.0 | ||
Labour hold | Swing |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Labour | Dick Mitchison | 32,933 | 52.8 | −2.4 | |
Conservative | Neil Stone | 29,448 | 47.2 | 2.4 | |
Majority | 3,485 | 5.6 | −4.8 | ||
Turnout | 62,381 | 77.5 | −4.1 | ||
Labour hold | Swing |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Labour | Dick Mitchison | 31,198 | 55.2 | −0.6 | |
Conservative | John F. Nash | 25,495 | 44.8 | +0.6 | |
Majority | 5,903 | 10.4 | −1.2 | ||
Turnout | 56,893 | 81.6 | −5.6 | ||
Labour hold | Swing |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Labour | Dick Mitchison | 32,604 | 55.8 | +3.2 | |
Conservative | C. Peter B. Bailey | 25,777 | 44.2 | +5.6 | |
Majority | 6,827 | 11.6 | −2.4 | ||
Turnout | 58,381 | 87.2 | −0.9 | ||
Labour hold | Swing |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Labour | Dick Mitchison | 30,243 | 52.6 | −1.0 | |
Conservative | Gyles Isham | 22,169 | 38.6 | −3.5 | |
Liberal | Ian Morrow | 4,692 | 8.2 | New | |
Communist | L.P. O'Connor | 368 | 0.6 | New | |
Majority | 8,074 | 14.0 | +2.5 | ||
Turnout | 57,472 | 88.1 | +13.0 | ||
Labour hold | Swing |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Labour | Dick Mitchison | 29,868 | 53.6 | +5.7 | |
Conservative | John Profumo | 23,424 | 42.1 | −10.0 | |
Christian Pacifist Party | John Chamberlain Dempsey | 2,381 | 4.3 | New | |
Majority | 6,444 | 11.5 | N/A | ||
Turnout | 24,530 | 75.1 | −2.2 | ||
Labour gain from Conservative | Swing |
The British Council commissioned a short film on the 1945 General Election which portrays the contest in the Kettering constituency. [21]
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | John Profumo | 17,914 | 73.0 | +20.9 | |
Workers' and Pensioners' Anti-War | W. Ross | 6,616 | 27.0 | New | |
Majority | 11,298 | 46.0 | +41.8 | ||
Turnout | 24,530 | 37.8 | −39.5 | ||
Conservative hold | Swing |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | John Eastwood | 22,885 | 52.1 | −8.1 | |
Labour Co-op | J.R. Sadler | 21,042 | 47.9 | +8.1 | |
Majority | 1,843 | 4.2 | −16.1 | ||
Turnout | 43,927 | 77.3 | −8.4 | ||
Conservative hold | Swing |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | John Eastwood | 25,811 | 60.2 | +23.1 | |
Labour Co-op | Samuel Perry | 17,095 | 39.8 | −4.0 | |
Majority | 8,716 | 20.3 | N/A | ||
Turnout | 42,906 | 85.7 | −0.1 | ||
Conservative gain from Labour | Swing |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Labour Co-op | Samuel Perry | 18,253 | 43.8 | −4.2 | |
Unionist | J. Brown | 15,469 | 37.1 | −14.9 | |
Liberal | Cuthbert Snowball Rewcastle | 7,972 | 19.1 | New | |
Majority | 2,784 | 6.7 | N/A | ||
Turnout | 23,441 | 85.8 | +1.5 | ||
Registered electors | 48,588 | ||||
Labour Co-op gain from Unionist | Swing | +5.4 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Unionist | Mervyn Manningham-Buller | 16,042 | 52.0 | +17.0 | |
Labour Co-op | Samuel Perry | 14,801 | 48.0 | +4.5 | |
Majority | 1,241 | 4.0 | N/A | ||
Turnout | 30,843 | 84.3 | +3.0 | ||
Registered electors | 36,574 | ||||
Unionist gain from Labour Co-op | Swing | +6.3 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Labour Co-op | Samuel Perry | 12,718 | 43.5 | −6.0 | |
Unionist | Owen Parker | 10,212 | 35.0 | −15.5 | |
Liberal | Alfred Yeo | 6,273 | 21.5 | New | |
Majority | 2,506 | 8.5 | N/A | ||
Turnout | 29,203 | 81.3 | +0.3 | ||
Registered electors | 35,899 | ||||
Labour Co-op gain from Unionist | Swing | +4.8 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Unionist | Owen Parker | 14,333 | 50.5 | New | |
Labour Co-op | Alfred Waterson | 14,024 | 49.5 | +1.8 | |
Majority | 309 | 1.0 | N/A | ||
Turnout | 28,357 | 81.0 | +15.9 | ||
Registered electors | 35,024 | ||||
Unionist gain from Co-operative Party | Swing | N/A |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Co-operative Party | Alfred Waterson | 10,299 | 45.7 | ||
C | Liberal | Leland William Buxton | 7,761 | 34.4 | |
National | Algernon Ferguson [23] | 4,489 | 19.9 | ||
Majority | 2,538 | 11.3 | |||
Turnout | 22,549 | 65.1 | |||
Registered electors | 34,624 | ||||
Co-operative Party win (new seat) | |||||
Cindicates candidate endorsed by the coalition government. |
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