Knowsley (UK Parliament constituency)

Last updated

Knowsley
Borough constituency
for the House of Commons
Knowsley (UK Parliament constituency)
Interactive map of boundaries from 2024
North West England - Knowsley constituency.svg
Location within North West England
County Merseyside
Electorate 71,228 (2023) [1]
Major settlements Huyton, Kirkby, Knowsley, Roby
Current constituency
Created 2010
Member of Parliament Anneliese Midgley (Labour)
SeatsOne
Created from Knowsley South,
Knowsley North and Sefton East

Knowsley is a constituency [n 1] represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2024 by Anneliese Midgley of the Labour Party. [n 2] .

Contents

Constituency profile

The constituency mainly consists of low-income social housing and former social housing built to decant the residents displaced by post-war slum clearance in Liverpool. It includes Huyton to the south (once represented by Prime Minister Harold Wilson) and Kirkby to the north. Between them is the green space of Knowsley Hall and Park, the ancestral home of the Earls of Derby and the site of Knowsley Safari Park. In 2010, The Guardian summarised the area as "One of the most deprived areas in the country. The new parliamentary constituency folds in Knowsley North and Knowsley South." [2]

The constituency voted to leave the European Union in 2016.

History

Created for the 2010 general election (during the Boundary Commission for England's Fifth periodic review of Westminster constituencies [3] ), it was believed to present the safest seat in the country, with an estimated Labour majority of 24,333 votes. [4] The area returned the second highest share of the vote seen by a candidate for the Labour Party, of 70.9%, behind the 72.0% achieved in Liverpool Walton. The same ranking of results nationally by percentage majority occurred in 2015, [5] when it became the safest seat in the country in absolute terms, beating East Ham by 403 votes. [6]

It ranked foremost by party majority in 2017, where it was followed directly by East Ham and 28 other seats won by Labour candidates, after which followed North East Hampshire. [6] It achieved the highest majority for any British Member of Parliament since the advent of universal suffrage, with Labour winning with a majority of 42,214 votes, surpassing the 36,230-vote majority held by then-Conservative Prime Minister John Major in his Huntingdon constituency in 1992.

On its creation, the seat was won by George Howarth, who had served as MP for the predecessor seats of Knowsley North (1986–1997) and Knowsley North and Sefton East (1997–2010). On his retirement for the 2024 general election, he was succeeded by Anneliese Midgley on a reduced majority over Reform UK of 50.9%.

Boundaries

The constituency covers a large part of the Metropolitan Borough of Knowsley, the main settlements being Huyton and Kirkby. It replaced most of the previous Knowsley South constituency, as well as the parts of Knowsley North and Sefton East in the Knowsley borough. Distant parts from the centre of the metropolitan borough were covered by the new St Helens South and Whiston and Garston and Halewood constituencies.

The seat is composed of the following electoral wards:

2010-2024: The Metropolitan Borough of Knowsley wards of Cherryfield, Kirkby Central, Longview, Northwood, Page Moss, Park, Prescot West, Roby, St Bartholomews, St Gabriels, St Michaels, Shevington, Stockbridge, Swanside, and Whitefield.

2024-present: The Metropolitan Borough of Knowsley wards of Cherryfield, Northwood, Prescot North, Roby, St Gabriels, St Michaels, Shevington, Stockbridge, and Whitefield. [7]

Allowing for changes to ward names and boundaries, the constituency was reduced in size to bring the electorate within the permitted range by transferring the Page Moss and Swanside wards to Liverpool West Derby.

Members of Parliament

ElectionMember [8] Party
2010 George Howarth Labour
2024 Anneliese Midgley Labour

Elections

Elections in the 2020s

General election 2024: Knowsley [9] [10]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Labour Anneliese Midgley 24,243 67.3 −12.3
Reform UK Alexander Hitchmough5,92416.4+10.1
Green Graham Wickens2,7727.7+5.7
Conservative Sherrie McDaid1,4964.2−4.5
Liberal Democrats Kate Tipton1,2323.4+0.9
Workers Party Graham Padden2450.7N/A
SDP Patricia Jameson1350.4N/A
Majority18,31950.9−21.8
Registered electors 71,964
Turnout 36,13550.2−15.2
Rejected ballots88
Labour hold Swing −13.5

Elections in the 2010s

General election 2019: Knowsley [11]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Labour George Howarth 44,374 80.8 –4.5
Conservative Rushi Millns4,4328.1–1.2
Brexit Party Tim McCullough3,3486.1New
Green Paul Woodruff1,2622.3+1.4
Liberal Democrats Joe Slupsky1,1172.0–0.1
Liberal Ray Catesby4050.7New
Majority39,94272.7–3.3
Turnout 54,93865.4–2.4
Labour hold Swing –4.6

This was the largest numerical Labour majority at the 2019 general election. [12]

General election 2017: Knowsley [13]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Labour George Howarth 47,351 85.3 +7.2
Conservative James Spencer5,1379.3+2.7
UKIP Neil Miney1,2852.3–7.5
Liberal Democrats Carl Cashman1,1892.1–0.8
Green Steve Baines5210.9–1.6
Majority42,21476.0+7.7
Turnout 55,48367.8+3.7
Labour hold Swing +2.3
General election 2015: Knowsley [14] [15]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Labour George Howarth 39,628 78.1 +7.2
UKIP Louise Bours 4,9739.8+7.2
Conservative Alice Bramall3,3676.6−2.4
Liberal Democrats Carl Cashman1,4902.9−10.5
Green Vikki Gregorich1,2702.5New
Majority34,65568.3+10.8
Turnout 50,72864.1+8.0
Labour hold Swing 0.0
General election 2010: Knowsley [16]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Labour George Howarth* 31,650 70.9 −0.9
Liberal Democrats Flo Clucas5,96413.4−0.4
Conservative David Dunne4,0049.0−2.3
BNP Steven Greenhalgh1,8954.2+2.2
UKIP Anthony Rundle1,1452.6New
Majority25,68657.5−0.5
Turnout 44,65456.1+2.3
Labour hold Swing -0.2
*Served as an MP in the 2005–2010 Parliament

See also

Notes

  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.

References

  1. ↑ "The 2023 Review of Parliamentary Constituency Boundaries in England – Volume two: Constituency names, designations and composition – North West". Boundary Commission for England. Retrieved 18 July 2024.
  2. ↑ "Knowsley". guardian.co.uk.
  3. ↑ "Knowsley Boundary Commission for England". Archived from the original on 2 November 2009. Retrieved 4 December 2009.
  4. ↑ "Altered Constituencies Data". The Guardian. 22 January 2010.
  5. ↑ "Labour Members of Parliament 2015". UK Political.info. Archived from the original on 29 September 2018.
  6. 1 2 Baker, Carl; Hawkins, Oliver; Audickas, Lukas; Bate, Alex; Cracknell, Richard; Apostolova, Vyara; Dempsey, Noel; McInnes, Roderick; Rutherford, Tom; Uberoi, Elise (29 January 2019). "General Election 2017: full results and analysis". parliament.uk.{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  7. ↑ "The Parliamentary Constituencies Order 2023". Schedule 1 Part 5 North West region.
  8. ↑ Leigh Rayment's Historical List of MPs – Constituencies beginning with "K" (part 2)
  9. ↑ "Knowsley Constituency declaration of result of poll" (PDF). Knowsley Council . Retrieved 6 July 2024.
  10. ↑ "Knowsley - General election results 2024". BBC News. Retrieved 15 December 2024.
  11. ↑ "Statement of persons nominated 2019" (PDF).
  12. ↑ http://researchbriefings.files.parliament.uk/documents/CBP-8749/CBP-8749.pdf [ bare URL PDF ]
  13. ↑ "General Election 2017: who is standing for election". Liverpool Echo. 11 May 2017.
  14. ↑ "Election Data 2015". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 17 October 2015. Retrieved 17 October 2015.
  15. ↑ "Knowsley". BBC News. Retrieved 10 May 2015.
  16. ↑ "Election Data 2010". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 26 July 2013. Retrieved 17 October 2015.

53°27′40″N2°49′41″W / 53.461°N 2.828°W / 53.461; -2.828

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