Mid Sussex (UK Parliament constituency)

This article is about the parliamentary constituency. For other uses, see Mid Sussex.

Mid Sussex
County constituency for the House of Commons
Boundaries since 2024
Boundary of Mid Sussex in South East England
County	West Sussex
Electorate	72,255 (2023) [1]
Major settlements	Haywards Heath Burgess Hill
Current constituency
Created	1974 (1974)
Member of Parliament	Alison Bennett (Liberal Democrats)
Seats	One
Created from	East Grinstead and Lewes

Mid Sussex is a constituency ^{[n 1]} represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament from 2024 by Alison Bennett, a Liberal Democrat. ^{[2] [n 2]}

Constituency profile

The constituency is centred around the towns of Haywards Heath and Burgess Hill and takes in the southern half of the local government district of the same name. Located on the West Sussex side of the border with East Sussex, the constituency is well served by transport links, with rail connections to Brighton, Gatwick Airport, London and the Sussex coast, and the M23/A23 running through the west of the constituency. The south of the constituency lies within the South Downs National Park.

Income levels are on average considerably higher than the national average ^[3] and levels of rented ^[4] and social housing ^[3] are below the national average, particularly levels seen in cities.

Boundaries

Map of 2010–2024 boundaries

Historic

1974–1983: The Urban Districts of Burgess Hill and Cuckfield, and the Rural District of Cuckfield.

1983–1997: The District of Mid Sussex wards of Ardingly, Bolney, Burgess Hill Chanctonbury, Burgess Hill Franklands, Burgess Hill North, Burgess Hill St Andrews, Burgess Hill Town, Burgess Hill West, Clayton, Cuckfield, East Grinstead East, East Grinstead North, East Grinstead South, East Grinstead West, Haywards Heath Ashenground, Haywards Heath Bentswood, Haywards Heath Franklands, Haywards Heath Harlands, Haywards Heath Heath, Horsted Keynes, Hurstpierpoint, Keymer, Lindfield Rural, Lindfield Urban, and West Hoathly.

1997–2010: The District of Mid Sussex wards of Ardingly, Burgess Hill Chanctonbury, Burgess Hill Franklands, Burgess Hill North, Burgess Hill St Andrews, Burgess Hill Town, Burgess Hill West, Cuckfield, East Grinstead East, East Grinstead North, East Grinstead South, East Grinstead West, Haywards Heath Ashenground, Haywards Heath Bentswood, Haywards Heath Franklands, Haywards Heath Harlands, Haywards Heath Heath, Horsted Keynes, Lindfield Rural, Lindfield Urban, and West Hoathly.

2010–2024: The District of Mid Sussex wards of Ashurst Wood, Bolney, Burgess Hill Dunstall, Burgess Hill Franklands, Burgess Hill Leylands, Burgess Hill Meeds, Burgess Hill St Andrews, Burgess Hill Victoria, Cuckfield, East Grinstead Ashplats, East Grinstead Baldwins, East Grinstead Herontye, East Grinstead Imberhorne, East Grinstead Town, Haywards Heath Ashenground, Haywards Heath Bentswood, Haywards Heath Franklands, Haywards Heath Heath, Haywards Heath Lucastes, High Weald, and Lindfield.

Current

Further to the 2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies which became effective for the 2024 general election, the constituency was defined as being composed of the following as they existed on 1 December 2020:

• The District of Mid Sussex wards of: Bolney; Burgess Hill Dunstall; Burgess Hill Franklands; Burgess Hill Leylands; Burgess Hill Meeds; Burgess Hill St. Andrews; Burgess Hill Victoria; Cuckfield; Hassocks; Haywards Heath Ashenground; Haywards Heath Bentswood; Haywards Heath Franklands; Haywards Heath Heath; Haywards Heath Lucastes; Hurstpierpoint and Downs; Lindfield. ^[5]

Following a local government boundary review which came into effect in May 2023, ^{[6] [7]} the constituency now comprises the following from the 2024 general election:

• The District of Mid Sussex wards of Ardingly, Balcombe & Turners Hill (small part); Burgess Hill Dunstall; Burgess Hill Franklands; Burgess Hill Leylands; Burgess Hill Meeds & Hammonds; Burgess Hill St Andrews; Burgess Hill Victoria; Cuckfield, Bolney & Ansty; Downland Villages; Hassocks; Haywards Heath Ashenground; Haywards Heath Bentswood & Heath; Haywards Heath Franklands; Haywards Heath Lucastes & Bolnore; Haywards Heath North; Hurstpierpoint; Lindfield; Lindfield Rural & High Weald (small part). ^[8]

The electorate was reduced to bring it within the permitted range by transferring northern parts, including the town of East Grinstead to the newly created constituency of East Grinstead and Uckfield. This was partly offset by adding the villages of Hassocks and Hurstpierpoint from Arundel and South Downs.

History

The constituency was created in 1974 from parts of the seats of Lewes and East Grinstead, and has undergone significant boundary changes at every periodical review that it has been around for. Prior to 1973, the local government district had actually been a part of East Sussex, but as a result of delayed implementation of the Local Government Act 1972, it was almost wholly moved into West Sussex.

At the 1983 general election, it gained some of the wards (including East Grinstead itself) previously contained in the East Grinstead constituency (which disappeared at that election, its last MP Geoffrey Johnson Smith contested and won the new seat of Wealden in East Sussex), and at the 1997 election, it gained many of the semi-rural wards with smaller communities between East Grinstead and Crawley. For the 2024 election, the seat lost East Grinstead again – to the new seat of East Grinstead and Uckfield.

From its creation in 1974 until 2024, it was a Conservative seat. Its first MP was Tim Renton, who held the seat until 1997. He was succeeded by Nicholas Soames (a grandson of former Prime Minister Winston Churchill), who had been MP for the neighbouring seat of Crawley from 1983 to 1997.

In the 2016 European Union referendum, Mid Sussex voted for the United Kingdom to remain a member of the European Union. Despite this, Soames called for MPs to back Theresa May's withdrawal agreement. However, he was one of the 21 Conservative rebels who voted to allow Parliament to vote to legislate to prevent a no deal Brexit on 3 September 2019, and subsequently became an independent, after the rebels had the Conservative whip removed. He then decided not to stand for re-election although he had the whip restored before dissolution. ^[9]

Soames was succeeded by Mims Davies, who had been MP for Eastleigh in Hampshire from 2015 to 2019. Following boundary changes for the 2024 general election, Davies stood down and decided to stand (successfully) for the notionally safer new seat of East Grinstead and Uckfield.

The primary opposition to the Conservatives until the 2015 election had been the Liberal Democrats and their predecessors the Liberal Party. In 2015, there was a severe fall in Liberal Democrats' support. Labour's candidate came second in the seat for the first time in its history. In 2017, Labour consolidated this lead at the 2017 general election by gaining almost double the votes of the Liberal Democrats. The Liberal Democrats regained a clear second place in the 2019 general election, and won the seat in 2024 following boundary changes, with Alison Bennett being elected as the new MP.

Members of Parliament

East Grinstead and Lewes prior to 1974

Election		Member [10]	Party
	Feb 1974	Tim Renton	Conservative
	1997	Sir Nicholas Soames	Conservative
	2019		Independent
			Conservative
	2019	Mims Davies	Conservative
	2024	Alison Bennett	Liberal Democrats

Elections

Elections in the 2020s

General election 2024: Mid Sussex

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal Democrats	Alison Bennett [11]	21,136	39.6	+14.1
	Conservative	Kristy Adams [12]	14,474	27.1	−24.2
	Labour	Dave Rowntree [13]	9,397	17.6	−0.4
	Reform UK	Gary Johnson [14]	5,921	11.1	N/A
	Green	Deanna Nicholson [14]	2,048	3.8	−0.3
	Monster Raving Loony	Baron Von Thunderclap [15]	352	0.7	−0.3
Majority			6,662	12.5	N/A
Turnout			53,328	70.2	−3.1
Registered electors			75,969
	Liberal Democrats gain from Conservative		Swing	+19.2

Elections in the 2010s

2019 notional result [16]
Party		Vote	%
	Conservative	27,154	51.3
	Liberal Democrats	13,489	25.5
	Labour	9,530	18.0
	Green	2,179	4.1
	Others	597	1.1
Turnout		52,949	73.3
Electorate		72,255

General election 2019: Mid Sussex ^[17]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Mims Davies	33,455	53.3	−3.6
	Liberal Democrats	Robert Eggleston	15,258	24.3	+11.6
	Labour	Gemma Bolton	11,218	17.9	−7.1
	Green	Deanna Nicholson	2,234	3.6	+1.1
	Monster Raving Loony	Baron Von Thunderclap	550	0.9	+0.1
	Advance	Brett Mortensen	47	0.1	N/A
Majority			18,197	29.0	−2.9
Turnout			62,762	73.7	+0.9
	Conservative hold		Swing	−7.6

• Davies had served as Member of Parliament for Eastleigh from 2015 until the 2019 election was called.

General election 2017: Mid Sussex ^{[18] [19]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Nicholas Soames	35,082	56.9	+0.8
	Labour	Greg Mountain	15,409	25.0	+11.1
	Liberal Democrats	Sarah Osborne	7,855	12.7	+1.2
	Green	Chris Jerrey	1,571	2.5	−1.8
	UKIP	Toby Brothers	1,251	2.0	−10.0
	Monster Raving Loony	Baron Von Thunderclap	464	0.8	+0.2
Majority			19,673	31.9	−10.3
Turnout			61,632	72.8	+0.5
	Conservative hold		Swing	−5.15

General election 2015: Mid Sussex ^{[20] [21]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Nicholas Soames	32,268	56.1	+5.4
	Labour	Greg Mountain	7,982	13.9	+7.3
	UKIP	Toby Brothers	6,898	12.0	+9.5
	Liberal Democrats	Daisy Cooper [22]	6,604	11.5	−26.0
	Green	Miranda Diboll [23]	2,453	4.3	+3.1
	Independent	Beki Adam [24]	958	1.7	N/A
	Monster Raving Loony	Baron Von Thunderclap	329	0.6	+0.1
Majority			24,286	42.2	+29.0
Turnout			57,492	72.3	−0.1
	Conservative hold		Swing	−0.95

General election 2010: Mid Sussex ^[25]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Nicholas Soames	28,329	50.7	+2.5
	Liberal Democrats	Serena Tierney	20,927	37.5	+1.8
	Labour	David Boot	3,689	6.6	–6.2
	UKIP	Marc Montgomery	1,423	2.5	–0.7
	Green	Paul Brown	645	1.2	N/A
	BNP	Stuart Minihane	583	1.0	N/A
	Monster Raving Loony	Baron von Thunderclap	259	0.5	N/A
Majority			7,402	13.2	+0.7
Turnout			55,855	72.4	+0.35
	Conservative hold		Swing	+1.3

Elections in the 2000s

General election 2005: Mid Sussex

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Nicholas Soames	23,765	48.0	+1.8
	Liberal Democrats	Serena Tierney	17,875	36.1	+5.0
	Labour	Robert Fromant	6,280	12.7	−6.3
	UKIP	Harold Piggott	1,574	3.2	+0.7
Majority			5,890	11.9	−3.2
Turnout			49,494	68.6	+3.7
	Conservative hold		Swing	−1.6

General election 2001: Mid Sussex

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Nicholas Soames	21,150	46.2	+2.7
	Liberal Democrats	Lesley Wilkins	14,252	31.1	+0.5
	Labour	Paul Mitchell	8,693	19.0	+0.4
	UKIP	Petrina Holdsworth	1,126	2.5	+1.4
	Monster Raving Loony	Baron Von Thunderclap Berry	601	1.3	N/A
Majority			6,898	15.1	+2.2
Turnout			45,822	64.9	−12.7
	Conservative hold		Swing

Elections in the 1990s

General election 1997: Mid Sussex ^[26]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Nicholas Soames	23,231	43.5	−15.5
	Liberal Democrats	Margaret Collins	16,377	30.6	+2.4
	Labour	Mervyn Hamilton	9,969	18.6	+8.0
	Referendum	Tam Large	3,146	5.9	N/A
	UKIP	J.V. Barnett	606	1.1	N/A
	Justice and Renewal Independent Party	Ernest Tudway	134	0.3	N/A
Majority			6,854	12.9	−17.9
Turnout			53,463	77.6
	Conservative hold		Swing

This constituency underwent boundary changes between the 1992 and 1997 general elections and thus change in share of vote is based on a notional calculation.

General election 1992: Mid Sussex ^[27]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Tim Renton	39,524	59.0	−2.1
	Liberal Democrats	Margaret Collins	18,996	28.4	−3.1
	Labour	L C Gregory	6,951	10.4	+3.0
	Green	H G Stevens	772	1.1	N/A
	Monster Raving Loony	P B Berry	392	0.6	N/A
	Independent	P D Hodkin	246	0.4	N/A
	Natural Law	A M A Hankey	89	0.1	N/A
Majority			20,528	30.6	+1.0
Turnout			66,970	82.9	+5.7
	Conservative hold		Swing

Elections in the 1980s

General election 1987: Mid Sussex

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Tim Renton	37,781	61.1	−0.3
	Liberal	Nicholas Westbrook	19,489	31.5	−0.8
	Labour	Robert Hughes	4,573	7.4	+1.4
Majority			18,292	29.6	+0.5
Turnout			61,843	77.2	+2.5
	Conservative hold		Swing

General election 1983: Mid Sussex

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Tim Renton	35,310	61.4
	Liberal	Jack Campbell	18,566	32.3
	Labour	Patricia Hawkes	3,470	6.0
	Independent	J Bray	196	0.3
Majority			16,744	29.1
Turnout			57,542	74.7
	Conservative hold		Swing

This constituency underwent boundary changes between the 1979 and 1983 general elections and thus calculation of the change in share of vote is not possible.

Elections in the 1970s

General election 1979: Mid Sussex

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Tim Renton	32,548	61.2	+7.3
	Liberal	Jack Campbell	11,705	22.0	−6.1
	Labour	Des Turner	8,260	15.5	−2.5
	Ind. Conservative	S M H Haslett	697	1.3	N/A
Majority			20,843	39.2	+13.4
Turnout			53,210	78.0	+1.6
	Conservative hold		Swing

General election October 1974: Mid Sussex

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Tim Renton	25,126	53.9	−0.2
	Liberal	Bob Symes	13,129	28.1	−1.9
	Labour	M R Fraser	8,404	18.0	+2.2
Majority			11,997	25.8	+1.7
Turnout			46,659	76.4	−6.9
	Conservative hold		Swing

General election February 1974: Mid Sussex

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Tim Renton	27,317	54.1
	Liberal	Bob Symes	15,162	30.0
	Labour	M R Fraser	7,993	15.8
Majority			12,155	24.1
Turnout			50,472	83.3
	Conservative win (new seat)

See also

• List of parliamentary constituencies in West Sussex
• List of parliamentary constituencies in the South East England (region)

Notes

1. A county 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 – South East". Boundary Commission for England. Retrieved 25 June 2024.
2. "Sussex Mid Parliamentary constituency". BBC.
3. "Local statistics – Office for National Statistics". ons.gov.uk.
4. "2011 census interactive maps". Archived from the original on 29 January 2016.
5. "The Parliamentary Constituencies Order 2023". Schedule 1 Part 6 South East region.
6. LGBCE. "Mid Sussex | LGBCE". www.lgbce.org.uk. Retrieved 3 April 2024.
7. "The Mid Sussex (Electoral Changes) Order 2022".
8. "New Seat Details - Mid Sussex". www.electoralcalculus.co.uk. Retrieved 3 April 2024.
9. Tan, Rebecca (4 September 2019). "Winston Churchill's grandson to be expelled from Tory Party for voting against Boris Johnson" . The Independent. London. Archived from the original on 14 May 2022.
10. Leigh Rayment's Historical List of MPs – Constituencies beginning with "S" (part 6)
11. "Liberal Democrat Prospective Parliamentary Candidates". Mark Pack . Retrieved 18 February 2024.
12. "Mid Sussex Conservatives select parliamentary candidate for next general election". Sussex Express . Retrieved 18 February 2024.
13. Badshah, Nadeem (6 March 2024). "Blur drummer Dave Rowntree selected as Labour candidate for general election". The Guardian . Retrieved 6 March 2024.
14. "Blur drummer new Labour candidate for Mid Sussex". BBC News . 7 March 2024. Retrieved 7 March 2024.
15. "Mid Sussex". The Guardian . Retrieved 9 June 2024.
16. "Notional results for a UK general election on 12 December 2019". Rallings & Thrasher, Professor David Denver (Scotland), Nicholas Whyte (NI) for Sky News, PA, BBC News and ITV News. UK Parliament . Retrieved 11 July 2024.
17. "Sussex Mid Parliamentary constituency". BBC News. Retrieved 13 December 2019.
18. "Loony Party Candidates" . Retrieved 7 May 2017.
19. "Sussex Mid". Election 2017. BBC. 9 June 2017. Retrieved 13 June 2017.
20. "Election Data 2015". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 17 October 2015. Retrieved 17 October 2015.
21. "Sussex Mid parliamentary constituency – Election 2017". BBC.
22. "Daisy Cooper PPC page". Liberal Democrats. Retrieved 21 February 2015.
23. "Mid Sussex and Crawley Green Party | Local party elects Prospective Parliamentary Candidates for Horsham and Mid Sussex". Archived from the original on 21 December 2014. Retrieved 2 December 2014.
24. "Mid Sussex". YourNextMP. Archived from the original on 21 February 2015. Retrieved 21 February 2015.
25. "Election Data 2010". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 26 July 2013. Retrieved 17 October 2015.
26. "'Sussex Mid', May 1997 -". ElectionWeb Project. Cognitive Computing Limited. Retrieved 18 May 2016.
27. "Politics Resources". Election 1992. Politics Resources. 9 April 1992. Archived from the original on 24 July 2011. Retrieved 6 December 2010.

Sources

• Election result, 2015 (BBC)
• Election result, 2010 (BBC)
• Election result, 2005 (BBC)
• Election results, 1997–2001 (BBC)
• Election results, 1997–2001 (Election Demon)
• Election results, 1983–1997 (Election Demon)
• Election results, 1974–2001 (Political Science Resources)

External links

• Mid Sussex UK Parliament constituency (boundaries April 1997 – April 2010) at MapIt UK
• Mid Sussex UK Parliament constituency (boundaries April 2010 – May 2024) at MapIt UK
• Mid Sussex UK Parliament constituency (boundaries from June 2024) at MapIt UK

50°58′N0°10′W / 50.96°N 0.17°W / 50.96; -0.17