South Cambridgeshire (UK Parliament constituency)

South Cambridgeshire
County constituency for the House of Commons
Boundary of South Cambridgeshire in Cambridgeshire
Location of Cambridgeshire within England
County	Cambridgeshire
Electorate	83,790 (2018) [1]
Major settlements	Cambourne Cottenham Sawston
Current constituency
Created	1997
Member of Parliament	Anthony Browne (Conservative)
Seats	One
Created from	South West Cambridgeshire (most) South East Cambridgeshire (part)

South Cambridgeshire is a constituency ^{[n 1]} represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2019 by Anthony Browne, a Conservative. ^{[n 2]}

Constituency profile

The constituency includes some outskirts of Cambridge such as Girton and its eponymous Cambridge College, and a large spread of rural land to the west of the city, which is generally affluent. The population live in villages, most of which are compact – the most densely populated are in the south where two railway lines and the M11 motorway provide rapid access to London. The seat's only ward (Queen Edith's) that lies within the City of Cambridge has a strong Liberal Democrat vote. This ward also contains the Cambridge College Homerton and Addenbrooke's Hospital.

Registered jobseekers totalled 1.4% of the population, much lower than the regional average of 3.1% and the national average of 3.8% of the population in a statistical compilation by The Guardian in November 2012. ^[2] In 2017 South Cambridgeshire was identified as the constituency with the lowest proportion of claimants of unemployment benefits in the whole of the country, with only 0.6% of the economically active population claiming either Job Seekers Allowance or Universal Credit. ^[3]

Boundaries and boundary changes

Map of current boundaries

The old boundaries of South Cambridgeshire as used at the 1997, 2001 and 2005 general elections.

1997–2010

• The District of South Cambridgeshire wards of Arrington, Bar Hill, Barrington and Shepreth, Barton, Bassingbourn, Bourn, Comberton, Coton, Duxford, Elsworth, Foxton, Gamlingay, Girton, Great Shelford, Hardwick, Harston, Haslingfield, Ickleton, Little Shelford, Longstanton, Melbourn, Meldreth, Orwell, Papworth, Sawston, Stapleford, Swavesey, The Mordens, and Whittlesford; and

• The City of Cambridge wards of Queen Edith's and Trumpington. ^[4]

The constituency was created following the boundary review of 1995, and was first contested at the 1997 general election. Before this, much of the region had been part of the now abolished South West Cambridgeshire constituency represented by Sir Anthony Grant from 1983 to 1997, ^[5] while the wards of Bar Hill, Coton, Elsworth, Girton, Longstanton and Swavesey were transferred from South East Cambridgeshire.

2010–present

• The District of South Cambridgeshire wards of Bar Hill, Barton, Bassingbourn, Bourn, Caldecote, Comberton, Cottenham, Duxford, Fowlmere and Foxton, Gamlingay, Girton, Grantchester, Hardwick, Harston and Hauxton, Haslingfield and The Eversdens, Longstanton, Melbourn, Meldreth, Orwell and Barrington, Papworth and Elsworth, Sawston, Swavesey, The Abingtons, The Mordens, The Shelfords and Stapleford, and Whittlesford; and

• The City of Cambridge ward of Queen Edith's. ^[6]

Following the 2007 review of parliamentary representation in Cambridgeshire, the Boundary Commission made minor alterations to the existing constituencies to deal with population changes.

Trumpington ward and parts of Coleridge and Cherry Hinton wards in the City of Cambridge were transferred to Cambridge, having previously been part of South Cambridgeshire. ^[7]

Additionally, parts of Cottenham ward (specifically the civil parishes of Cottenham and Rampton) and the Abingtons (Babraham, Great Abington, Little Abington and Pampisford) were added to South Cambridgeshire, having previously voted in the South East Cambridgeshire constituency. ^[8]

Proposed

Further to the 2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies, enacted by the Parliamentary Constituencies Order 2023, the composition of the constituency from the next general election, due by January 2025, will be (as they existed on 1^st December 2020):

• The City of Cambridge wards of: Cherry Hinton; Queen Edith’s.

• The District of South Cambridgeshire wards of: Balsham; Barrington; Bassingbourn; Duxford; Fen Ditton & Fulbourn; Foxton; Gamlingay; Hardwick; Harston & Comberton; Linton; Melbourn; Sawston; Shelford; The Mordens; Whittlesford. ^[9]

The seat will be subject to major changes, with northern areas, including the new towns of Cambourne and Northstowe, being transferred to the newly created constituency of St Neots and Mid Cambridgeshire. To partly compensate, it will gain the Cherry Hinton ward in the City of Cambridge and southern parts of the (to be abolished) constituency of South East Cambridgeshire, including the villages of Fulbourn and Linton.

Members of Parliament

Election	Member [10]	Party
1997	Andrew Lansley		Conservative
2015	Heidi Allen		Conservative
2019			Change UK
			Independent
			The Independents
			Liberal Democrats
2019	Anthony Browne		Conservative

Elections

Elections in the 2020s

Next general election: South Cambridgeshire

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	SDP	Adam Augustyn [11]
	Conservative	Chris Carter-Chapman [12]
	Green	Oliver Fisher [13]
	Liberal Democrats	Pippa Heylings [14]
Majority
Turnout

Elections in the 2010s

General election 2019: South Cambridgeshire ^[15]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Anthony Browne	31,015	46.3	−5.5
	Liberal Democrats	Ian Sollom	28,111	42.0	+23.4
	Labour	Dan Greef	7,803	11.7	−15.5
Majority			2,904	4.3	−20.3
Turnout			66,929	76.7	+0.5
	Conservative hold		Swing	−14.4

General election 2017: South Cambridgeshire ^[16]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Heidi Allen	33,631	51.8	+0.7
	Labour	Dan Greef	17,679	27.2	+9.6
	Liberal Democrats	Susan van de Ven	12,102	18.6	+3.4
	Green	Simon Saggers	1,512	2.3	−4.0
Majority			15,952	24.6	−8.9
Turnout			64,924	76.2	+3.1
	Conservative hold		Swing	−4.5

General election 2015: South Cambridgeshire ^{[17] [18]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Heidi Allen	31,454	51.1	+3.7
	Labour	Dan Greef	10,860	17.6	+7.4
	Liberal Democrats	Sebastian Kindersley	9,368	15.2	−18.9
	UKIP	Marion Mason	6,010	9.8	+6.6
	Green	Simon Saggers	3,848	6.3	+4.5
Majority			20,594	33.5	+20.2
Turnout			61,540	73.1	−1.7
	Conservative hold		Swing	−1.9

General election 2010: South Cambridgeshire ^{[19] [20] [21]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Andrew Lansley	27,995	47.4	+0.9 [22]
	Liberal Democrats	Sebastian Kindersley	20,157	34.1	+5.8
	Labour	Tariq Sadiq	6,024	10.2	−9.5
	Independent	Robin Page	1,968	3.3	New
	UKIP	Helene Davies-Green	1,873	3.2	+0.4
	Green	Simon Saggers	1,039	1.8	−1.0
Majority			7,838	13.3	+4.9
Turnout			59,056	74.8	+6.6
	Conservative hold		Swing	−2.5

Elections in the 2000s

General election 2005: South Cambridgeshire

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Andrew Lansley	23,676	45.0	+0.8
	Liberal Democrats	Andrew Dickson	15,675	29.8	+2.9
	Labour	Sandra Wilson	10,189	19.4	−4.9
	UKIP	Robin Page	1,556	3.0	+1.2
	Green	Simon Saggers	1,552	2.9	+0.5
Majority			8,001	15.2	-2.1
Turnout			52,648	68.4	+1.3
	Conservative hold		Swing	−1.1

General election 2001: South Cambridgeshire

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Andrew Lansley	21,387	44.2	+2.2
	Liberal Democrats	Amanda Taylor	12,984	26.9	+1.1
	Labour	Joan Herbert	11,737	24.3	−0.8
	Green	Simon Saggers	1,182	2.4	New
	UKIP	Helene Davies	875	1.8	+1.2
	ProLife Alliance	Beata Klepacka	176	0.4	New
Majority			8,403	17.3	+1.1
Turnout			48,341	67.1	−9.8
	Conservative hold		Swing	+0.6

Elections in the 1990s

General election 1997: South Cambridgeshire

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Andrew Lansley	22,572	42.0
	Liberal Democrats	James A. Quinlan	13,860	25.8
	Labour	Tony Gray	13,485	25.1
	Referendum	Robin Page	3,300	6.1
	UKIP	Derek A. Norman	298	0.6
	Natural Law	Francis C. Chalmers	168	0.3
Majority			8,712	16.2
Turnout			53,683	76.9
	Conservative win (new seat)

See also

• List of parliamentary constituencies in Cambridgeshire
• South Cambridgeshire (administrative district)

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. "England Parliamentary electorates 2010–2018". Boundary Commission for England. Retrieved 23 March 2019.
2. Unemployment claimants by constituency The Guardian
3. McGuinness, Feargal; Brown, Jennifer; Powell, Andy. "People claiming unemployment benefits by constituency, March 2017".{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
4. "The Parliamentary Constituencies (England) Order 1995". www.legislation.gov.uk. Retrieved 6 March 2019.
5. South Cambridgeshire, BBC News
6. "The Parliamentary Constituencies (England) Order 2007". www.legislation.gov.uk. Retrieved 6 March 2019.
7. 2010 elections Archived 12 April 2010 at the Wayback Machine , Cambridge City Council
8. Elections 2010 Archived 13 March 2010 at the Wayback Machine , South Cambridgeshire District Council
9. "The Parliamentary Constituencies Order 2023". Schedule I Part 2 Eastern region.
10. Leigh Rayment's Historical List of MPs – Constituencies beginning with "C" (part 1)
11. "General Election Candidates". SDP. 22 January 2024. Retrieved 23 January 2024.
12. "Carter-Chapman selected in South Cambridgeshire for being an "incredibly strong campaigner"". conservativehome. Retrieved 30 November 2023.
13. "Cambridge and South Cambridgeshire Green Party Parliamentary Candidates". Cambridge and South Cambridgeshire Green Party. Retrieved 8 February 2024.
14. "Liberal Democrat Prospective Parliamentary Candidates". Mark Pack . Retrieved 21 December 2023.
15. "Cambridgeshire South Parliamentary constituency". BBC News. BBC. Retrieved 19 November 2019.
16. "Susan van de Ven". Archived from the original on 21 April 2017.
17. "Election Data 2015". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 17 October 2015. Retrieved 17 October 2015.
18. "Cambridgeshire South parliamentary constituency – Election 2017" – via www.bbc.co.uk.
19. Notice of Poll and Statement of Persons Nominated – South Cambridgeshire Constituency Archived 26 August 2011 at the Wayback Machine , South Cambridgeshire District Council
20. South Cambridgeshire, UKPollingReport
21. Commons goal for newest hopefuls, CambridgeNews Online
22. Percentage changes based on notional results due to boundary changes

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