Brighouse and Spenborough (UK Parliament constituency)

Last updated

Brighouse and Spenborough
Former Borough constituency
for the House of Commons
19501983
Seatsone
Created from Elland
Spen Valley
Replaced by Batley and Spen
Calder Valley

Brighouse and Spenborough was a parliamentary constituency in the West Riding of Yorkshire, comprising the two municipal boroughs of Brighouse and Spenborough and neighbouring areas. [1] It returned one Member of Parliament (MP) to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom.

Contents

Boundaries

1950–1955: The Borough of Brighouse, and the Urban Districts of Queensberry and Shelf, and Spenborough.

1955–1983: The Borough of Brighouse, the Urban District of Heckmondwike, and the Urban District of Spenborough (a borough from 29 July 1955).

History

The constituency was created for the 1950 general election. The boundaries were redrawn for the 1955 general election: Queensbury and Shelf Urban District was transferred to Bradford South while Heckmondwike Urban District was added to this seat from the pre-1955 Dewsbury. [1] [2] These boundaries were used until the constituency's abolition for the 1983 general election.

In 1983 parliamentary seats were reorganised to reflect the changes in local government introduced in 1974. The area had become part of the Metropolitan County of West Yorkshire and was divided between two new constituencies: Batley and Spen (including Heckmondwike and Spenborough) and Calder Valley (including Brighouse). [3] This seat's last MP, the Conservative Gary Waller, moved to the redrawn Keighley constituency, which he held until 1997.

Members of Parliament

ElectionMemberPartyNotes
1950 Frederick Cobb Labour Previously MP for Elland from 1945. Died March 1950
1950 by-election John Edwards Labour Died November 1959
1960 by-election Michael Shaw National Liberal
1964 Colin Jackson Labour
1970 Wilfred Proudfoot Conservative
Feb 1974 Colin Jackson Labour
1979 Gary Waller Conservative
1983 constituency abolished: see Batley and Spen & Calder Valley

Elections

Elections in the 1950s

General election 1950: Brighouse and Spenborough
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Labour Frederick Cobb 25,58852.17
National Liberal William Woolley 23,45647.83
Majority2,1324.34
Turnout 49,04488.04
Labour win (new seat)
1950 Brighouse and Spenborough by-election
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Labour John Edwards 24,00450.51.71
National Liberal William Woolley 23,56749.5+1.71
Majority4370.913.43
Turnout 47,57185.42.6
Labour hold Swing 1.71
General election 1951: Brighouse and Spenborough
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Labour John Edwards 26,10552.28+0.11
National Liberal William Woolley 23,82847.72-0.11
Majority2,2774.56+0.21
Turnout 49,93388.69+0.65
Labour hold Swing +0.11
General election 1955: Brighouse and Spenborough
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Labour John Edwards 23,67451.78-0.50
National Liberal Frederick William Howard Cook22,04848.22+0.50
Majority1,6263.56-1.00
Turnout 45,72283.72-4.97
Labour hold Swing -0.50
General election 1959: Brighouse and Spenborough
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Labour John Edwards 23,29050.05-1.73
National Liberal Michael Shaw 23,24349.95+1.73
Majority470.10-3.46
Turnout 46,53385.50+1.78
Labour hold Swing -1.73

Elections in the 1960s

1960 Brighouse and Spenborough by-election
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
National Liberal Michael Shaw 22,47250.8+0.9
Labour Colin Jackson 21,80649.2-0.9
Majority6661.6N/A
Turnout 44,278
National Liberal gain from Labour Swing +0.8
General election 1964: Brighouse and Spenborough
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Labour Colin Jackson 20,73444.16-7.62
National Liberal Michael Shaw 19,81242.19-6.03
Liberal James Pickles 6,41113.65New
Majority9221.97+3.47
Turnout 46,95785.28-0.22
Labour hold Swing -0.8
General election 1966: Brighouse and Spenborough
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Labour Colin Jackson 25,74054.82+10.66
Conservative Cyril Donald Chapman21,21645.18+2.99
Majority4,5249.64+7.68
Turnout 46,95683.96-1.32
Labour hold Swing +3.80

Elections in the 1970s

General election 1970: Brighouse and Spenborough
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Conservative Wilf Proudfoot 22,95346.3+1.1
Labour Colin Jackson 22,89446.1-8.7
Liberal George Henry Manley3,7817.62New
Majority590.12+9.75
Turnout 49,62880.54-3.42
Conservative gain from Labour Swing +4.86
General election February 1974: Brighouse and Spenborough
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Labour Colin Jackson 22,10741.04-5.09
Conservative Wilf Proudfoot 20,56138.17-8.08
Liberal Patrick G Robertshaw11,02920.47+12.85
Ind. Democratic AllianceShirley Milner1690.31New
Majority1,5462.87+2.99
Turnout 53,86685.31+4.77
Labour gain from Conservative Swing -1.99
General election October 1974: Brighouse and Spenborough
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Labour Colin Jackson 21,96443.91+2.87
Conservative Wilf Proudfoot 19,78739.56+1.39
Liberal John Smithson8,26516.52-3.95
Majority2,1774.35+1.48
Turnout 49,97678.59-6.72
Labour hold Swing +0.74
General election 1979: Brighouse and Spenborough
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Conservative Gary Waller 23,44844.71+5.15
Labour Michael McGowan 21,71441.41-2.50
Liberal R Thomas7,27813.88-2.70
Majority1,7343.30N/A
Turnout 52,44080.17+1.58
Conservative gain from Labour Swing +3.83

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References

  1. 1 2 Youngs, Frederic A. Jr. (1991). Guide to the Local Administrative Units of England, Vol.2: Northern England. London: Royal Historical Society. p. 848. ISBN   0861931270.
  2. Parliamentary Constituencies (Bradford, Brighouse and Spenborough and Dewsbury) Order 1954
  3. The Parliamentary Constituencies (England) Order 1983 (S.I. 1983/417)