Bury_South_(UK_Parliament_constituency)

Bury South (UK Parliament constituency)

Bury South (UK Parliament constituency)

Parliamentary constituency in the United Kingdom, 1983 onwards


Bury South is a borough constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. At the 2019 General Election it was the 10th most marginal seat in the country,[3] with a majority of 402 for the Conservative Party candidate Christian Wakeford. Wakeford defected to the Labour Party on 19 January 2022.[4]

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Boundaries

Map of present boundaries

1983–2010: The Metropolitan Borough of Bury wards of Besses, Holyrood, Pilkington Park, Radcliffe Central, Radcliffe North, Radcliffe South, St Mary's, and Sedgley.

2010–present: The Metropolitan Borough of Bury wards of Besses, Holyrood, Pilkington Park, Radcliffe East, Radcliffe North, Radcliffe West, St Mary's, Sedgley, and Unsworth.

The constituency was created in 1983 from parts of the former seats of Middleton and Prestwich & Bury and Radcliffe, both of which were Labour-Conservative marginals, held by Labour on slim majorities at the 1979 election. It covers the suburban towns of Radcliffe, Whitefield and Prestwich. The constituency does not contain any area of the town of Bury itself (which is in Bury North), apart from Unsworth, but only towns in the south of the Metropolitan Borough of Bury.

Proposed

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

  • The Metropolitan Borough of Bury wards of: Besses; Holyrood; Pilkington Park; Radcliffe East; Radcliffe West; St. Mary’s; Sedgley; Unsworth.
  • The City of Salford ward of Kersal & Broughton Park.[5]

The Radcliffe North ward will be transferred to Bury North, offset by the gain of the City of Salford ward of Kersal & Broughton Park from Blackley and Broughton (to be abolished).

History

Between 1997 and 2019, the seat was represented by Ivan Lewis. Lewis belonged to the Labour Party, but was suspended in 2018 due to allegations of indecent behaviour. He stood unsuccessfully as an independent in the 2019 election. Prior to 1997, it had been represented by Conservative David Sumberg since the constituency's creation in 1983.

The seat was contested by future cabinet minister Hazel Blears in 1992, narrowly losing and would later be elected in her hometown in nearby Salford the following election until retiring in 2015. The 2017 General Election saw Robert Largan as the runner-up Conservative candidate, who would later be elected for High Peak at the following general election in 2019.

Constituency profile

The seat covers Prestwich, Whitefield and Radcliffe, towns that were absorbed into the Metropolitan Borough of Bury in 1974. The western border contains much of Bury's green belt land including Philips Park in Whitefield, Prestwich Clough and Drinkwater Park, making up 500 acres of green space. Prestwich and Whitefield are residential areas with one of the largest Jewish communities outside London. Radcliffe is a former mill town which declined after the loss of industry, with its only secondary school shut down; it is attempting regeneration as a commuter suburb and features a large park-and-ride Metrolink station. North Radcliffe includes Ainsworth, a rural area, along with Simister to the east of Prestwich which still has some farmland, now under threat from development. Overall this is an economically diverse area, as there are pockets of social housing in each town, while houses in areas such as Ringley Road in Whitefield, and Sheepfoot Lane in Prestwich, facing Heaton Park, can sell for over £1 million, with mostly owner-occupied semi-detached housing in between. The proportion of graduates and those employed in managerial/professional occupations is slightly above the national average.[6]

At local elections, Prestwich mostly returns Labour and Liberal Democrat councillors, with some Conservative representation in Sedgley. Whitefield is a mix of safe Conservative and safe Labour, and Unsworth marginally Labour. Radcliffe was generally Labour with the exception of Radcliffe North. In 2019, the Conservatives gained their second Radcliffe North seat, and Labour lost both Radcliffe East and West wards to an independent local party, Radcliffe First.

Members of Parliament

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Elections

Elections in the 2020s

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Elections in the 2010s

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Elections in the 2000s

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Elections in the 1990s

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Elections in the 1980s

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See also


References

  1. "Bury South: Usual Resident Population, 2011". Neighbourhood Statistics. Office for National Statistics. Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 7 February 2015.
  2. "Electorate Figures - Boundary Commission for England". 2011 Electorate Figures. Boundary Commission for England. 4 March 2011. Archived from the original on 6 November 2010. Retrieved 13 March 2011.
  3. "Commons Briefing Paper 8749. General Election 2019: results and analysis" (PDF). London: House of Commons Library. 28 January 2020. p. 72. Archived (PDF) from the original on 18 November 2021. Retrieved 19 January 2022.
  4. "Tory MP Christian Wakeford defects to Labour". BBC News. 19 January 2022. Retrieved 19 January 2022.
  5. "The Parliamentary Constituencies Order 2023". Schedule 1 Part 5 North West region.
  6. "Conservatives selects candidate for Bury South". Bury Times. Retrieved 27 January 2024.
  7. "Bury South Constituency". Reform UK. Retrieved 27 January 2024.
  8. Sansome, Jessica; Otter, Saffron (14 November 2019). "All the Greater Manchester General Election 2019 candidates". Manchester Evening News. Retrieved 15 November 2019.
  9. "Election Data 2015". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 17 October 2015. Retrieved 17 October 2015.
  10. "Bury South". BBC News. Retrieved 11 May 2015.
  11. "Election Data 2010". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 26 July 2013. Retrieved 17 October 2015.
  12. "Election Data 2005". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
  13. "Election Data 2001". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
  14. "Election Data 1997". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
  15. "Election Data 1992". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
  16. "Politics Resources". Election 1992. Politics Resources. 9 April 1992. Archived from the original on 24 July 2011. Retrieved 6 December 2010.
  17. "Election Data 1987". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
  18. "Election Data 1983". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.

53.580°N 2.299°W / 53.580; -2.299


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