North_West_Cambridgeshire
North West Cambridgeshire (UK Parliament constituency)
Parliamentary constituency in the United Kingdom, 1997 onwards
North West Cambridgeshire is a county constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom since 2005 by Shailesh Vara of the Conservative Party. It elects one Member of Parliament (MP) by the first past the post system of election.
| North West Cambridgeshire | |
|---|---|
| County constituency for the House of Commons | |
Boundary of North West Cambridgeshire in Cambridgeshire | |
Location of Cambridgeshire within England | |
| County | Cambridgeshire |
| Electorate | 91,982 (2018)[1] |
| Major settlements | Peterborough (part), Ramsey |
| Current constituency | |
| Created | 1997 |
| Member of Parliament | Shailesh Vara (Conservative) |
| Created from | Huntingdon, Peterborough |
This safe Conservative Party seat includes a substantial part of the cathedral city of Peterborough, specifically the suburban areas to the south of the river Nene and west of the Soke Parkway, as well as several rural wards from the historic county of Huntingdonshire. While both Labour and the Liberal Democrats are competitive in some wards at local elections, the opposition is evenly divided, and there is a strong Conservative presence in all parts of the seat, ensuring a large majority for the Conservatives.
The London Road home of Peterborough United F.C. is located within the seat.
The seat was won upon its creation in 1997 by Sir Brian Mawhinney, former Conservative MP for Peterborough (which was gained at the same election by the Labour Party). He retired from the House of Commons in 2005 and was created Baron Mawhinney, of Peterborough in the county of Cambridgeshire. The Conservative Shailesh Vara has represented the constituency since the 2005 general election.
Withdrawn candidates in 2019
Liam Round was selected to be the Brexit Party candidate, but he withdrew on 10 November.[2] Peterborough City Councillor Ed Murphy was chosen as the Labour Party candidate, but was deselected by the party on 14 November after it was alleged, but not proven, that he had published tweets vilifying Israel.[3]
1997–2010
- The District of Huntingdonshire wards of Bury, Earith, Elton, Farcet, Ramsey, Sawtry, Somersham, Stilton, Upwood and the Raveleys, Warboys, and Yaxley; and
- The City of Peterborough wards of Barnack, Fletton, Glinton, Northborough, Orton Longueville, Orton Waterville, Stanground, and Wittering.[4]
The constituency was formed primarily from northern, rural parts of the Huntingdon constituency, including Ramsey, together with parts of Peterborough, comprising residential areas to the south of the River Nene (wards of Fletton, Orton Longueville, Orton Waterville and Stanground).
2010–present
- The District of Huntingdonshire wards of Earith, Ellington, Elton and Folksworth, Ramsey, Sawtry, Somersham, Stilton, Upwood and the Raveleys, Warboys and Bury, and Yaxley and Farcet; and
- The City of Peterborough wards of Barnack, Fletton, Glinton and Wittering, Northborough, Orton Longueville, Orton Waterville, Orton with Hampton, Stanground Central, and Stanground East.[5]
Following their review of parliamentary representation in Cambridgeshire in 2005, the Boundary Commission for England made minor alterations to the existing constituencies to deal with population changes, including a small further gain from Huntingdon. There were also marginal changes to take account of the redistribution of City of Peterborough wards. These changes increased the electorate from 69,082 to 73,648.[6] On the enumeration date of 17 February 2000, the electoral quota for England was 69,934 voters per constituency.[6]
Proposed Changes
Further to the 2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies, enacted by the Parliamentary Constituencies Order 2023, the constituency, previously the highest populated in the United Kingdom, is to be downsized. This is also due to population growth in the middle and south of Cambridgeshire, necessitating the creation of the new St Neots and Mid Cambridgeshire seat, with the Huntingdon constituency absorbing many of Huntingdonshire District Council wards.[7]
From the next general election, due by January 2025, the constituency will be composed of the following wards (as they existed on 1st December 2020):
- Peterborough City Council: Barnack (one councillor), Fletton & Stanground (three councillors), Fletton & Woodston (three councillors), Glinton & Caster (two councillors), Hargate & Hempstead (three councillors), Hampton Vale (three councillors), Orton Longueville (three councillors), Orton Waterville (three councillors), Stanground South (three councillors) and Wittering (one councillor).[8]
- Huntingdonshire District Council: Ramsey (three councillors), Stilton, Folksworth & Washingley (two councillors) and Yaxley (three councillors).[9]
New Political Make up
There are 33 council seats across the new constituency, 25 Unitary Authority Councillors (Peterborough), 8 Huntingdonshire Councillors.
Conservative 17 (9 in Peterborough, 8 in Huntingdonshire); Labour 2 (both in Peterborough); Liberal Democrat 3 (all in Peterborough); Green 3 (all in Peterborough); Independent 9 (8 in Peterborough, 1 in Huntingdonshire).
| Election | Member[10] | Party | |
|---|---|---|---|
| part of Huntingdon and Peterborough prior to 1997 | |||
| 1997 | Sir Brian Mawhinney | Conservative | |
| 2005 | Shailesh Vara | Conservative | |
Elections in the 2020s
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Shailesh Vara[11] | ||||
| Green | Elliot Tong[12] | ||||
| Majority | |||||
| Turnout | |||||
Elections in the 2010s
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Shailesh Vara | 40,307 | 62.5 | +3.9 | |
| Labour | Cathy Cordiner-Achenbach | 14,324 | 22.2 | -8.3 | |
| Liberal Democrats | Bridget Smith | 6,881 | 10.7 | +5.7 | |
| Green | Nicola Day | 3,021 | 4.7 | +2.7 | |
| Majority | 25,983 | 40.3 | +12.2 | ||
| Turnout | 64,533 | 68.0 | -0.8 | ||
| Conservative hold | Swing | +6.1 | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Shailesh Vara | 37,529 | 58.6 | +6.1 | |
| Labour | Iain Ramsbottom | 19,521 | 30.5 | +12.6 | |
| Liberal Democrats | Bridget Smith | 3,168 | 5.0 | -0.7 | |
| UKIP | John Whitby | 2,518 | 3.9 | -16.2 | |
| Green | Greg Guthrie | 1,255 | 2.0 | -1.5 | |
| Majority | 18,008 | 28.1 | -4.3 | ||
| Turnout | 63,991 | 68.8 | +2.2 | ||
| Conservative hold | Swing | +3.2 | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Shailesh Vara | 32,070 | 52.5 | +2.0 | |
| UKIP | Peter Reeve[17] | 12,275 | 20.1 | +11.8 | |
| Labour | Nick Thulbourn[17] | 10,927 | 17.9 | +1.0 | |
| Liberal Democrats | Nicholas Sandford[18] | 3,479 | 5.7 | −16.2 | |
| Green | Nicola Day[19] | 2,159 | 3.5 | New | |
| CPA | Fay Belham | 190 | 0.3 | New | |
| Majority | 19,795 | 32.4 | +3.8 | ||
| Turnout | 61,100 | 66.6 | +1.0 | ||
| Conservative hold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Shailesh Vara | 29,425 | 50.5 | +4.3[22] | |
| Liberal Democrats | Kevin Wilkins[23] | 12,748 | 21.9 | −1.0 | |
| Labour | Chris York | 9,877 | 16.9 | −8.7 | |
| UKIP | Robert Brown | 4,826 | 8.3 | +3.0 | |
| English Democrat | Stephen Goldspink | 1,407 | 2.4 | New | |
| Majority | 16,677 | 28.6 | |||
| Turnout | 58,283 | 65.6 | +2.3 | ||
| Conservative hold | Swing | ||||
Elections in the 2000s
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Shailesh Vara | 22,504 | 45.8 | −4.0 | |
| Labour | Ayfer Orhan | 12,671 | 25.8 | −5.6 | |
| Liberal Democrats | John Souter | 11,232 | 22.9 | +7.1 | |
| UKIP | Robert Brown | 2,685 | 5.5 | +3.5 | |
| Majority | 9,833 | 20.0 | +1.6 | ||
| Turnout | 49,092 | 61.6 | −0.1 | ||
| Conservative hold | Swing | +0.8 | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Brian Mawhinney | 21,895 | 49.8 | +1.7 | |
| Labour | Anthea Cox | 13,794 | 31.4 | −0.8 | |
| Liberal Democrats | Alastair Taylor | 6,957 | 15.8 | +0.7 | |
| UKIP | Barry Hudson | 881 | 2.0 | +1.4 | |
| Independent | David Hall | 429 | 1.0 | New | |
| Majority | 8,101 | 18.4 | +2.5 | ||
| Turnout | 43,956 | 61.7 | −12.5 | ||
| Conservative hold | Swing | ||||
Elections in the 1990s
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Brian Mawhinney | 23,488 | 48.1 | ||
| Labour | Lee Steptoe | 15,734 | 32.2 | ||
| Liberal Democrats | Barbara McCoy | 7,388 | 15.1 | ||
| Referendum | Sandy Watts | 1,939 | 4.0 | ||
| UKIP | William Wyatt | 269 | 0.6 | ||
| Majority | 7,754 | 15.9 | |||
| Turnout | 48,818 | 74.2 | |||
| Conservative win (new seat) | |||||
- "England Parliamentary electorates 2010-2018". Boundary Commission for England. Retrieved 23 March 2019.
- "Brexit Party General Election candidate for North West Cambridgeshire steps down". Peterborough Telegraph. Retrieved 14 November 2019.
- "Labour 'deselects' General Election candidate for North West Cambridgeshire constituency". Peterborough Telegraph. Retrieved 14 November 2019.
- "The Parliamentary Constituencies (England) Order 1995". www.legislation.gov.uk. Retrieved 6 March 2019.
- "The Parliamentary Constituencies (England) Order 2007". www.legislation.gov.uk. Retrieved 6 March 2019.
- England., Boundary Commission for (2007). Fifth periodical report : presented to Parliament pursuant to section 3(5) of the Parliamentary Constituencies Act 1986. London: Sationery Office. ISBN 9780101703222. OCLC 85783106.
- "Shailesh Vara MP re-adopted as candidate for next general election". North West Cambridgeshire Conservatives. Retrieved 2 December 2023.
- "Cambridgeshire North West Parliamentary constituency". BBC News. BBC. Retrieved 19 November 2019.
- "Election Data 2015". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 17 October 2015. Retrieved 17 October 2015.
- "Cambridgeshire North West parliamentary constituency - Election 2015 - BBC News". Retrieved 8 May 2015.
- "CAMBRIDGESHIRE NORTH WEST 2015". electionresults.blogspot.co.uk.
- "General Election 2015 Candidates - Liberal Democrats". Archived from the original on 13 April 2014.
- "Former Labour Party member to stand for Greens in the general election". www.peterboroughtoday.co.uk.
- Cambridgeshire North West, BBC News
- Cambridgeshire North-West, UKPollingReport
- Percentage changes based on notional results due to boundary changes
- "Kevin Wilkins – PPC for North West Cambridgeshire | People". Archived from the original on 15 April 2010.