Harrow West
Encyclopedia
Harrow West is a constituency represented in the House of Commons
of the Parliament of the United Kingdom
. It elects one Member of Parliament
(MP) by the first past the post system of election.
when the Harrow constituency
was split into new seats of Harrow East and Harrow West. It was reduced in size for the 1950 General Election
when a third Harrow seat, Harrow Central
, was created. The 1983 General Election
saw Harrow reduced back to two seats, resulting in Harrow West gaining parts of the abolished Harrow Central.
Unlike Harrow East, it had always been won by the Conservative party
until Labour
's landslide in 1997. The swing
of 17.5% was the eighth highest swing in that election, and it was the safest Conservative seat to be lost to Labour. The constituency produced another better than average result for Labour in 2001
with a swing from Conservative to Labour of 5.4%, a pro-Labour swing bettered in only four seats.
The area is known for the famous Harrow School
and also includes Harrow town centre. Labour lost the neighbouring Harrow East in 2010, but managed to hold on in this seat.
, the Boundary Commission for England have created a modified Harrow West constituency to deal with population changes. The upmarket area of Pinner
has been moved to a new constituency
called Ruislip, Northwood and Pinner
, making Harrow West a stronger Labour seat at the expense of the Conservatives than in 2005.
The 9 electoral wards used in the modified Harrow West constituency are:
British House of Commons
The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which also comprises the Sovereign and the House of Lords . Both Commons and Lords meet in the Palace of Westminster. The Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 650 members , who are known as Members...
of the Parliament of the United Kingdom
Parliament of the United Kingdom
The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London...
. It elects one Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
(MP) by the first past the post system of election.
Boundaries
The constituency was created for the first time at the 1945 General ElectionUnited Kingdom general election, 1945
The United Kingdom general election of 1945 was a general election held on 5 July 1945, with polls in some constituencies delayed until 12 July and in Nelson and Colne until 19 July, due to local wakes weeks. The results were counted and declared on 26 July, due in part to the time it took to...
when the Harrow constituency
Harrow (UK Parliament constituency)
Harrow was a parliamentary constituency centred on the Harrow suburb of North London. It returned one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom....
was split into new seats of Harrow East and Harrow West. It was reduced in size for the 1950 General Election
United Kingdom general election, 1950
The 1950 United Kingdom general election was the first general election ever after a full term of a Labour government. Despite polling over one and a half million votes more than the Conservatives, the election, held on 23 February 1950 resulted in Labour receiving a slim majority of just five...
when a third Harrow seat, Harrow Central
Harrow Central (UK Parliament constituency)
Harrow Central was a parliamentary constituency in Harrow, London, which returned one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1950 until it was abolished for the 1983 general election.-Members of Parliament:...
, was created. The 1983 General Election
United Kingdom general election, 1983
The 1983 United Kingdom general election was held on 9 June 1983. It gave the Conservative Party under Margaret Thatcher the most decisive election victory since that of Labour in 1945...
saw Harrow reduced back to two seats, resulting in Harrow West gaining parts of the abolished Harrow Central.
Unlike Harrow East, it had always been won by the Conservative party
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
until Labour
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
's landslide in 1997. The swing
Swing (politics)
An electoral swing analysis shows the extent of change in voter support from one election to another. It is an indicator of voter support for individual candidates or political parties, or voter preference between two or more candidates or parties...
of 17.5% was the eighth highest swing in that election, and it was the safest Conservative seat to be lost to Labour. The constituency produced another better than average result for Labour in 2001
United Kingdom general election, 2001
The United Kingdom general election, 2001 was held on Thursday 7 June 2001 to elect 659 members to the British House of Commons. It was dubbed "the quiet landslide" by the media, as the Labour Party was re-elected with another landslide result and only suffered a net loss of 6 seats...
with a swing from Conservative to Labour of 5.4%, a pro-Labour swing bettered in only four seats.
The area is known for the famous Harrow School
Harrow School
Harrow School, commonly known simply as "Harrow", is an English independent school for boys situated in the town of Harrow, in north-west London.. The school is of worldwide renown. There is some evidence that there has been a school on the site since 1243 but the Harrow School we know today was...
and also includes Harrow town centre. Labour lost the neighbouring Harrow East in 2010, but managed to hold on in this seat.
Boundary review
Following their review of parliamentary representation in North LondonNorth London
North London is the northern part of London, England. It is an imprecise description and the area it covers is defined differently for a range of purposes. Common to these definitions is that it includes districts located north of the River Thames and is used in comparison with South...
, the Boundary Commission for England have created a modified Harrow West constituency to deal with population changes. The upmarket area of Pinner
Pinner
- Climate :Pinner's geographical position on the far western side of North West London makes it the furthest London suburb from any UK coastline. Hence the lower prevalence of moderating maritime influences make Pinner noticeably warmer in the spring and the summer compared to the rest of the capital...
has been moved to a new constituency
Ruislip, Northwood and Pinner (UK Parliament constituency)
Ruislip, Northwood and Pinner is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election...
called Ruislip, Northwood and Pinner
Ruislip, Northwood and Pinner (UK Parliament constituency)
Ruislip, Northwood and Pinner is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election...
, making Harrow West a stronger Labour seat at the expense of the Conservatives than in 2005.
The 9 electoral wards used in the modified Harrow West constituency are:
- Greenhill, Harrow on the Hill, Headstone North, Headstone South, Marlborough, Rayners Lane, Roxbourne, Roxeth and West Harrow
Members of Parliament
| Election | Member | Party | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1945 United Kingdom general election, 1945 The United Kingdom general election of 1945 was a general election held on 5 July 1945, with polls in some constituencies delayed until 12 July and in Nelson and Colne until 19 July, due to local wakes weeks. The results were counted and declared on 26 July, due in part to the time it took to... |
Norman Bower | Conservative Conservative Party (UK) The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House... |
|
| 1951 United Kingdom general election, 1951 The 1951 United Kingdom general election was held eighteen months after the 1950 general election, which the Labour Party had won with a slim majority of just five seats... |
Sir Albert Braithwaite Albert Braithwaite Sir Albert Newby Braithwaite DSO was a British Conservative Party politician. He was the son of Albert Braithwaite, one time Lord Mayor of Leeds and Patti Braithwaite.... |
Conservative Conservative Party (UK) The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House... |
|
| 1960 by-election | Sir John Page John Page (UK politician) Sir Arthur John Page , known as Sir John Page, was a British Conservative politician.Page was educated at Harrow and Magdalene College, Cambridge... |
Conservative Conservative Party (UK) The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House... |
|
| 1987 United Kingdom general election, 1987 The United Kingdom general election of 1987 was held on 11 June 1987, to elect 650 members to the British House of Commons. The election was the third consecutive election victory for the Conservative Party under the leadership of Margaret Thatcher, who became the first Prime Minister since the 2nd... |
Robert Hughes Robert Gurth Hughes Robert Gurth Hughes was a British Conservative Party politician from 1980-97.In 1980 Hughes was elected to the Greater London Council representing Croydon Central, serving until 1986.... |
Conservative Conservative Party (UK) The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House... |
|
| 1997 United Kingdom general election, 1997 The United Kingdom general election, 1997 was held on 1 May 1997, more than five years after the previous election on 9 April 1992, to elect 659 members to the British House of Commons. The Labour Party ended its 18 years in opposition under the leadership of Tony Blair, and won the general... |
Gareth Thomas Gareth Thomas (English politician) Gareth Richard Thomas is a British Labour Co-operative politician, who has been the Member of Parliament for Harrow West since 1997... |
Labour Labour Party (UK) The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after... , then Labour Co-operative Labour Co-operative Labour and Co-operative describes those candidates in British elections standing on behalf of both the Labour Party and the Co-operative Party, based on a national agreement between the two parties.... |
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