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Strangford (UK Parliament constituency)
Encyclopedia
Strangford is a Parliamentary Constituency in the United Kingdom House of Commons.
. In 1995, the Commission controversially recommended abolishing the constituency and dividing it between North Down and new constituencies of Mid Down and Castlereagh & Newtownards. This was successfully opposed in local enquiries and from 1995 it was made up of parts of the districts of Ards, Castlereagh and Down.
Despite the name the seat does not currently contain the town of Strangford
which is instead a part of South Down
.
Following consultation, the electoral districts to make up the constituency to be fought at the next UK general election are as follows:
and from 1950 until 1983, please see North Down (UK Parliament constituency)
.
The constituency is overwhelmingly unionist, with the combined votes for nationalist
parties rarely exceeding 10%. However there have been significant votes for parties outside the traditional unionist block, such as the Alliance
and the Conservatives
, whilst the UK Unionist Party
has also polled well here, challenging the two main unionist parties. At the local level independent council candidates have polled well.
The main interest in elections has been the contest between the Ulster Unionist Party
and the Democratic Unionist Party
. Until 2001
the UUP were clearly ahead of the DUP in the Westminster elections, but elections to regional assemblies and local government were much closer. In 2001
the sitting MP John Taylor
stood down and the contest to succeed him was fierce. The seat was won by Iris Robinson
for the Democratic Unionist Party
and the subsequent 2003 assembly election
saw the DUP increase their vote further. There is scepticism as to whether the UUP can retake the seat, though the proposed boundary changes may alter matters.
between the 2001 general election
and her resignation
in January 2010 was Iris Robinson
of the Democratic Unionist Party
. She succeeded John Taylor
of the Ulster Unionist Party
.
Note: Iris Robinson left the DUP shortly before taking Chiltern Hundreds
in order to leave the Commons.
Boundaries
The seat was created in boundary changes in 1983, as part of an expansion of Northern Ireland's constituencies from 12 to 17, and was predominantly made up from parts of North DownNorth Down (UK Parliament constituency)
North Down is a Parliamentary Constituency in the United Kingdom House of Commons. The current MP is Sylvia Hermon, elected as an Independent in the 2010 General Election. -Boundaries:The county constituency was first created in 1885 from the northern part of Down...
. In 1995, the Commission controversially recommended abolishing the constituency and dividing it between North Down and new constituencies of Mid Down and Castlereagh & Newtownards. This was successfully opposed in local enquiries and from 1995 it was made up of parts of the districts of Ards, Castlereagh and Down.
Despite the name the seat does not currently contain the town of Strangford
Strangford
Strangford is a small village at the mouth of Strangford Lough in County Down, Northern Ireland. It had a population of 475 people at the 2001 Census.On the other side of the lough is Portaferry and there is a ferry service between the two villages...
which is instead a part of South Down
South Down (UK Parliament constituency)
South Down is a Parliamentary Constituency in the United Kingdom House of Commons.-Boundaries:The county constituency was first created in 1885 from the southern part of Down...
.
Boundary changes
Initially the Northern Ireland Boundary Commission published provisional recommendations for modifying the boundaries of Strangford. This included changes to the boundary between two of Belfast's constituencies and Strangford.Following consultation, the electoral districts to make up the constituency to be fought at the next UK general election are as follows:
- Ballygowan, Ballyrainey, Ballywalter, Bradshaw’s Brae, Carrowdore, Central, Comber East, Comber North, Comber West, Glen, Gregstown, Killinchy, Kircubbin, Lisbane, Loughries, Movilla, Portaferry, Portavogie, Scrabo, and Whitespots, from the Ards district.
- From the Down district; Ballymaglave, Ballynahinch East, Derryboy, Killyleagh, Kilmore, and Saintfield
- The Moneyreagh ward from Castlereagh district
History
For the history of the equivalent constituencies prior to 1950 please see Down (UK Parliament constituency)Down (UK Parliament constituency)
Down was a UK Parliament constituency in Ireland. It was a two member constituency and existed in two periods, 1801-1885 and 1922-1950.-Boundaries:1801-1885: The whole of County Down, excluding the Boroughs of Downpatrick and Newry....
and from 1950 until 1983, please see North Down (UK Parliament constituency)
North Down (UK Parliament constituency)
North Down is a Parliamentary Constituency in the United Kingdom House of Commons. The current MP is Sylvia Hermon, elected as an Independent in the 2010 General Election. -Boundaries:The county constituency was first created in 1885 from the northern part of Down...
.
The constituency is overwhelmingly unionist, with the combined votes for nationalist
Irish nationalism
Irish nationalism manifests itself in political and social movements and in sentiment inspired by a love for Irish culture, language and history, and as a sense of pride in Ireland and in the Irish people...
parties rarely exceeding 10%. However there have been significant votes for parties outside the traditional unionist block, such as the Alliance
Alliance Party of Northern Ireland
The Alliance Party of Northern Ireland is a liberal and nonsectarian political party in Northern Ireland. It is Northern Ireland's fifth-largest party overall, with eight seats in the Northern Ireland Assembly and one in the House of Commons....
and the Conservatives
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...
, whilst the UK Unionist Party
UK Unionist Party
The UK Unionist Party was a small unionist political party operating in Northern Ireland from 1995 to 2008. It was nominally formed by Robert McCartney, formerly of the Ulster Unionist Party, to contest a by-election the North Down by-election, 1995 and then further constituted to contest the 1996...
has also polled well here, challenging the two main unionist parties. At the local level independent council candidates have polled well.
The main interest in elections has been the contest between the Ulster Unionist Party
Ulster Unionist Party
The Ulster Unionist Party – sometimes referred to as the Official Unionist Party or, in a historic sense, simply the Unionist Party – is the more moderate of the two main unionist political parties in Northern Ireland...
and the Democratic Unionist Party
Democratic Unionist Party
The Democratic Unionist Party is the larger of the two main unionist political parties in Northern Ireland. Founded by Ian Paisley and currently led by Peter Robinson, it is currently the largest party in the Northern Ireland Assembly and the fourth-largest party in the House of Commons of the...
. Until 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...
the UUP were clearly ahead of the DUP in the Westminster elections, but elections to regional assemblies and local government were much closer. 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...
the sitting MP John Taylor
John Taylor, Baron Kilclooney
John David Taylor, Baron Kilclooney, PC , is a former Ulster Unionist Party MP and a life peer. He was deputy leader of the UUP from 1995 to 2001, and a member of the Northern Ireland Assembly.-Career and family:...
stood down and the contest to succeed him was fierce. The seat was won by Iris Robinson
Iris Robinson
Iris Robinson is a former Northern Ireland Unionist politician. She is married to Peter Robinson, who is currently the First Minister in the Northern Ireland Assembly....
for the Democratic Unionist Party
Democratic Unionist Party
The Democratic Unionist Party is the larger of the two main unionist political parties in Northern Ireland. Founded by Ian Paisley and currently led by Peter Robinson, it is currently the largest party in the Northern Ireland Assembly and the fourth-largest party in the House of Commons of the...
and the subsequent 2003 assembly election
Northern Ireland Assembly election, 2003
The second elections to the Northern Ireland Assembly, which at the time of the elections had been suspended for just over a year, were held on Wednesday 26 November 2003. Six members were elected by Single Transferable Vote from each of Northern Ireland's eighteen Westminster Parliamentary...
saw the DUP increase their vote further. There is scepticism as to whether the UUP can retake the seat, though the proposed boundary changes may alter matters.
Members of Parliament
The Member of ParliamentMember 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,...
between the 2001 general election
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...
and her resignation
Resignation from the British House of Commons
Members of Parliament sitting in the House of Commons in the United Kingdom are technically forbidden to resign. To circumvent this prohibition, a legal fiction is used...
in January 2010 was Iris Robinson
Iris Robinson
Iris Robinson is a former Northern Ireland Unionist politician. She is married to Peter Robinson, who is currently the First Minister in the Northern Ireland Assembly....
of the Democratic Unionist Party
Democratic Unionist Party
The Democratic Unionist Party is the larger of the two main unionist political parties in Northern Ireland. Founded by Ian Paisley and currently led by Peter Robinson, it is currently the largest party in the Northern Ireland Assembly and the fourth-largest party in the House of Commons of the...
. She succeeded John Taylor
John Taylor, Baron Kilclooney
John David Taylor, Baron Kilclooney, PC , is a former Ulster Unionist Party MP and a life peer. He was deputy leader of the UUP from 1995 to 2001, and a member of the Northern Ireland Assembly.-Career and family:...
of the Ulster Unionist Party
Ulster Unionist Party
The Ulster Unionist Party – sometimes referred to as the Official Unionist Party or, in a historic sense, simply the Unionist Party – is the more moderate of the two main unionist political parties in Northern Ireland...
.
| Election | Member | Party | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1983 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... |
John Taylor John Taylor, Baron Kilclooney John David Taylor, Baron Kilclooney, PC , is a former Ulster Unionist Party MP and a life peer. He was deputy leader of the UUP from 1995 to 2001, and a member of the Northern Ireland Assembly.-Career and family:... |
Ulster Unionist Ulster Unionist Party The Ulster Unionist Party – sometimes referred to as the Official Unionist Party or, in a historic sense, simply the Unionist Party – is the more moderate of the two main unionist political parties in Northern Ireland... |
|
| 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... |
Iris Robinson Iris Robinson Iris Robinson is a former Northern Ireland Unionist politician. She is married to Peter Robinson, who is currently the First Minister in the Northern Ireland Assembly.... |
Democratic Unionist Democratic Unionist Party The Democratic Unionist Party is the larger of the two main unionist political parties in Northern Ireland. Founded by Ian Paisley and currently led by Peter Robinson, it is currently the largest party in the Northern Ireland Assembly and the fourth-largest party in the House of Commons of the... * |
|
| 2010 | Jim Shannon Jim Shannon Richard James Shannon is a unionist politician from Northern Ireland.-Early life:Shannon was educated at Ballywalter Primary School and Coleraine Academical Institution. He was in the Ulster Defence Regiment in 1973-75 and 1976–77 and was awarded the General Service Medal. He served in the Royal... |
Democratic Unionist Democratic Unionist Party The Democratic Unionist Party is the larger of the two main unionist political parties in Northern Ireland. Founded by Ian Paisley and currently led by Peter Robinson, it is currently the largest party in the Northern Ireland Assembly and the fourth-largest party in the House of Commons of the... |
|
Note: Iris Robinson left the DUP shortly before taking Chiltern Hundreds
Chiltern Hundreds
Appointment to the office of Crown Steward and Bailiff of the three Chiltern Hundreds of Stoke, Desborough and Burnham is a sinecure appointment which is used as a device allowing a Member of the United Kingdom Parliament to resign his or her seat...
in order to leave the Commons.