Battersea (UK Parliament constituency)
Encyclopedia
Battersea is a parliamentary constituency
United Kingdom constituencies
In the United Kingdom , each of the electoral areas or divisions called constituencies elects one or more members to a parliament or assembly.Within the United Kingdom there are now five bodies with members elected by constituencies:...

 located in Battersea
Battersea
Battersea is an area of the London Borough of Wandsworth, England. It is an inner-city district of South London, situated on the south side of the River Thames, 2.9 miles south-west of Charing Cross. Battersea spans from Fairfield in the west to Queenstown in the east...

 in the London Borough of Wandsworth
London Borough of Wandsworth
The London Borough of Wandsworth is a London borough in southwest London, England, and forms part of Inner London.-History:The borough was formed in 1965 from the former area of the Metropolitan Borough of Battersea and much of the former area of the Metropolitan Borough of Wandsworth, but...

. It is represented in the House of Commons 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...

, to which 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
First-past-the-post
First-past-the-post voting refers to an election won by the candidate with the most votes. The winning potato candidate does not necessarily receive an absolute majority of all votes cast.-Overview:...

 voting system.

Boundaries

The Redistribution of Seats Act 1885
Redistribution of Seats Act 1885
The Redistribution of Seats Act 1885 was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It was a piece of electoral reform legislation that redistributed the seats in the House of Commons, introducing the concept of equally populated constituencies, in an attempt to equalise representation across...

 provided that the constituency was to consist of-
  • "No. 2 Ward of Battersea Parish,
  • No. 3 Ward of Battersea Parish, and
  • So much of No. 4 Ward of Battersea Parish as lies to the north of a line drawn along the centre of Battersea Rise, and to the west of a line drawn along the centre of the St. John's Road."


Battersea is an unusually-shaped constituency due to it following the Thames as it snakes into and out of central London, covering the north-eastern third of the London Borough of Wandsworth
London Borough of Wandsworth
The London Borough of Wandsworth is a London borough in southwest London, England, and forms part of Inner London.-History:The borough was formed in 1965 from the former area of the Metropolitan Borough of Battersea and much of the former area of the Metropolitan Borough of Wandsworth, but...

.

It takes in all of the district of Battersea including the park and riverside, and stretches out eastwards to include Nine Elms
Nine Elms
Nine Elms is a suburb of London, situated in the far north-eastern corner of the London Borough of Wandsworth between Battersea and Vauxhall.It is primarily an industrial area, dominated by Battersea Power Station, Battersea Dogs and Cats Home, railway lines, a major Royal Mail sorting office and...

 and Queenstown; and westwards to include most of Wandsworth
Wandsworth
Wandsworth is a district of south London, England, in the London Borough of Wandsworth. It is situated southwest of Charing Cross. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London.-Toponymy:...

 town, including the riverside, the Town Hall and East Hill in Fairfield ward
Fairfield (Wandsworth ward)
Fairfield is one of the most central wards in the London Borough of Wandsworth, London, containing Wandsworth High Street, Old York Road and the council buildings themselves...

. But Battersea also stretches south between Wandsworth Common
Wandsworth Common
Wandsworth common is a public common in Wandsworth, south London. It is close to Clapham Common and Wandsworth Common railway station. It is wholly in the London borough of Wandsworth...

 and Clapham Common
Clapham Common
Clapham Common is an 89 hectare triangular area of grassland situated in south London, England. It was historically common land for the parishes of Battersea and Clapham, but was converted to parkland under the terms of the Metropolitan Commons Act 1878.43 hectares of the common are within the...

 to include Balham
Balham, London
Balham is a neighbourhood of south London, England, and is part of the London Borough of Wandsworth and the London Borough of Lambeth.-History:...

 ward, which is actually only the eastern end of Balham (the rest being in Tooting
Tooting (UK Parliament constituency)
-Elections in the 2000s:-Elections in the 1990s:- See also :* List of Parliamentary constituencies in Greater London* London Borough of Wandsworth-External links:****...

). It is no longer the safe Labour seat it used to be as the area had a considerable influx of young professionals, or yuppies, in the mid-1980s which swung it towards the Conservatives. It returned to Labour in 1997, but had a reduced majority for Labour in 2005, and was regained by the Tories in 2010.

It is bordered by the constituencies of-
  • Putney
    Putney (UK Parliament constituency)
    -Elections 1950–1979:-Elections 1918–1945:-Notes and references:...

  • Tooting
    Tooting (UK Parliament constituency)
    -Elections in the 2000s:-Elections in the 1990s:- See also :* List of Parliamentary constituencies in Greater London* London Borough of Wandsworth-External links:****...

  • Hammersmith & Fulham
    Hammersmith and Fulham (UK Parliament constituency)
    Hammersmith and Fulham was a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elected one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election...

  • Kensington & Chelsea
    Kensington and Chelsea (UK Parliament constituency)
    Kensington and Chelsea was a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It was one of the safest Conservative seats in the United Kingdom, and since its creation in 1997 became a prestigious seat, with MP Alan Clark, the former Defence Secretary...

  • Cities of London & Westminster
    Cities of London and Westminster (UK Parliament constituency)
    Cities of London and Westminster is a borough constituency covering the area comprising the City of London and southern portion of the City of Westminster in Central London...

  • Vauxhall
    Vauxhall (UK Parliament constituency)
    -Elections in the 1980s:-Elections in the 1970s:-Elections in the 1960s:-Notes and references:...

  • Streatham
    Streatham (UK Parliament constituency)
    Streatham is a borough 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.-Boundaries:...


Boundary review

Following their review of parliamentary representation in South London
South London
South London is the southern part of London, England, United Kingdom.According to the 2011 official Boundary Commission for England definition, South London includes the London boroughs of Bexley, Bromley, Croydon, Greenwich, Kingston, Lambeth, Lewisham, Merton, Southwark, Sutton and...

 the Boundary Commission for England has created a modified Battersea constituency from the following electoral wards:
  • Balham, Fairfield, Latchmere, Northcote, Queenstown, St Mary’s Park, Shaftesbury.

History

Battersea constituency was originally created in 1885. From 1892 to 1918 the seat was held by trade union leader John Burns
John Burns
John Elliot Burns was an English trade unionist and politician of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, particularly associated with London politics. He was a socialist and then a Liberal Member of Parliament and Minister. He was anti-alcohol and a keen sportsman...

, who would serve in the Liberal cabinets of Sir Henry Campbell-Bannerman and Herbert Asquith from 1905 until 1914. The constituency was split in 1918 into two constituencies, Battersea North
Battersea North (UK Parliament constituency)
-Elections in the 1960s:-Elections in the 1950s:-Elections in the 1940s:Francis Douglas was appointed Governor of Malta, leading to a by-election....

 and Battersea South
Battersea South (UK Parliament constituency)
Battersea South was a parliamentary constituency, originally in the County of London and later in Greater London. It returned one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, elected by the first-past-the-post voting system.It was created for the 1918...

. The two constituencies were rejoined in 1983, although some areas of Battersea South became part of the adjoining Tooting
Tooting (UK Parliament constituency)
-Elections in the 2000s:-Elections in the 1990s:- See also :* List of Parliamentary constituencies in Greater London* London Borough of Wandsworth-External links:****...

 constituency. Alf Dubs, who had previously been MP for Battersea South, won the constituency for the Labour Party in 1983 and the Conservative candidate John Bowis
John Bowis
John Crocket Bowis OBE is a former Conservative MP and MEP.- Education :John Bowis was educated at Tonbridge School and Brasenose College, Oxford, where he studied Philosophy, Politics and Economics....

 won in 1987 and 1992. Martin Linton
Martin Linton
John Martin Linton is a British Labour Party politician, who was the Member of Parliament for Battersea from 1997 to 2010.-Early life:...

 won it back for the Labour Party in 1997 and held the seat until 2010.

In the 2005 election, Linton's majority was reduced resulting in him having the fourth smallest Labour majority in the country at the time.

Trivia

In 2001, the candidate T.E Barber used the candidate description "No fruit out of context party", and advocated the end of, amongst other crimes against food, pineapples on pizza. (David Boothroyd)

In the book "Things Can Only Get Better: Eighteen Miserable Years in the Life of a Labour Supporter," John O'Farrell
John O'Farrell
John O'Farrell is a British author, broadcaster and comedy scriptwriter.-Early life:O’Farrell grew up in Maidenhead, Berkshire the youngest of three children, attending Courthouse Primary School and then Desborough Comprehensive...

 describes his experiences of being the secretary of the Battersea Labour party, during which time Labour o=lost every election they participated in, and eventually lost the MP, Alf Dubs.

The old Battersea North seat is one of only two seats in London to have had a Communist
Communist Party of Great Britain
The Communist Party of Great Britain was the largest communist party in Great Britain, although it never became a mass party like those in France and Italy. It existed from 1920 to 1991.-Formation:...

 MP Shapurji Saklatvala
Shapurji Saklatvala
Shapurji Saklatvala was a British politician of Indian Parsi heritage. He was the third Indian Member of Parliament in the Parliament of the United Kingdom after fellow Parsis Dadabhai Naoroji and Mancherjee Bhownagree....

 represented the area from 1922 to 1929. A wealthy aristocratic Indian he was not only one of the first Communists ever elected to the House of Commons but also only the third from an ethnic-minority background. At first, Saklatvala had local Labour party support but then stood as a Communist in 1924 with local Labour party backing. However, the national party stepped in to ensure in 1929 that an official Labour candidate stood against him. The Battersea Labour Club had a notice on its notice board up until the 1980s banning Communists from admission to the club.

Members of Parliament

Parliament Years Member Party
22nd
United Kingdom general election, 1885
-Seats summary:-See also:*List of MPs elected in the United Kingdom general election, 1885*Parliamentary Franchise in the United Kingdom 1885–1918*Representation of the People Act 1884*Redistribution of Seats Act 1885-References:...

1885–1886     Octavius Vaughan Morgan
Octavius Vaughan Morgan
Octavius Vaughan Morgan was a Welsh-born Liberal Party politician who sat in the United Kingdom House of Commons from 1885 to 1892....

Liberal
Liberal Party (UK)
The Liberal Party was one of the two major political parties of the United Kingdom during the 19th and early 20th centuries. It was a third party of negligible importance throughout the latter half of the 20th Century, before merging with the Social Democratic Party in 1988 to form the present day...

23rd
United Kingdom general election, 1886
-Seats summary:-See also:*MPs elected in the UK general election, 1886*The Parliamentary Franchise in the United Kingdom 1885-1918-References:*F. W. S. Craig, British Electoral Facts: 1832-1987**...

1886–1892
24th
United Kingdom general election, 1892
The 1892 United Kingdom general election was held from 4 July to 26 July 1892. It saw the Conservatives, led by Lord Salisbury, win the greatest number of seats, but not enough for an overall majority as William Ewart Gladstone's Liberals won many more seats than in the 1886 general election...

1892–1895     John Burns
John Burns
John Elliot Burns was an English trade unionist and politician of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, particularly associated with London politics. He was a socialist and then a Liberal Member of Parliament and Minister. He was anti-alcohol and a keen sportsman...

Liberal-Labour
Liberal-Labour (UK)
The Liberal–Labour movement refers to the practice of local Liberal associations accepting and supporting candidates who were financially maintained by trade unions...

25th
United Kingdom general election, 1895
The United Kingdom general election of 1895 was held from 13 July - 7 August 1895. It was won by the Conservatives led by Lord Salisbury who formed an alliance with the Liberal Unionist Party and had a large majority over the Liberals, led by Lord Rosebery...

1895–1900
26th
United Kingdom general election, 1900
-Seats summary:-See also:*MPs elected in the United Kingdom general election, 1900*The Parliamentary Franchise in the United Kingdom 1885-1918-External links:***-References:*F. W. S. Craig, British Electoral Facts: 1832-1987**...

1900–1906
27th
United Kingdom general election, 1906
-Seats summary:-See also:*MPs elected in the United Kingdom general election, 1906*The Parliamentary Franchise in the United Kingdom 1885-1918-External links:***-References:*F. W. S. Craig, British Electoral Facts: 1832-1987**...

1906–1910
28th 1910
29th 1910–1918
see Battersea North
Battersea North (UK Parliament constituency)
-Elections in the 1960s:-Elections in the 1950s:-Elections in the 1940s:Francis Douglas was appointed Governor of Malta, leading to a by-election....

 and Battersea South
Battersea South (UK Parliament constituency)
Battersea South was a parliamentary constituency, originally in the County of London and later in Greater London. It returned one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, elected by the first-past-the-post voting system.It was created for the 1918...

 for 1918-1983
48th
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...

1983–1987     Alf Dubs 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...

49th
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...

1987–1992     John Bowis
John Bowis
John Crocket Bowis OBE is a former Conservative MP and MEP.- Education :John Bowis was educated at Tonbridge School and Brasenose College, Oxford, where he studied Philosophy, Politics and Economics....

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...

50th
United Kingdom general election, 1992
The United Kingdom general election of 1992 was held on 9 April 1992, and was the fourth consecutive victory for the Conservative Party. This election result was one of the biggest surprises in 20th Century politics, as polling leading up to the day of the election showed Labour under leader Neil...

1992–1997
51st
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...

1997–2001     Martin Linton
Martin Linton
John Martin Linton is a British Labour Party politician, who was the Member of Parliament for Battersea from 1997 to 2010.-Early life:...

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...

52nd
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...

2001–2005
53rd
United Kingdom general election, 2005
The United Kingdom general election of 2005 was held on Thursday, 5 May 2005 to elect 646 members to the British House of Commons. The Labour Party under Tony Blair won its third consecutive victory, but with a majority of 66, reduced from 160....

2005–2010
54th 2010-     Jane Ellison
Jane Ellison
Jane Elizabeth Ellison is a British Conservative Party politician, who was elected at the 2010 general election as Member of Parliament for Battersea.Ellison was born in Bradford and studied at the University of Oxford...

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...


Elections in the 2000s



Elections in the 1990s

Elections in the 1980s

1979 Prediction for Battersea boundaries

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
x
OK