Berwick-upon-Tweed (UK Parliament constituency)

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Berwick-upon-Tweed County constituency
Berwick-upon-Tweed shown within Northumberland, and Northumberland shown within England
Created:	?
MP:	Alan Beith
Party:	Liberal Democrat
Type:	House of Commons
County:	Northumberland
EP constituency:	North East England

Berwick-upon-Tweed 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.

Contents 1 Boundaries 1.1 Boundary review 2 History 3 Members of Parliament 4 Elections 5 See also 6 Notes 7 References

[edit] Boundaries

The constituency of Berwick-upon-Tweed is located in the county of Northumberland. It includes at its northern-most point the town of Berwick-upon-Tweed itself and stretches south, to cover the towns of Alnwick and Amble. The Northumberland coast forms its eastern boundary. Its length is roughly 50 miles (80 km), with an area of 2,310 square kilometres.

Predominantly rural in character, this constituency is the most northerly in England, and the most sparsely populated, having only 57,000 electors.

[edit] Boundary review

Following their review of parliamentary representation in Northumberland, the Boundary Commission for England have made only minor changes to the existing Berwick constituency. A proposal to re-name the historic seat "Berwick-upon-Tweed and Mid Northumberland" was rejected for whilst being geographically accurate it was thought unwieldy.

The electoral wards used to form the slightly modified constituency are;

• The entire district of Alnwick
• The entire district of Berwick-upon-Tweed
• The Castle Morpeth wards of Chevington, Ellington, Hartburn, Longhorsley, Lynemouth, Ulgham

[edit] History

Rural in nature, sparse of population and with agriculture as a major employer, Berwick-upon-Tweed is at first sight a typical Conservative seat. However, it has been under the aegis of Liberal (later Liberal Democrat) Alan Beith since 1973, and previously the area has been notable for its liberal leanings - both Sir William Beveridge (influential in the formation of the National Health Service) and Edward Grey (Foreign Secretary at the start of World War I, best remembered for the "lamps are going out all over Europe...." remark ) have served this constituency.

Beith was first elected in a by-election, required as a result of the resignation of the then holder Anthony 'Lord' Lambton (Conservative), who had been caught up in a scandal involving call girls, marijuana and a tabloid newspaper.

In 1923, Mabel Philipson, a former music-hall actress, took over the seat as a Conservative, when her husband was forced to resign. In doing so she became only the third female member to take the oath since this had become legally possible five years previously.

[edit] Members of Parliament

The seat has sent members to Parliament since it's enfranchisement by Henry VIII. It initially sent two members, this was reduced to one in 1885.

Notable Members of Parliament before 1885 include:

• 1660 — 1661: John Rushworth (also 1679 — 1685)
• 1868 — 1874: William Coutts Keppel
• Membership reduced to one (1885)
• 1885 — 1916: Edward Grey, Liberal
• 1916 — 1922: Sir Francis Douglas Blake, Bt, Liberal
• 1922 — 1923: Hilton Philipson, National Liberal
• 1923 — 1929: Mabel Philipson, Conservative
• 1929 — 1935: Alfred John Kennett Todd¹, Conservative
• 1935 — 1941: Sir Hugh Michael Seely, Liberal
• 1941 — 1944: Hon. George Charles Grey, Liberal
• 1944 — 1945: Sir William Beveridge, Liberal
• 1945 — 1951: Robert Thorp, Conservative
• 1951 — 1973: Anthony Lambton, Conservative
• 1973 — present: Alan Beith, Liberal Democrat

[edit] Elections

General Election 2005: Berwick-upon-Tweed
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal Democrats	Alan Beith	19,052	52.8	+1.4
	Conservative	Mike Elliott	10,420	28.9	+0.8
	Labour	Glen Reynolds	6,618	18.3	+0.6
Majority			8,632	23.9
Turnout			36,090	63.4	-0.4
	Liberal Democrats hold		Swing	+0.3

General Election 2001: Berwick-upon-Tweed
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal Democrats	Alan Beith	18,651	51.4	+5.9
	Conservative	Glen Sanderson	10,193	28.1	+4.0
	Labour	Martin Walker	6,435	17.7	-8.5
	UK Independence	John Pearson	1,029	2.8	+2.0
Majority			8,458	23.3	+4.1
Turnout			36,308	63.8	-9.7

General Election 1997: Berwick-upon-Tweed
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal Democrats	Alan Beith	19,007	45.5	+1.1
	Labour	Paul Brannen	10,965	26.2	+3.4
	Conservative	Nick Herbert	10,058	24.1	-8.7
	Referendum Party	Ned Lambton	1,423	3.4	+3.4
	UK Independence	Ian Dodds	352	0.8	+0.8
Majority			8,042	19.3	+8.7
Turnout			41,805	73.5	-5.6

[edit] See also

• List of Parliamentary constituencies in Northumberland

[edit] Notes

Note 1: Mark Todd, the grandson of Alfred John Kennett Todd, currently serves as MP for Derbyshire South

[edit] References

• politics.co.uk. Berwick-upon-Tweed: Big seat, big issues. Retrieved on April 30, 2005.
• bbc.co.uk. BBC NEWS - Vote 2001 - Results & Constituency - Berwick-upon-Tweed. Retrieved on April 30, 2005.
• Women in the house of commons. House of Commons Factsheet. Retrieved on May 1, 2005.
• Burton Mail. Todd reveals his expenses claim. Retrieved on May 2, 2005.
• List of Berwick-upon-Tweed MPs. Leigh Rayments Peerage Page. Retrieved on May 2, 2005.
• Constituencies in the unreformed House. David Boothroyd Page. Retrieved on September 8, 2006.

Constituencies in North East England
Labour	Bishop Auckland | Blaydon | Blyth Valley | City of Durham | Darlington | Easington | Gateshead East and Washington West | Hartlepool | Houghton and Washington East | Jarrow | Middlesbrough | Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland | Newcastle upon Tyne Central | Newcastle upon Tyne East and Wallsend | Newcastle upon Tyne North | North Durham | North Tyneside | North West Durham | Redcar | Sedgefield | South Shields | Stockton North | Stockton South | Sunderland North | Sunderland South | Tyne Bridge | Tynemouth | Wansbeck
Liberal Democrat	Berwick-upon-Tweed
Conservative	Hexham
North East European constituency: Labour (1) | Conservative (1) | Liberal Democrats (1)