Harrogate and Knaresborough (UK Parliament constituency)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Harrogate and Knaresborough Borough constituency |
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| Harrogate and Knaresborough shown within North Yorkshire, and North Yorkshire shown within England | |
| Created: | 1950 |
| MP: | Phil Willis |
| Party: | Liberal Democrat |
| Type: | House of Commons |
| County: | North Yorkshire |
| EP constituency: | Yorkshire and the Humber |
Harrogate and Knaresborough 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.
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[edit] Boundaries
The constituency includes the towns of Harrogate and Knaresborough. An affluent seat which was once considered a safe Tory area, Harrogate has moved the way of other famous spa towns in England (Bath, Cheltenham) by now returning Liberal Democrat MPs.
[edit] Boundary review
Following their review of parliamentary representation in York and North Yorkshire, the Boundary Commission for England has recommended alterations to the existing Harrogate and Knaresborough seat.
The newly drawn constituency is formed from the following electoral wards:
- Bilton, Boroughbridge, Claro, Granby, Harlow Moor, High Harrogate, Hookstone, Killinghall, Knaresborough East, Knaresborough King James, Knaresborough Scriven Park, Low Harrogate, New Park, Pannal, Rosett, Saltergate, Starbeck, Stray and Woodfield.
[edit] History
The constituency was created as 'Harrogate' in 1950. At the 1997 general election the name was changed to 'Harrogate and Knaresborough'.
[edit] Members of Parliament
| Year | Member | Party | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1950 | Christopher York | Conservative | |
| 1954 | James Edward Ramsden | Conservative | |
| 1974 | Robert Banks | Conservative | |
| 1997 | Phil Willis | Liberal Democrats | |
[edit] Election results
As per the Electoral Commission [1] the candidate John Allmann was coded as an "Independent" candidate because his chosen party label - Alliance For Change Human Rights First - did not match a registered political party name.
| General Election 2005: Harrogate and Knaresborough | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
| Liberal Democrats | Phil Willis | 24,113 | 56.3 | +0.7 | |
| Conservative | Maggie Punyer | 13,684 | 31.9 | -2.7 | |
| Labour | Lorraine Ferris | 3,627 | 8.5 | +1.1 | |
| UK Independence | Chris Royston | 845 | 2.0 | +0.2 | |
| British National | Colin Banner | 466 | 1.1 | N/A | |
| Alliance for Change | John Allman | 123 | 0.3 | N/A | |
| Majority | 10,429 | 24.3 | |||
| Turnout | 42,858 | 65.3 | +0.7 | ||
| Liberal Democrats hold | Swing | ||||
| General Election 2001: Harrogate and Knaresborough | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
| Liberal Democrats | Phil Willis | 23,445 | 55.6 | +4.0 | |
| Conservative | Andrew Jones | 14,600 | 34.6 | -3.8 | |
| Labour | Alastair MacDonald | 3,101 | 7.4 | -1.4 | |
| UK Independence | Bill Brown | 761 | 1.8 | N/A | |
| ProLife Alliance | John Cornforth | 272 | 0.6 | N/A | |
| Majority | 8,845 | 21.0 | |||
| Turnout | 42,179 | 64.6 | -8.2 | ||
| Liberal Democrats hold | Swing | ||||
| General Election 1997: Harrogate and Knaresborough | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
| Liberal Democrats | Phil Willis | 24,558 | 51.5 | N/A | |
| Conservative | Norman Lamont | 18,322 | 38.5 | N/A | |
| Labour | Barbara Boyce | 4,151 | 8.7 | N/A | |
| Loyal Conservative | J. Blackburn | 614 | 1.3 | N/A | |
| Majority | 6,236 | 13.0 | N/A | ||
| Turnout | 47,645 | 73.1 | N/A | ||
| Liberal Democrats gain from Conservative | Swing | ||||
