Belfast West (UK Parliament constituency)

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Belfast West
Borough constituency
Belfast West shown within Northern Ireland
Created: 1885, 1922
MP: Gerry Adams
Party: Sinn Féin
Type: House of Commons
Districts: Belfast, Lisburn
EP constituency: Northern Ireland
For other constituencies of the same name, see Belfast West.

Belfast West is a Parliamentary Constituency in the UK House of Commons.

Contents

[edit] Boundaries

The seat was created in 1922 when as part of the establishment of the devolved Stormont Parliament for Northern Ireland, the number of MPs in the Westminster Parliament was drastically cut. The seat is centred on the west section of Belfast, though between 1983 and 1996/7 it included the area around the Docks on the north east side of the Lagan Estuary. Belfast West also contains part of the city of Lisburn.

[edit] Boundary changes

Initially the Boundary Commission proposed alterations for the boundaries of constituencies in Northern Ireland, with Belfast West set as one of the smallest electorates of any constituency in Northern Ireland.

The Commission's revised recommendations, published in May 2006, added the Dunmurry ward and the Northern part of Derriaghy ward. Following public consultation, the proposals were passed through Parliament via the Northern Ireland Parliamentary Constituencies Order. In an unprecedented move by a Boundary Commission, an electoral ward will be split between constituencies following disquiet in parts of Derryaghy. This ward will be split between Belfast West and Lagan Valley.

The constituency will be fought at the next UK general election with the following electoral areas;

  • From the Belfast district; Andersonstown, Beechmount, Clonard, Falls, Falls Park, Glencairn, Glencolin, Glen Road, Highfield, Ladybrook, Shankill, Upper Springfield, and Whiterock
  • From Lisburn city district; Collin Glen, Dunmurry, Kilwee, Poleglass, and Twinbrook. The ward of Derryaghy will be split so that which lies to the north of its boundary with Lagmore will be in this seat.

[edit] History

Belfast West has historically been the most nationalist of Belfast's four constituencies, though it is only in the last few decades that the votes for unionist parties have plunged to tiny levels. The constituency is largely made of a long, slender, belt along the Falls Road and its suburban extensions, with three of the five wards from the staunchly unionist Shankill area now something of a bolt-on, with a several kilometre long Peace Line dividing them from the rest of the constituency. There is also a smaller Protestant enclave at Suffolk.

Unsurprisingly, the tenor of the constituency is largely working class and in the 1991 census it was one of only twenty constituencies where the majority of housing was still council owned. Although there are now large pockets of middle-class housing in Andersonstown and other suburban parts of the seat. Closer to the centre public-sector terraced housing, both Victorian and high quality modern housing, predominates, while in the suburbs, leafy pockets are scattered among post-War housing estates such as Lenadoon and Twinbrook.

The Westminster constituency was consistently held by the Ulster Unionist Party but always had strong Labour movement sympathies. In the UK general election, 1923, the Belfast Labour Party came within 1,000 votes of taking the seat. A by-election in 1943 was won by Jack Beattie, standing for the Northern Ireland Labour Party. For the next twenty-three years the seat would regularly change from unionist to nationalist/labour, with the latter represented by a variety of parties.

In the 1966 general election the seat was won by Gerry Fitt of the Republican Labour Party. Later in 1970 he left that party to become a founder and first leader of the Social Democratic and Labour Party. In the February 1974 general election, Belfast West was the only constituency in Northern Ireland to elect an MP supporting the Sunningdale Agreement. Fitt's majority was a narrow 2180 votes in February 1974 primarily due to the candidature of Albert Price the father of the Price sisters who were in prison in England for PIRA related offences. However the candidacy of a UVF backed candidate in October 1974 and a declining Unionist vote in 1979 led to him increasing his majorities in subsequent years. He retained the seat for the next nine years but increasingly distanced himself from nationalist groups and in late 1979 he left the SDLP altogether. He sat as an independent socialist but lost his seat in the 1983 when it was won by Gerry Adams of Sinn Féin. The Unionist vote which had still been at 30% in the 1982 Assembly elections was cut to 20% as a result of the 1983 boundary changes which, while adding the loyalist Glencairn area, removed the Donegall Road, Sandy Row and added the Nationalist Lenadoon area.

Adams' share of the vote, at 37%, was short of a majority and he achieved victory only due to Fitt and the SDLP candidate splitting the non-Sinn Féin vote. In the 1987 Adams narrowly held his seat, but lost it in the 1992 general election amidst a strong tactical voting campaign in favour of Joe Hendron of the Social Democratic and Labour Party by unionists in the Shankill Road area of the constituency. Hendron and his election agent were found guilty in an election court of having performed "corrupt and illegal practices" during the election by accepting advertising in the Irish News at less than the market rate, but the court upheld the election result.

In the mid 1990s the Boundary Commission originally suggested removing the Shankill wards from the constituency and replacing them with about half of the Belfast South constituency namely the 6 wards of the Balmoral Electoral Area and the Shaftesbury ward, effectively transforming the seat into a Belfast South West constituency.

The subsequent local enquiries were bitterly contested with the SDLP favouring the commission's original proposals which would add an area where Sinn Féin had little support (and aside from the Shaftesbury ward, had not contested in council elections), while Sinn Féin argued instead for adding the mostly republican Twinbrook and Poleglass estates (where they were outpolling the SDLP in council elections by a margin of 3 to 1.) With all parties except the SDLP supporting an option of retaining four seats in Belfast the latter option became the commissions final proposals and the Shankill wards remained in the constituency.

The boundary changes, coupled with the IRA ceasefire, meant that support for Sinn Féin in the constituency soared to new levels and in all elections held in the seat since 1996 they have taken over 50% of the vote. In 1997 Adams regained the seat and held it in 2001 and 2005.

[edit] Members of Parliament

The Member of Parliament since the 1997 general election is Gerry Adams of Sinn Féin. He previously held the seat between 1983 and 1992 when he lost it to Joe Hendron of the Social Democratic and Labour Party but regained it in 1997.

Monument to James Horner Haslett, MP & Mayor of Belfast, grounds of Belfast City Hall
Monument to James Horner Haslett, MP & Mayor of Belfast, grounds of Belfast City Hall
Year Member Party
1885 James Horner Haslett Conservative
1886 Thomas Sexton Irish Parliamentary
1890 Anti-Parnellite Nationalist1
1892 Hugh Oakeley Arnold-Forster Liberal Unionist
1906 Joseph Devlin Irish Parliamentary
Abolished 1918; revived 1922
1922 Robert Lynn Ulster Unionist
1929 W. E. D. Allen Ulster Unionist
1931 New Party
1931 Alexander Browne Ulster Unionist
1943 Jack Beattie Labour (NI)
1943 Independent Labour
1945 Federation of Labour
1949 Irish Labour
1950 Rev James Godfrey MacManaway Ulster Unionist
1950 Thomas Teevan Ulster Unionist
1951 Jack Beattie Irish Labour
1955 Patricia McLaughlin Ulster Unionist
1964 James Kilfedder Ulster Unionist
1966 Gerry Fitt Republican Labour
1970 Social Democratic and Labour
1979 Independent Socialist
1983 Gerry Adams Sinn Féin
1992 Joe Hendron Social Democratic and Labour
1997 Gerry Adams Sinn Féin

1The Nationalists split into two opposing factions (pro- and anti-Charles Stewart Parnell) in December 1890. They re-merged in February 1900.

[edit] Election results

[edit] Elections in the 2000s

General Election 2005: Belfast West
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Sinn Féin Gerry Adams 24,348 70.5 +4.4
Social Democratic and Labour Alex Attwood 5,033 14.6 -4.3
DUP Diane Dodds 3,652 10.6 +4.2
Ulster Unionist Chris McGimpsey 779 2.3 -3.9
Workers' Party John Lowry 432 1.3 -0.5
Rainbow Dream Ticket Lynda Gilby 154 0.4 +0.2
Independent Liam Kennedy 147 0.4 +0.4
Majority 19,315 55.9 +8.7
Turnout 34,545 64.2 -4.5
Sinn Féin hold Swing +4.4%
General Election 2001: Belfast West
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Sinn Féin Gerry Adams 27,096 66.1 +10.2
Social Democratic and Labour Alex Attwood 7,754 18.9 -19.8
DUP Eric Smyth 2,641 6.4 N/A
Ulster Unionist Chris McGimpsey 2,541 6.2 +2.8
Workers' Party John Lowry 736 1.8 +0.2
Third Way David Kerr 116 0.3 N/A
Rainbow Dream Ticket Rainbow George Weiss 98 0.2 N/A
Majority 19,342 47.2
Turnout 40,982 68.7 -5.5
Sinn Féin hold Swing

[edit] Elections in the 1990s

General Election 1997: Belfast West
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Sinn Féin Gerry Adams 25,662 55.9 + 13.9
Social Democratic and Labour Joe Hendron 17,753 38.7 - 5.5
Ulster Unionist Fred Parkinson 1,556 3.4 -8.2
Workers' Party John Lowry 721 1.6 N/A
Human Rights Liam Kennedy 102 0.2 N/A
Natural Law Mary Daly 91 0.2 N/A
Majority 7,909 17.2 + 15.5
Turnout 45,885
Sinn Féin gain from Social Democratic and Labour Swing

1997 Changes are compared to the 1992 notional results shown below [1].

Notional 1992 UK General Election Result : Belfast West
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Social Democratic and Labour N/A 20,045 44.2 N/a
Sinn Féin N/A 19,027 42.0 N/A
Ulster Unionist N/A 5,275 11.6 N/A
Others N/A 975 2.2 N/A
Majority 1,018 2.3 N/A
General Election 1992: Belfast West
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Social Democratic and Labour Joe Hendron 17,415 43.6 + 7.9
Sinn Féin Gerry Adams 16,826 42.1 + 1.0
Ulster Unionist Fred Cobain 4,766 11.9 - 6.8
Workers' Party John Lowry 750 1.9 - 2.5
Natural Law Michael Kennedy 213 0.5 N/A
Majority 589 1.7 - 3.7
Turnout 34,545 73.2 + 4.1
Social Democratic and Labour gain from Sinn Féin Swing

[edit] Elections in the 1980s

General Election 1987: Belfast West
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Sinn Féin Gerry Adams 16,862 41.1 + 2.1
Social Democratic and Labour Joe Hendron 14,641 35.7 + 9.4
Ulster Unionist Frank Millar 7,646 18.7 + 12.9
Workers' Party Mary McMahon 1,819 4.4 - 0.1
Majority 2,221 5.4 - 7.6
Turnout 69.1 - 1.1
Sinn Féin hold Swing
General Election 1983: Belfast West
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Sinn Féin Gerry Adams 16,379 39.0 N/A
Social Democratic and Labour Joe Hendron 10,934 26.1 - 14.4
Independent Socialist Gerry Fitt 10,326 24.6 N/A
Ulster Unionist Thomas Passmore 2,435 5.8 - 19.0
Workers' Party Mary McMahon 1,893 4.5 - 2.4
Majority 5,445 13.0 - 11.7
Turnout 70.2 + 13.7
Sinn Féin gain from Social Democratic and Labour Swing

Following the 1979 election, Fitt became increasingly at odds with the SDLP and left it, continuing to sit as an independent socialist.

[edit] Elections in the 1970s

General Election 1979: Belfast West
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Social Democratic and Labour Gerry Fitt 16,480 40.5 - 8.5
Ulster Unionist Thomas Passmore 8,245 24.8 - 11.7
DUP William Dickson 3,716 11.2 N/A
Republican Clubs Brian Brennan 2,284 6.9 - 1.1
Alliance John Cousins 2,024 6.1 N/A
Labour (NI) Derek Peters 540 1.6 N/A
Majority 8,235 24.7 + 12.2
Turnout 56.5 - 10.7
Social Democratic and Labour hold Swing
General Election October 1974: Belfast West
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Social Democratic and Labour Gerry Fitt 21,821 49.0 + 8.0
DUP John McQuade 16,265 36.5 0.0
Republican Clubs Kitty O'Kane 3,547 8.0 + 1.5
Volunteer Political Party Ken Gibson 2,690 6.0 N/A
Marxist-Leninist (Ireland) Peter Kerins 203 0.5 N/A
Majority 5,556 12.5 + 8.3
Turnout 67.2 - 4.3
Social Democratic and Labour hold Swing
General Election February 1974: Belfast West
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Social Democratic and Labour Gerry Fitt 19,554 41.0 N/A
DUP John McQuade 17,374 36.5
Independent Republican Albert Price 5,662 11.9 N/A
Republican Clubs John Brady 3,088 6.5 N/A
Labour (NI) Billy Boyd 1,989 4.2 N/A
Majority 2,180 4.6 - 0.9
Turnout 71.5 - 13.0
Social Democratic and Labour gain from Republican Labour Swing

After the 1970 election Fitt left the Republican Labour Party to cofound the Social Democratic & Labour Party. The remains of Republican Labour had disintegrated by 1974.

General Election 1970: Belfast West
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Republican Labour Gerry Fitt 30,649 52.8 + 0.8
Ulster Unionist Brian McRoberts 27,451 47.3 - 0.7
Majority 3,198 5.5 + 1.4
Turnout 84.5 + 9.7
Republican Labour hold Swing

[edit] Elections in the 1960s

General Election 1966: Belfast West
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Republican Labour Gerry Fitt 26,292 52.0 + 23.7
Ulster Unionist James Kilfedder 24,281 48.0 + 6.8
Majority 2,011 4.1 - 8.7
Turnout 74.8 + 0.1
Republican Labour gain from Ulster Unionist Swing
General Election 1964: Belfast West
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Ulster Unionist James Kilfedder 21,337 41.2 - 12.9
Republican Labour Harry Diamond 14,678 28.3 N/A
Labour (NI) Billy Boyd 12,579 24.3 N/A
Independent Republican Billy McMillen 3,256 6.3 N/A
Majority 6,659 12.8 - 3.8
Turnout 74.7 + 2.0
Ulster Unionist hold Swing

[edit] Elections in the 1950s

General Election 1959: Belfast West
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Ulster Unionist Patricia McLaughlin 28,898 54.1 - 4.2
Ind. Labour Group John Joseph Brennan 20,062 37.6 N/A
Sinn Féin Thomas Heenan 4,416 8.3 - 6.1
Majority 8,836 16.6 - 14.3
Turnout 72.7 - 2.0
Ulster Unionist hold Swing
General Election 1955: Belfast West
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Ulster Unionist Patricia McLaughlin 34,191 58.3 + 8.3
Irish Labour Jack Beattie 20,062 27.4 - 22.6
Sinn Féin Eamonn Boyce 8,447 14.4 N/A
Majority 18,141 30.9 + 30.9
Turnout 74.7 - 9.4
Ulster Unionist gain from Irish Labour Swing
General Election 1951: Belfast West
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Irish Labour Jack Beattie 33,174 50.0 + 3.7
Ulster Unionist Thomas Teevan 33,149 50.0 - 1.5
Majority 25 0.0 - 5.2
Turnout 84.1 + 0.5
Irish Labour gain from Ulster Unionist Swing
Belfast West by-election, 1950
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Ulster Unionist Thomas Teevan 31,796 50.8 - 0.7
Irish Labour Jack Beattie 30,833 49.2 + 2.9
Majority 913 1.5 - 4.0
Turnout 62,629
Ulster Unionist hold Swing
General Election 1950: Belfast West
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Ulster Unionist James Godfrey MacManaway 33,917 51.5 + 5.0
Irish Labour Jack Beattie 30,539 46.3 - 7.2
Sinn Féin Jimmy Steele 1,482 2.2 N/A
Majority 3,378 5.2 - 1.8
Turnout 83.6 + 10.5
Ulster Unionist gain from Independent Swing

[edit] Elections in the 1940s

General Election 1945: Belfast West
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Independent Labour Jack Beattie 30,787 53.5 N/A
Ulster Unionist Knox Cunningham 26,729 46.5 - 16.1
Majority 4,058 7.0 - 18.2
Turnout 73.1 + 5.1
Independent Labour gain from Ulster Unionist Swing
Belfast West by-election, 1943
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour (NI) Jack Beattie 19,936 46.2 N/A
Ulster Unionist Knox Cunningham 14,426 33.4 - 29.2
UIUA W. M. Milton 7,551 17.5 N/A
Independent Republican H. C. Corvin 1,250 2.9 - 34.5
Majority 5,510 12.8 - 12.4
Turnout 54.8 - 13.2
Labour (NI) gain from Ulster Unionist Swing

[edit] Elections in the 1930s

General Election 1935: Belfast West
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Ulster Unionist Alexander Browne 34,060 62.6 + 4.0
Independent Republican Charles Leddy 20,313 37.4 - 4.0
Majority 13,747 25.2 + 8.0
Turnout 68.0 - 0.1
Ulster Unionist hold Swing
General Election 1931: Belfast West
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Ulster Unionist Alexander Browne 31,113 58.6 + 0.7
Nationalist (NI) Thomas Joseph Campbell 22,006 41.4 - 0.7
Majority 9,107 17.2 + 1.4
Turnout 68.1 - 5.8
Ulster Unionist hold Swing

Note: The sitting MP, W.E.D. Allen, had joined the New Party earlier in 1931 but did not contest the seat at the general election.

[edit] Elections in the 1920s

General Election 1929: Belfast West
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Ulster Unionist W. E. D. Allen 33,274 57.9 + 3.4
Independent Republican Frank MacDermot 24,177 42.1 N/A
Majority 9,097 15.8 + 1.7
Turnout 73.9 - 5.2
Ulster Unionist hold Swing
General Election 1924: Belfast West
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Ulster Unionist Robert Lynn 28,435 54.5 + 1.6
Labour (NI) Harry Midgley 21,122 40.4 - 3.7
Sinn Féin Patrick Nash 2,688 5.1 N/A
Majority 7,313 14.1 + 8.3
Turnout 79.1 + 8.8
Ulster Unionist hold Swing
General Election 1923: Belfast West
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Ulster Unionist Robert Lynn 24,975 52.9 N/A
Belfast Labour Harry Midgley 22,255 47.1 N/A
Majority 2,720 5.8 N/A
Turnout 70.3 N/A
Ulster Unionist hold Swing

In the 1922 General Election, Robert Lynn was elected unopposed.

[edit] Elections in the 1910s

General Election December 1910: Belfast West
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Irish Parliamentary Joseph Devlin 4,543 52.7 -0.2
Liberal Unionist J. Boyd Carpenter 4,080 47.3 +1.1
Majority 463 5.4 -1.3
Turnout 8,623 93.4 -1.8
Irish Parliamentary hold Swing
General Election January 1910: Belfast West
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Irish Parliamentary Joseph Devlin 4,651 52.9 +3.7
Liberal Unionist J. Boyd Carpenter 4,064 46.2 -2.8
Ind. Nationalist P. J. Magee 75 0.9 N/A
Majority 587 6.7 +6.5
Turnout 8,790 95.2 +0.6
Irish Parliamentary hold Swing

[edit] Elections in the 1900s

General Election 1906: Belfast West
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Irish Parliamentary Joseph Devlin 4,138 49.2 N/A
Liberal Unionist J. R. Smiley 4,122 49.0 N/A
Ind. Liberal Unionist Alexander Carlisle 153 1.8 N/A
Majority 16 0.2 N/A
Turnout 8,413 94.6 N/A
Irish Parliamentary gain from Liberal Unionist Swing
At the United Kingdom general election, 1900 and the Belfast West by-election, 1903, Hugh Oakeley Arnold-Forster was elected unopposed.

[edit] Elections in the 1890s

At the United Kingdom general election, 1895, Hugh Oakeley Arnold-Forster was elected unopposed.
General Election 1892: Belfast West
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Liberal Unionist Hugh Oakeley Arnold-Forster 4,266 55.5 N/A
Anti-Parnellite Nationalist Thomas Sexton 3,427 44.5 -6.2
Majority 839 10.9 +9.6
Turnout 7,693
Liberal Unionist gain from Irish Parliamentary Swing

[edit] Elections in the 1880s

General Election 1886: Belfast West
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Irish Parliamentary Thomas Sexton 3,832 50.7 +0.9
Conservative James Horner Haslett 3,729 49.3 -0.9
Majority 103 1.3 +0.8
Turnout 7,561
Irish Parliamentary gain from Conservative Swing
General Election 1885: Belfast West
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative James Horner Haslett 3,778 50.2 N/A
Irish Parliamentary Thomas Sexton 3,743 49.8 N/A
Majority 35 0.5 N/A
Turnout 7,521 N/A
Conservative hold Swing

[edit] Sources

[edit] See also

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