South Norfolk (UK Parliament constituency)

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This article is about South Norfolk Parliament constituency. For South Norfolk District Council, see South Norfolk.
South Norfolk
County constituency

South Norfolk shown within Norfolk, and Norfolk shown within England
Created: 1868
MP: Richard Bacon
Party: Conservative
Type: House of Commons
County: Norfolk
EP constituency: East of England

South Norfolk is a county constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. From 1868 until 1885 it returned two members but thereafter elected one Member of Parliament (MP) by the first past the post system of election.

Contents

[edit] Boundaries and boundary changes

Following the Reform Act 1832 the historic county of Norfolk was split into two, two member, county divisions - East Norfolk and West Norfolk. The Reform Act 1867 provided for the county to be redistributed into three, two member, county divisions.

The three divisions, used for the United Kingdom general election, 1868 were this one, North Norfolk and West Norfolk.

The Southern division had its place of election (where the hustings stood, at which nominations were made, votes cast before the introduction of multiple polling districts in county constituencies and the result was declared) at Norwich. This was the same place of election as the former Eastern division. In 1868 the same two MPs who had sat for East Norfolk before the dissolution were re-elected from this constituency.

Under the provisions of the Redistribution of Seats Act 1885, single member constituencies became the norm. In Norfolk the three, two member, county divisions were changed to six single member seats. These were this constituency, a revived East Norfolk, Mid Norfolk, North Norfolk, North West Norfolk and South West Norfolk

In the 1885 redistribution this constituency bordered Mid Norfolk to the west, the borough constituency of Norwich and East Norfolk to the north, the borough of Great Yarmouth and the Suffolk constituency of Lowestoft to the east and another Suffolk division Eye to the south.

The Southern division was very agricultural in character. The largest town was Diss, which had a population of fewer than 4,000 people in 1900.

The then local government units, which comprised the constituency at redistributions from 1918, were as follows.

1918-1950: Diss Urban District and the Rural Districts of Depwade, Forehoe, Henstead, Wayland with part of Thetford.

1950-1974: The Municipal Borough of Thetford, the Urban Districts of Diss and Wymondham and the Rural Districts of Depwade, Loddon and Wayland; combined to produce a somewhat more urban constituency than before.

1974-1983: The constituency was unchanged except for the addition of Forehoe and Henstead Rural District. This was the last redistribution before a major reorganisation of local government, which amalgamated many of the smaller local authorities.

1983-1997: The whole of the territory of the new seat had been part of the previous version. It consisted of the entire District of South Norfolk. The other part of the old seat (the Thetford and Wayland areas) were transferred to the South West Norfolk constituency in the 1983 redistribution.

1997 redistribution: Continuing population growth led to a reduction in the size of the constituency. It now comprises all the wards of the District of South Norfolk except the Cringleford and Colney and New Costessey wards.

It is expected that the next redistribution, which has been proposed by the Boundary Commission for England, will be given legal effect in early 2007. If this happens the next general election, which is due no later than 2010, will be contested using the new boundaries.

The proposal is to again reduce the part of the District of South Norfolk comprising the constituency. Eight wards will become part of other seats. The following twenty eight wards will remain in this constituency.

Beck Vale, Bressingham and Burston, Brooke, Bunwell, Chedgrave and Thurton, Cringleford, Dickleburgh, Diss, Ditchingham and Broome, Earsham, Easton, Forncett, Gillingham, Harleston, Hempnall, Hethersett, Loddon, Mulbarton, Newton Flotman, Old Costessey, Poringland with the Framinghams, Rockland, Roydon, Scole, Stoke Holy Cross, Stratton, Tasburgh, and Thurlton.

[edit] Members of Parliament

[edit] MPs 1868 – 1885 (two seats)

Election 1st Member 1st Party 2nd Member 2nd Party
1868 Clare Sewell Read Conservative Edward Howes Conservative
1871 Sir Robert Jacob Buxton, Bt Conservative
1880 Robert Thornhagh Gurdon Liberal
1885 county divisions redistributed

[edit] MPs from 1885 (one seat)

Election Member Party
1885 redistributed and reduced to one member
1885 Francis Taylor Liberal
1886 Liberal Unionist
1898 Arthur Wellesley Soames Liberal
1918 Hon. William Hepburn Cozens-Hardy a Liberal
1919 Coalition Liberal
1920 George Edwards Labour
1922 Thomas William Hay Conservative
1923 George Edwards Labour
1924 James Archibald Christie Conservative
1945 Christopher Paget Mayhew Labour
1950 Peter Arthur David Baker b Conservative
1955 John Edward Bernard Hill Conservative
1974 John Roddick Russell MacGregor Conservative
2001 Richard Michael Bacon Conservative

Notes:-

  • a Cozens-Hardy stood at the United Kingdom general election, 1918 as a Liberal without the Coalition "coupon", but he took the Coalition Liberal whip when Parliament assembled in 1919.
  • b Baker was expelled from the House of Commons in 1954 after being convicted of fraud, forgery and uttering and sentenced to seven years imprisonment.

[edit] Election results

[edit] Elections in the 1920s

South Norfolk by-election, 1920
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour George Edwards 8,594 45.7 +10.0
Coalition Liberal J. H. Batty 6,476 34.5 −29.8
Liberal C. H. Roberts 3,718 19.8 N/A
Majority 2,118 11.2 −17.4
Turnout 18,788 58.5%
Labour gain from Coalition Liberal Swing

[edit] Elections in the 1950s

General election, 1950: South Norfolk
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Peter Baker 18,143 50.5 +18.0
Labour Christopher Mayhew 15,714 43.7 −6.6
Liberal G.Q. Bryant 2,097 5.8 N/A
Majority 2,439 6.8 N/A
Turnout 35,954 83.6 +24.6
Conservative gain from Labour Swing +12.3
General election, 1951: South Norfolk
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Peter Baker 19,610 54.5 +4.0
Labour L. Scutts 16,371 45.5 +1.8
Majority 3,239 9.0 +3.2
Turnout 35,981 82.4 −1.2
Conservative hold Swing +1.1
South Norfolk by-election, January 1955
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative John Hill 15,119 51.5 −3.0
Labour J.M. Stewart 14,254 48.5 +3.0
Majority 865 2.9 −6.1
Turnout 29,373
Conservative hold Swing −3.0
General election, May 1955: South Norfolk
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative John Hill 18,690 52.1 +0.6
Labour J.M. Stewart 17,215 47.9 −0.6
Majority 1,475 4.11 +1.2
Turnout 35,905 81.8
Conservative hold Swing +0.6
General election, 1959: South Norfolk
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative John Hill 19,275 53.8 +1.7
Labour J.M. Stewart 16,542 46.2 −1.7
Majority 2,733 7.6 +3.5
Turnout 35,817 82.4 +0.6
Conservative hold Swing +1.7

[edit] Elections in the 2000s

General Election 2001: South Norfolk
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Richard Bacon 23,589 42.2 +2.0
Liberal Democrat Anne Lee 16,696 29.9 +1.6
Labour Mark Wells 13,719 24.5 -1.5
Green Stephanie Ross-Wagenknect 1,069 1.9 +1.1
UK Independence Joe Neal 856 1.5 +0.9
Majority 6,893 12.3
Turnout 55,929 67.6 -10.7
Conservative hold Swing
General Election 2005: South Norfolk
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Richard Bacon 26,399 44.8 +2.6
Liberal Democrat Ian Mack 17,617 29.9
Labour John Morgan 13,262 22.5 -2.0
UK Independence Philip Tye 1,696 2.9 +1.4
Majority 8,782 14.9
Turnout 58,974 68.7 +1.1
Conservative hold Swing 1.3

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  • Boundaries of Parliamentary Constituencies 1885-1972, compiled and edited by F.W.S. Craig (Parliamentary Reference Publications 1972)
  • British Parliamentary Constituencies: A Statistical Compendium, by Ivor Crewe and Anthony Fox (Faber and Faber 1984)
  • British Parliamentary Election Results 1832-1885, compiled and edited by F.W.S. Craig (The Macmillan Press 1977)
  • British Parliamentary Election Results 1885-1918, compiled and edited by F.W.S. Craig (Macmillan Press 1974)
  • British Parliamentary Election Results 1918-1949, compiled and edited by F.W.S. Craig (Macmillan Press, revised edition 1977)
  • British Parliamentary Election Results 1950-1973, compiled and edited by F.W.S. Craig (Parliamentary Research Services 1983)
  • Social Geography of British Elections 1885-1910. by Henry Pelling (Macmillan 1967)
  • Who's Who of British Members of Parliament: Volume I 1832-1885, edited by M. Stenton (The Harvester Press 1976)
  • Who's Who of British Members of Parliament, Volume II 1886-1918, edited by M. Stenton and S. Lees (Harvester Press 1978)
  • Who's Who of British Members of Parliament, Volume III 1919-1945, edited by M. Stenton and S. Lees (Harvester Press 1979)
  • Who's Who of British Members of Parliament, Volume IV 1945-1979, edited by M. Stenton and S. Lees (Harvester Press 1981)
Constituencies in the East of England
Conservative

Billericay | Braintree | Brentwood and Ongar | Broxbourne | Bury St Edmunds | Castle Point | Central Suffolk and North Ipswich | Epping Forest | Harwich | Hemel Hempstead | Hertford and Stortford | Hertsmere | Hitchin and Harpenden | Huntingdon | Maldon and East Chelmsford | Mid Bedfordshire | Mid Norfolk | North Essex | North East Bedfordshire | North East Cambridgeshire | North East Hertfordshire | North West Cambridgeshire | North West Norfolk | Peterborough | Rayleigh | Rochford and Southend East | Saffron Walden | Southend West | South Cambridgeshire | South East Cambridgeshire | South Norfolk | South Suffolk | South West Bedfordshire | South West Hertfordshire | South West Norfolk | St Albans | Suffolk Coastal | Welwyn Hatfield | West Chelmsford | West Suffolk
Labour

Basildon | Bedford | Great Yarmouth | Harlow | Ipswich | Luton North | Luton South | Norwich North | Norwich South | Stevenage | Thurrock | Watford | Waveney
Liberal Democrat

Cambridge | Colchester | North Norfolk
East of England European constituency: Conservative (3) | UKIP (2) | Labour (1) | Liberal Democrats (1)