West Dorset (UK Parliament constituency)

Coordinates: 50°47′20″N 2°35′53″W / 50.7889°N 2.5980°W / 50.7889; -2.5980

West Dorset
County constituency for the House of Commons
Boundary of West Dorset in Dorset.
Location of Dorset within England.
County	Dorset
Electorate	76,779 (December 2010)^[1]
Major settlements	Dorchester, Bridport and Sherborne
Current constituency
Created	1885
Member of parliament	Oliver Letwin (Conservative)
Number of members	One
Overlaps
European Parliament constituency	South West England

West Dorset is a constituency^{[n 1]} represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 1997 by Oliver Letwin, a Conservative.^{[n 2]}

History

The seat was created under the Redistribution of Seats Act 1885.

Political history

West Dorset has been served only by Conservative MPs. Historically there have mostly been large majorities; thus the seat can be considered a safe seat. The closest result in recent years was in 2001, when the present member, Oliver Letwin, only just held his seat, with a majority of 2.8% over the Liberal Democrat candidate, Simon Green. The Liberal Democrats have come second since then.

Prominent frontbenchers

Oliver Letwin, with a settled background in policy formulation, was appointed Minister of State for Policy (a Cabinet Office role) in the Conservative-Liberal Democrat Coalition on 12 May 2010.

Boundaries

1885–1918: The Boroughs of Bridport and Lyme Regis, the Sessional Divisions of Bridport and Cerne, and part of the Sessional Divisions of Dorchester and Sherborne.

1918–1950: The Boroughs of Bridport, Dorchester, and Lyme Regis, the Rural Districts of Beaminster, Bridport, Cerne, and Dorchester, and part of the Rural District of Weymouth.

1950–1983: The Boroughs of Bridport, Dorchester, and Lyme Regis, the Urban District of Sherborne, the Rural Districts of Beaminster, Bridport, and Sherborne, and part of the Rural District of Dorchester.

1983–present: The District of West Dorset except the ward of Owermoigne.

The West Dorset constituency covers most of the West Dorset district and includes the towns of Dorchester, the county town of Dorset; Bridport, Lyme Regis and Beaminster to the west; and Sherborne to the north.

Constituency profile

Aside from tourist areas, including the Jurassic Coast which is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the seat draws on managerial and advanced professional skills in sectors such as mechanical engineering, manufacturing, reconditioning, defence, art and design, which support local trades and retail. A slightly greater than average proportion of people are retired.^[2] Workless claimants who were registered jobseekers were in November 2012 significantly lower than the national average of 3.8%, at 1.4% of the population based on a statistical compilation by The Guardian.^[3]

Members of Parliament

	Member^[4]	Party	Notes
1885	Henry Farquharson	Conservative	Died 1895
1895 by-election	Robert Williams	Conservative
1922	Philip Colfox	Conservative	Resigned 1941
1941 by-election	Simon Digby	Conservative
Feb 1974	Jim Spicer	Conservative
1997	Oliver Letwin	Conservative

Elections

Elections in the 2010s

General Election 2017: West Dorset
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Conservative	Oliver Letwin	33,081	55.5	+5.3
	Liberal Democrat	Andy Canning	13,990	23.5	+1.9
	Labour	Lee Rhodes	10,896	18.3	+8.3
	Green	Kelvin Clayton	1,631	2.7	−3.0
Majority			19,091	32.0	+2.4
Turnout			59,750	75.6	+3.0
	Conservative hold		Swing	+1.7

General Election 2015: West Dorset^[5]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Conservative	Oliver Letwin	28,329	50.2	+2.6
	Liberal Democrat	Ros Kayes	12,199	21.6	−19.1
	UKIP	David Glossop	7,055	12.5	+8.7
	Labour	Rachel Rogers	5,633	10.0	+3.3
	Green	Peter Barton	3,242	5.7	+4.6
Majority			16,130	28.6
Turnout			56,643	72.6	−2.0
	Conservative hold		Swing	+10.9

General Election 2010: West Dorset^[6]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Conservative	Oliver Letwin	27,287	47.6	+1.1
	Liberal Democrat	Sue Farrant	23,364	40.7	−1.2
	Labour	Steve Bick	3,815	6.7	−1.1
	UKIP	Oliver Chisholm	2,196	3.8	+1.8
	Green	Susan Greene	675	1.2	−0.6
Majority			3,923	6.8
Turnout			57,337	74.6	−1.8
	Conservative hold		Swing	+1.1

Elections in the 2000s

General Election 2005: West Dorset^[7]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Conservative	Oliver Letwin	24,763	46.5	+1.9
	Liberal Democrat	Justine McGuinness	22,302	41.9	+0.1
	Labour	Dave Roberts	4,124	7.7	−5.9
	UKIP	Linda Guest	1,084	2.0	N/A
	Green	Susan Greene	952	1.8	N/A
Majority			2,461	4.6
Turnout			53,225	76.3	+6.8
	Conservative hold		Swing	+0.9

General Election 2001: West Dorset^[8]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Conservative	Oliver Letwin	22,126	44.6	+3.5
	Liberal Democrat	Simon Green	20,712	41.8	+4.1
	Labour	Richard Hyde	6,733	13.6	−4.1
Majority			1,414	2.8
Turnout			49,571	69.5	−6.6
	Conservative hold		Swing

Elections in the 1990s

General Election 1997: West Dorset^[9]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Conservative	Oliver Letwin	22,036	41.1
	Liberal Democrat	Robin AS Legg	20,196	37.7
	Labour	Robert Bygraves	9,491	17.7
	UKIP	P. Jenkins	1,590	3.0
	Natural Law	Mark Griffiths	239	0.4
Majority			1,840	3.4
Turnout			53,552	76.1
	Conservative hold		Swing

General Election 1992: Dorset West^[10]^[11]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Conservative	James Spicer	27,766	50.8	−5.3
	Liberal Democrat	Robin A.S. Legg	19,756	36.2	+4.5
	Labour	JPB Mann	7,082	13.0	+0.8
Majority			8,010	14.7	−9.9
Turnout			54,604	81.2	+2.9
	Conservative hold		Swing	−4.9

Elections in the 1980s

General Election 1987: Dorset West^[12]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Conservative	James Spicer	28,305	56.20
	Liberal	Trevor Jones	15,941	31.65
	Labour	John Watson	6,123	12.16
Majority			12,364	24.55
Turnout				78.26
	Conservative hold		Swing

General Election 1983: Dorset West^[13]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Conservative	James Spicer	27,030	59.7
	Liberal	Trevor Jones	13,078	28.9
	Labour	D Cash	5,168	11.4
Majority			13,952	30.82
Turnout			45,276	74.23
	Conservative hold		Swing

Elections in the 1970s

General Election 1979: Dorset West
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Conservative	James Spicer	26,281	58.71
	Liberal	Trevor Jones	9,776	21.84
	Labour	HJ Skevington	7,999	17.87
	National Front	J Tillotson	514	1.15
	Wessex Regionalist	G McEwan	192	0.43
Majority			16,505	36.87
Turnout				79.00
	Conservative hold		Swing

General Election October 1974: Dorset West
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Conservative	James Spicer	20,517	49.20
	Liberal	RM Angus	11,832	28.37
	Labour	PJ Dawe	9,350	22.42
Majority			8,685	20.83
Turnout				77.84
	Conservative hold		Swing

General Election February 1974: Dorset West
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Conservative	James Spicer	21,634	49.00
	Liberal	R Angus	14,183	32.12
	Labour	MF Cross	8,333	18.87
Majority			7,451	16.88
Turnout				83.12
	Conservative hold		Swing

General Election 1970: Dorset West
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Conservative	Simon Wingfield Digby	21,081	54.15
	Labour	George Sakwa	10,536	27.06
	Liberal	Allan Percival	7,314	18.79
Majority			10,545	27.09
Turnout			38,931	76.76
	Conservative hold		Swing

Elections in the 1960s

General Election 1966: Dorset West
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Conservative	Simon Wingfield Digby	17,709	47.68
	Labour	F Donald Shirreff	11,757	31.65
	Liberal	Michael Aza Pinney	7,676	20.67
Majority			5,952	16.02
Turnout				80.85
	Conservative hold		Swing

General Election 1964: Dorset West
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Conservative	Simon Wingfield Digby	17,841	48.59
	Labour	Leslie William King	10,631	28.96
	Liberal	Michael Aza Pinney	8,242	22.45
Majority			7,210	19.64
Turnout				81.68
	Conservative hold		Swing

Elections in the 1950s

General Election 1959: Dorset West
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Conservative	Simon Wingfield Digby	19,747	54.65
	Labour	Leslie William King	11,536	31.93
	Liberal	John H. Goodden	4,850	13.42
Majority			8,211	22.72
Turnout			36,133	81.92
	Conservative hold		Swing

General Election 1955: Dorset West
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Conservative	Simon Wingfield Digby	21,007	59.59
	Labour	Leslie William King	14,244	40.41
Majority			6,763	19.19
Turnout			35,251	80.07
	Conservative hold		Swing

General Election 1951: Dorset West
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Conservative	Simon Wingfield Digbyy	21,739	60.31
	Labour	Cambreth John Kane	14,308	39.69
Majority			7,431	20.61
Turnout				82.11
	Conservative hold		Swing

General Election 1950: Dorset West
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Conservative	Simon Wingfield Digby	18,771	51.75
	Labour	Cambreth John Kane	11,967	33.00
	Liberal	Colin Grant Cameron	5,531	15.25
Majority			6,804	18.76
Turnout				83.95
	Conservative hold		Swing

Elections in the 1940s

General Election 1945: West Dorset^[14]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Conservative	Simon Wingfield Digby	13,399	50.1
	Labour	Cambreth John Kane	8,215	30.8
	Liberal	George Newsom	5,098	19.1
Majority			5,184	19.3
Turnout				74.7
	Conservative hold		Swing

West Dorset by-election, 1941^[15]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Conservative	Simon Wingfield Digby	unopposed	n/a	n/a
	Conservative hold		Swing	n/a

General Election 1939/40:

Another general election was required to take place before the end of 1940. The political parties had been making preparations for an election to take place from 1939, and by the end of this year the following candidates had been selected:

Conservative: Simon Wingfield Digby
Liberal: George Edwin Chappell
British Union: Ralph Jebb

Elections in the 1930s

General Election 1935: West Dorset^[16]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Conservative	Philip Colfox	13,825	54.1	-6.1
	Liberal	George Edwin Chappell	11,735	45.9	+6.1
Majority			2,090	8.2
Turnout				77.9	-3.7
	Conservative hold		Swing	-6.1

General Election 1931: West Dorset^[17]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Conservative	Philip Colfox	15,510	60.2
	Liberal	George Edwin Chappell	10,271	39.8
Majority			5,239	20.4
Turnout				81.6
	Conservative hold		Swing

Elections in the 1920s

General Election 1929: Dorset West ^[18]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Unionist	Philip Colfox	12,247	49.1	-19.2
	Liberal	George Edwin Chappell	7,921	31.8	n/a
	Labour	Thomas Robins	4,770	19.1	-12.6
Majority			4,326	17.3	-19.3
Turnout				80.6	+7.4
	Unionist hold		Swing	n/a

General Election 1924: West Dorset^[19]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Unionist	Philip Colfox	12,426	68.3	+9.5
	Labour	Louie Simpson	5,764	31.7	-9.5
Majority			6,662	36.6	+19.0
Turnout				73.2	+2.3
	Unionist hold		Swing	+9.5

General Election 1923: West Dorset^[20]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Unionist	Philip Colfox	10,100	58.8	-3.3
	Labour	Louie Simpson	7,087	41.2	+3.3
Majority			3,013	17.6	-6.6
Turnout				70.9	-7.6
	Unionist hold		Swing	-3.3

General Election 1922 : West Dorset^[21]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Unionist	Philip Colfox	11,649	62.1	n/a
	Labour	T C Duke	7,101	37.9	n/a
Majority			4,548	24.2	n/a
Turnout				78.5	n/a
	Unionist hold		Swing	n/a

Elections in the 1910s

General Election 1918 West Dorset^[22]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Unionist	Robert Williams	unopposed	n/a	n/a
	Unionist hold		Swing	n/a

endorsed by Coalition Government

General Election 1914/15:

Another General Election was required to take place before the end of 1915. The political parties had been making preparations for an election to take place and by the July 1914, the following candidates had been selected:

Unionist: Robert Williams
Liberal:

General Election December 1910: Dorset West^[23]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Conservative	Robert Williams	unopposed	n/a	n/a
	Conservative hold		Swing	n/a

General Election January 1910: Dorset West ^[24]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Conservative	Robert Williams	4,011	59.2	+3.2
	Liberal	William Saunders Edwards	2,759	40.8	-3.2
Majority			1,252	18.3	+6.4
Turnout
	Conservative hold		Swing	+3.2

Elections in the 1900s

General Election 1906: Dorset West ^[25]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Conservative	Robert Williams	3,671	56.4	n/a
	Liberal	Johnstone J Haye	2,834	43.6	n/a
Majority			837	12.9	n/a
Turnout
	Conservative hold		Swing	n/a

General Election 1900: Dorset West ^[26]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Conservative	Robert Williams	unopposed	n/a	n/a
	Conservative hold		Swing	n/a

Elections in the 1890s

General Election 1895: Dorset West ^[27]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Conservative	Robert Williams	unopposed	n/a	n/a
	Conservative hold		Swing	n/a

West Dorset by-election, 1895^[28]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Conservative	Robert Williams	3,538	60.3	+3.6
	Liberal	G W Homer	2,825 2,325	39.7	-3.6
Majority			1,213	20.7	+7.2
Turnout
	Conservative hold		Swing	+3.6

General Election 1892: Dorset West ^[29]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Conservative	Henry Farquharson	3,691	56.7	-3.1
	Liberal	CT Gatty	2,813	43.3	+3.1
Majority			878	13.4
Turnout
	Conservative hold		Swing	-3.1

Elections in the 1880s

General Election 1886: Dorset West^[30]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Conservative	Henry Farquharson	3,672	59.8	+8.3
	Liberal	H Carey G Batten	2,467	40.2	-8.3
Majority			1,205	19.6	+16.6
Turnout
	Conservative hold		Swing	+8.3

General Election 1885: Dorset West ^[31]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Conservative	Henry Farquharson	3,507	51.5	n/a
	Liberal	H Carey G Batten	3,305	48.5	n/a
Majority			202	3.0	n/a
Turnout					n/a
	Conservative win (new seat)

Notes and references

Notes

↑ A county constituency (for the purposes of election expenses and type of returning officer)
↑ As with all constituencies, the constituency elects one Member of Parliament (MP) by the first past the post system of election at least every five years.

References

↑ "Electorate Figures - Boundary Commission for England". 2011 Electorate Figures. Boundary Commission for England. 4 March 2011. Retrieved 13 March 2011.
↑ 2011 Census
↑ Unemployment claimants by constituency The Guardian
↑ Leigh Rayment's Historical List of MPs – Constituencies beginning with "D" (part 2)
↑ "Election Data 2015". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 17 October 2015. Retrieved 17 October 2015.
↑ "Election Data 2010". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 17 October 2015. Retrieved 17 October 2015.
↑ "Election Data 2005". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
↑ "Election Data 2001". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
↑ "Election Data 1997". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
↑ "Election Data 1992". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
↑ "Politics Resources". Election 1992. Politics Resources. 9 April 1992. Retrieved 2010-12-06.
↑ "Election Data 1987". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
↑ "Election Data 1983". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
↑ Craig, F. W. S. (1983). British parliamentary election results 1918-1949 (3 ed.). Chichester: Parliamentary Research Services. ISBN 0-900178-06-X.
↑ Craig, F. W. S. (1983). British parliamentary election results 1918-1949 (3 ed.). Chichester: Parliamentary Research Services. ISBN 0-900178-06-X.
↑ Craig, F. W. S. (1983). British parliamentary election results 1918-1949 (3 ed.). Chichester: Parliamentary Research Services. ISBN 0-900178-06-X.
↑ Craig, F. W. S. (1983). British parliamentary election results 1918-1949 (3 ed.). Chichester: Parliamentary Research Services. ISBN 0-900178-06-X.
↑ Craig, F. W. S. (1983). British parliamentary election results 1918-1949 (3 ed.). Chichester: Parliamentary Research Services. ISBN 0-900178-06-X.
↑ Craig, F. W. S. (1983). British parliamentary election results 1918-1949 (3 ed.). Chichester: Parliamentary Research Services. ISBN 0-900178-06-X.
↑ Craig, F. W. S. (1983). British parliamentary election results 1918-1949 (3 ed.). Chichester: Parliamentary Research Services. ISBN 0-900178-06-X.
↑ Craig, F. W. S. (1983). British parliamentary election results 1918-1949 (3 ed.). Chichester: Parliamentary Research Services. ISBN 0-900178-06-X.
↑ Craig, F. W. S. (1983). British parliamentary election results 1918-1949 (3 ed.). Chichester: Parliamentary Research Services. ISBN 0-900178-06-X.
↑ British Parliamentary Election Results 1885-1918, FWS Craig
↑ British Parliamentary Election Results 1885-1918, FWS Craig
↑ British Parliamentary Election Results 1885-1918, FWS Craig
↑ British Parliamentary Election Results 1885-1918, FWS Craig
↑ British Parliamentary Election Results 1885-1918, FWS Craig
↑ The Constitutional Year Book, 1904, published by Conservative Central Office, page 143 (167 in web page), Dorsetshire
↑ British Parliamentary Election Results 1885-1918, FWS Craig
↑ British Parliamentary Election Results 1885-1918, FWS Craig
↑ British Parliamentary Election Results 1885-1918, FWS Craig

Constituencies in South West England (55)
Conservative (46)	Bournemouth East Bournemouth West Bridgwater and West Somerset Camborne and Redruth Central Devon Cheltenham Chippenham Christchurch Devizes East Devon Filton and Bradley Stoke Forest of Dean Gloucester Kingswood Mid Dorset and North Poole North Cornwall North Devon North Dorset North East Somerset North Somerset North Swindon North Wiltshire Plymouth Moor View Poole Salisbury Somerton and Frome South Dorset South East Cornwall South Swindon South West Devon South West Wiltshire St Austell and Newquay St Ives Taunton Deane Tewkesbury The Cotswolds Thornbury and Yate Tiverton and Honiton Torbay Torridge and West Devon Totnes Truro and Falmouth Wells West Dorset Weston-super-Mare Yeovil
Labour (7)	Bristol East Bristol North West Bristol South Bristol West Exeter Plymouth Sutton and Devonport Stroud
Liberal Democrats (1)	Bath
Independent (1)	Newton Abbot
South West England European constituency: Conservative (2) Green (1) Labour (1) UKIP (2)

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