Old Bexley and Sidcup (UK Parliament constituency)

Old Bexley and Sidcup
Borough constituency
for the House of Commons

Outline map

Boundary of Old Bexley and Sidcup in Greater London.
County Greater London
Electorate 65,161 (December 2010)[1]
Current constituency
Created 1983
Member of parliament James Brokenshire (Conservative)
Number of members One
Created from Bexleyheath (part) and Sidcup
Overlaps
European Parliament constituency London
Wards of the Old Bexley and Sidcup constituency (green) within the London Borough of Bexley (yellow and green) from the 2010 General Election

Old Bexley and Sidcup is a constituency[n 1] created in 1983 represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2010 by James Brokenshire, a Conservative.[n 2]

History and profile

The seat was created in 1983 by combining a small part of the abolished seat of Bexleyheath, chiefly Old Bexley, with the abolished seat of Sidcup.

On 29 January 2008 the Conservative Party withdrew the whip from the MP Derek Conway following alleged misuse of funds revealed by the MPs expenses controversy, who declined to resign as MP and became an Independent. He retired from national politics in 2010.

Sir Edward Heath, (prime minister of the United Kingdom 1970–1974), held this area (also referring to its main predecessor seat, Sidcup) from 1950 until 2001 when he retired at the age of 85, at the time the longest serving MP in the Commons.

Political overview

The seat has been won at general elections since creation by the Conservative Party candidate. The 1997 New Labour Landslide saw the party's majority fall to its lowest level of 7% of the vote. Its greatest level has to date been 41.5% of the vote — in 1987.

In 2010 the seat was won by the Conservative James Brokenshire, who had transferred to this seat and approved by his local party when his former seat of Hornchurch was abolished in boundary changes. His 2015 result made the seat the 105th safest of the Conservative Party's 331 seats by percentage of majority.[2]

Boundaries

1983–1997: The London Borough of Bexley wards of Blackfen, Blendon and Penhill, Cray, Lamorbey, St Mary's, Sidcup East, and Sidcup West.

1997–2010: The London Borough of Bexley wards of Blackfen, Blendon and Penhill, Cray, Danson, East Wickham, Falconwood, Lamorbey, St Mary's, Sidcup East, and Sidcup West.

2010–present: The London Borough of Bexley wards of Blackfen and Lamorbey, Blendon and Penhill, Cray Meadows, East Wickham, Falconwood and Welling, Longlands, St Mary’s, and Sidcup.

As its name suggest, the seat covers the Bexley and Sidcup areas; it formerly included Danson Park which owing to more development in the south was moved to the Bexleyheath and Crayford constituency.

Constituency profile

Old Bexley and Sidcup has average incomes above the national average,[3] a high proportion of semi-detached and detached homes[4] and low unemployment[5] with a lower than average dependency on social housing.[3]

South London had major factory, ship repairs and dock labour concentrated in Deptford, New Cross, Woolwich, Lewisham and mainstay parts of Battersea, Croydon and Greenwich which contributed to majority family labour union ties forming in the early 20th century to the Labour Party all of which are distanced by this seat in geography and by its suburbanization, triggered by garden-character[6] Commuter Belt construction schemes beside the Dartford Loop or "Sidcup" Line opened in 1866, replacing rolling heath, private park estates and woodland.[7]

In 1848 Bexley (the largest parish) had 3955 inhabitants.[8] In 1797 the central parish of Bexley was described as including or being next to parts of the several seats of Lamienby, Blendon, and Danson, and the several small hamlets of Hurst, Halfway-street, Bridgen, Blendon, Upton, and Welling, or indeed, more properly, Wellend, (which name was given to it from the safe arrival of the traveller at it, after having escaped the danger of robbers through the hazardous road of Shooter's Hill).[7]

Made up of mixed modest and highly affluent suburbia, low-rise and well connected to Central London, Sidcup has been largely developed to neat garden suburb-inspired building schemes for most homes in common with a majority of outer Greater London seats and little of its housing is social housing. The area of Sidcup was agricultural and a local market town during much of the 19th century with its inter-war housing being extensive and mainly semi-detached houses with gardens for City of London commuters. During the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries the area became very popular with the landed gentry and at least four main mansions with large grounds were built in a brief period of these centuries.[9]

Members of Parliament

ElectionMember[10] Party
1983 Sir Edward Heath Conservative
2001 Derek Conway
2008 Independent
2010 James Brokenshire Conservative

Election results

Elections in the 2010s

General Election 2017: Old Bexley and Sidcup[11]
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Conservative James Brokenshire 29,545 61.5 +8.7
Labour Danny Hackett 14,079 29.3 +10.3
UKIP Freddy Vachha 1,619 3.4 -14.9
Liberal Democrat Drew Heffernan 1,572 3.3 -0.2
Green Derek Moran 820 1.7 -1.2
BNP Michael Jones 324 0.7 +0.2
Christian Peoples Chinwe Nwadikeduruibe 83 0.2 N/A
Majority 15,466 32.2 -1.6
Turnout 48,042 72.8 +2.0
Conservative hold Swing -0.8
General Election 2015: Old Bexley and Sidcup[12][13][14]
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Conservative James Brokenshire 24,682 52.8 −1.3
Labour Ibby Mehmet 8,879 19.0 −0.3
UKIP Catherine Reilly 8,528 18.2 +14.9
Liberal Democrat Jennifer Keen 1,644 3.5 −11.9
Green Derek Moran 1,336 2.9 +2.0
National Health Action Bob Gill 1,216 2.6 N/A
Christian Laurence Williams 245 0.5 N/A
BNP Nicola Finch 218 0.5 −4.2
Majority 15,803 33.8 -1.1
Turnout 46,748 70.8 +1.5
Conservative hold Swing −0.5
General Election 2010: Old Bexley and Sidcup[15]
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Conservative James Brokenshire 24,625 54.1 +4.1
Labour Rick Everitt 8,768 19.3 −8.7
Liberal Democrat Duncan Borrowman 6,996 15.4 +1.5
BNP John Brooks 2,132 4.7 +1.8
UKIP David Coburn 1,532 3.4 −1.2
English Democrat Elaine Cheeseman 520 1.1 N/A
Independents to save Queen Mary’s Hospital John Hemming-Clark 393 0.9 N/A
Green Jonathan Rooks 371 0.8 N/A
Monster Raving Loony Napoleon Dynamite 155 0.3 N/A
Majority 15,857 34.9 +12.6
Turnout 45,492 69.3 +4.0
Conservative hold Swing 6.3

Elections in 2000s

General Election 2005: Old Bexley and Sidcup[16]
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Conservative Derek Conway 22,191 49.8 +4.4
Labour Gavin Moore 12,271 27.5 −10.0
Liberal Democrat Nick O'Hare 6,564 14.7 +1.0
UKIP Michael Barnbrook 2,015 4.5 +1.1
BNP Claire Sayers 1,227 2.8 N/A
Independent Gregory Peters 304 0.7 N/A
Majority 9,920 22.3 +14.4
Turnout 44,572 65.3 +3.2
Conservative hold Swing +7.2
General Election 2001: Old Bexley and Sidcup[17]
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Conservative Derek Conway 19,130 45.4 +3.4
Labour Jim Dickson 15,785 37.5 +2.4
Liberal Democrat Belinda Ford 5,792 13.7 −2.4
UKIP Janice Cronin 1,426 3.4 −1.4
Majority 3,345 7.9 +1.0
Turnout 42,133 62.1 −13.4
Conservative hold Swing +0.5

Elections in 1990s

General Election 1997: Old Bexley and Sidcup[18][19]
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Conservative Edward Heath 21,608 42.1 −18.3
Labour Richard Justham 18,039 35.1 +13.5
Liberal Democrat Iain King 8,284 16.1 +0.2
Referendum Brian Reading 2,457 4.8 N/A
UKIP C. Bullen 489 1.0 N/A
BNP Valerie Tyndall 415 0.8 N/A
Natural Law Robert Stephens 99 0.2 −0.2
Majority 3,569 7.0 −31.8
Turnout 51,391 75.5 −6.5
Conservative hold Swing −15.9
General Election 1992: Old Bexley and Sidcup[20]
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Conservative Edward Heath 24,450 60.3 −1.8
Labour Donna Brierly 8,751 21.6 +4.3
Liberal Democrat David J. Nicolle 6,438 15.9 −4.7
Independent Barry Rose 733 1.8 N/A
Natural Law Robert Stephens 148 0.4 N/A
Majority 15,699 38.7 −2.8
Turnout 40,520 81.9 +4.9
Conservative hold Swing −1.4

Elections in 1980s

General Election 1987: Old Bexley and Sidcup[21]
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Conservative Edward Heath 24,350 62.1 +1.9
Liberal Thomas Pearce 8,076 20.6 −5.4
Labour Howard Stoate 6,762 17.3 +3.5
Majority 16,274 41.5 +7.4
Turnout 39,188 77.1 +2.9
Conservative hold Swing +3.7
General Election 1983: Old Bexley and Sidcup[22]
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Conservative Edward Heath 22,442 60.2 +0.4
Liberal Peter Vickers 9,704 26.0 +13.6
Labour Chris Kiff 5,116 13.7 -12.1
Majority 12,738 34.2 +0.2
Turnout 37,262 74.2 -5.1
Conservative win (new seat)

See also

Notes and references

Notes
  1. ↑ A borough constituency (for the purposes of election expenses and type of returning officer)
  2. ↑ 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
  1. ↑ "Electorate Figures – Boundary Commission for England". 2011 Electorate Figures. Boundary Commission for England. 4 March 2011. Retrieved 13 March 2011.
  2. ↑ List of Conservative MPs elected in 2015 by % majority UK Political.info. Retrieved 2017-01-29
  3. 1 2 "Local statistics - Office for National Statistics". neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk.
  4. ↑ "2011 census interactive maps".
  5. ↑ Unemployment claimants by constituency The Guardian
  6. ↑ "OpenStreetMap". OpenStreetMap.
  7. 1 2 Edward Hasted (1797). "Parishes: Bexley". The History and Topographical Survey of the County of Kent: Volume 2. Institute of Historical Research. Retrieved 22 January 2013.
  8. ↑ Samuel Lewis (publisher) (1848). "Beverstone – Bickleigh". A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research. Retrieved 22 January 2013.
  9. ↑ Sidcup (overview) The London Borough of Bexley. Retrieved 2017-02-19
  10. ↑ Leigh Rayment's Historical List of MPs – Constituencies beginning with "O"
  11. ↑ "Old Bexley & Sidcup parliamentary constituency". BBC News.
  12. ↑ "Election Data 2015". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 17 October 2015. Retrieved 17 October 2015.
  13. ↑ "Election results for Old Bexley and Sidcup, 7 May 2015". 7 May 2015.
  14. ↑ "Old Bexley & Sidcup parliamentary constituency - Election 2017" – via www.bbc.co.uk.
  15. ↑ "Election Data 2010". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 26 July 2013. Retrieved 17 October 2015.
  16. ↑ "Election Data 2005". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
  17. ↑ "Election Data 2001". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
  18. ↑ "Election Data 1997". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
  19. ↑ "Old Bexley & Sidcup [Archive]". www.webarchive.org.uk.
  20. ↑ "Election Data 1992". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
  21. ↑ "Election Data 1987". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
  22. ↑ "Election Data 1983". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by
Castle Point		 Constituency represented by the Father of the House
1992–2001 		Succeeded by
Linlithgow

Coordinates: 51°26′20″N 0°07′12″E / 51.439°N 0.120°E / 51.439; 0.120

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