Streatham (UK Parliament constituency)

Streatham
Borough constituency for the House of Commons
Boundary of Streatham in Greater London.
County	Greater London
Electorate	71,913 (December 2010)[1]
Current constituency
Created	1918
Member of parliament	Chuka Umunna (Labour)
Number of members	One
Created from	Wandsworth
Overlaps
European Parliament constituency	London

Streatham is a constituency^{[n 1]} created in 1918 represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2010 by Chuka Umunna, a Labour Party MP.^{[n 2]}

Boundaries

1918–1974: The Metropolitan Borough of Wandsworth ward of Streatham.

1974–1983: The London Borough of Lambeth wards of Clapham Park, St Leonard's, Streatham Hill, Streatham South, Streatham Wells, and Thornton.

1983–1997: As above plus Town Hall ward.

1997–2010: As above plus St Martin's and Tulse Hill wards.

2010–present: The London Borough of Lambeth wards of Brixton Hill, Clapham Common, St Leonard’s, Streatham Hill, Streatham South, Streatham Wells, Thornton, and Tulse Hill.

Streatham is a long constituency comprising the south-west portion of the London Borough of Lambeth.^[2] The town of Streatham constitutes the four wards in the southern half of the constituency. At its north-western tip the seat includes half of Clapham Common; the north-east takes in part of Brixton which is shared with neighbouring Vauxhall and Dulwich and West Norwood.

The northern boundary follows Clapham Park Road, Acre Lane, and Coldharbour Lane through Clapham and Brixton to Lambeth Town Hall. The north-eastern boundary generally follows Effra Road and Tulse Hill, but runs east of the main road to include the part of the Tulse Hill estate and the Cressingham Gardens estate west of Brockwell Park. The boundary skirts the Tulse Hill district centre, following Hardel Rise, Christchurch Road and Norwood Road, and then runs along Leigham Vale and Leigham Court Road. The southern and western constituency boundaries follow Lambeth's borough boundaries with Croydon, Merton and Wandsworth.

History

The constituency of Streatham was contested under the name at the 1918 general election when it approximately followed the historic parish boundaries of Streatham, including a substantial part of Balham, a 19th-century founded primarily urban parish by 1918.

The constituency was carved out of the former constituency of Wandsworth in the same way as Putney, Wandsworth Central and Balham and Tooting under the Representation of the People Act 1918, the fourth major UK reform, that settled upon single member constituencies, and roughly equal electorates.

The 1918 boundaries remained unchanged until the 1965 changes to Greater London local government became reflected in the parliamentary constituencies, at the February 1974 general election. This resulted in a net reduction in the size of the area. The western district Streatham Park (location of the Streatham Conservative Club) and the remainder of Furzedown ward went into Tooting.

The rest of the constituency, including the town of Streatham has since 1965 been in the London Borough of Lambeth. Three other constituencies covered Lambeth from 1974, Vauxhall, Norwood and Lambeth Central. The Clapham constituency was abolished as part of the 1974 changes. The Clapham Park area and Hyde Farm (commonly thought of as part of Balham) came into the Streatham seat, whereas the rest of Clapham went into the Vauxhall seat creating an enduring split.

On abolition of Lambeth Central at the 1983 election, the constituency gained much of southern Brixton. Following further population decline, Lambeth was paired with Southwark in the next boundary review, and from the 1997 election, Streatham constituency gained areas around Tulse Hill from the former Norwood constituency, the rest of which became part of Dulwich and West Norwood.

Political history

Streatham was for a few decades solidly Tory suburbia overall - the Conservatives won Streatham when Labour gained large majorities in 1945 and 1966, and it was the only seat in the former LCC area (Inner London) apart from the Chelsea/Kensington/Westminster/City central core to remain consistently Conservative.

Despite their victory in the General Election, the Conservative Party lost Streatham in 1992 having held it since 1918. The Conservative candidate was beaten into third place by a Liberal Democrat in 2001, and there were swings from Labour to the Liberal Democrats at the two subsequent general elections. An improvement in the Conservative share of the vote took place in 2010, when the Labour incumbent, Keith Hill, retired and Chuka Umunna was elected standing with the party. The 2015 result was the re-election of Umunna, which made the seat the 96th safest of Labour's 232 seats by percentage of majority.^[3]

Streatham has swung heavily against the Conservative Party since the 1980s, even more than other similar seats in South London (such as Croydon North, Dulwich, Lewisham East and West). Demographic and voting pattern changes combined with unfavourable boundary changes converted Streatham into a marginal seat, then into a mid-ranking safe Labour seat.

Constituency profile

Among the most ethnically diverse constituencies, Streatham - which covers parts of Clapham, Balham, Brixton, Tulse Hill and Streatham - is in the south London borough of Lambeth. Only 58.2% of residents are white and it has among the most mixed race and black residents in the country, according to the 2011 Census. It has Polish, Portuguese and Hispanic communities. The bulk of residents are aged 25–44, with relatively few pensioners.

Although it is a residential area, it is more popular with young workers than families - with good transport links into central London. Many residents rent and there is a large social housing sector. Streatham High Road is home to over 400 businesses. A £26m ice rink and leisure centre opened in November 2013, part of continuing investment. The population is highly qualified and a high percentage are in full-time work. Labour's Chuka Umunna won this seat in 2010 - with a 3,259 majority. The Lib Dems came second.

A key issue that was a deciding factor of the election was Cressingham Gardens. The Greens, Conservatives and UKIP were all opposed to the demolition of the 306 dwellings. Excluding the 3 Conservative Opposition Councillors, 2 Labour Councillors (out of the 59) and 1 Green Councillor, the entire council supported the demolition. Chuka Umunna was against the demolition, along with Kate Hoey.

Members of Parliament

Election		Member	Party	Notes
	1918	Sir[n 3] William Lane-Mitchell	Coalition Conservative	Sat as a Unionist
	1922		Conservative
	1939 by-election	Sir David Robertson	Conservative	Uncontested wartime by-election caused by Lane-Mitchell's resignation
	1950	Duncan Sandys (after, Lord Duncan-Sandys)	Conservative	Secretary of State for Defence (1957-9), Commonwealth Relations (1960-2), and Colonies (1962-4).
	1974	Sir William Shelton	Conservative
	1992	Trevor Keith Hill	Labour	First Labour MP to represent the constituency
	2010	Chuka Umunna	Labour	Shadow Business Secretary from 2011 to 2015.

Election results

Elections in the 2010s

General Election 2017: Streatham^[4]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Labour	Chuka Umunna	38,212	68.5	+15.5
	Conservative	Kim Caddy	11,927	21.4	-3.7
	Liberal Democrat	Alex Davies	3,611	6.5	-2.5
	Green	Nicole Griffiths	1,696	3.0	-5.8
	UKIP	Robert Stephenson	349	0.6	-2.6
Majority			26,285	47.1	+19.2
Turnout			55,795	70.9	+7.8
	Labour hold		Swing	+9.6

General Election 2015: Streatham^[5][6]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Labour	Chuka Umunna	26,474	53.0	+10.2
	Conservative	Kim Caddy	12,540	25.1	+6.8
	Liberal Democrat	Amna Ahmad	4,491	9.0	−26.8
	Green	Jonathan Bartley	4,421	8.9	+7.1
	UKIP	Bruce Machan	1,602	3.2	N/A
	CISTA	Artificial Beast	192	0.4	N/A
	TUSC	Unjum Mirza	164	0.3	N/A
	Workers Revolutionary	Deon Gayle	49	0.1	−0.2
Majority			13,934	27.9	+20.9
Turnout			49,933	63.1	+0.3
	Labour hold		Swing	+1.7

General Election 2010: Streatham^[7]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Labour	Chuka Umunna	20,037	42.8	−4.2
	Liberal Democrat	Chris Nicholson	16,778	35.8	+6.3
	Conservative	Rahoul Bhansali	8,578	18.3	+0.5
	Green	Rebecca Findlay	861	1.8	−3.7
	Christian	Geoffrey Macharia	237	0.5	N/A
	English Democrat	Janus Polenceus	229	0.5	N/A
	Workers Revolutionary	Paul Lepper	117	0.2	−0.1
Majority			3,259	7.0	-11.4
Turnout			46,837	62.8	+11.0
	Labour hold		Swing	−5.2

NB Percentage comparions in the table above are against the notional result on the new constituency boundaries.

Elections in the 2000s

General Election 2005: Streatham^[8]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Labour	Keith Hill	18,950	46.7	−10.2
	Liberal Democrat	Darren Sanders	11,484	28.3	+10.0
	Conservative	James Sproule	7,238	17.8	0.0
	Green	Shane Collins	2,245	5.5	+1.1
	UKIP	Trevor Gittings	396	1.0	N/A
	Workers Revolutionary	Billy Colvill	127	0.3	N/A
	Independent	Philippa Stone	100	0.2	N/A
	Independent	Robert West	40	0.1	N/A
	Independent	Sarah Acheng	35	0.1	N/A
Majority			7,466	18.4	-20.8
Turnout			40,615	51.3	+2.6
	Labour hold		Swing	−10.1

General Election 2001: Streatham^[9]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Labour	Keith Hill	21,401	57.3	−5.5
	Liberal Democrat	Roger O'Brien	6,771	18.1	+4.6
	Conservative	Stephen Hocking	6,639	17.8	−4.0
	Green	Mohammed Sajid	1,641	4.4	N/A
	Socialist Alliance	Greg Tucker	906	2.4	N/A
Majority			14,630	39.2	-1.9
Turnout			37,358	49.1	−11.0
	Labour hold		Swing

Elections in the 1990s

General Election 1997: Streatham^[10]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Labour	Keith Hill	28,181	62.8	+13.4
	Conservative	Ernest Noad	9,758	21.7	−16.7
	Liberal Democrat	Roger O'Brien	6,082	13.6	+3.6
	Referendum	Jeremy J. Wall	864	1.9	N/A
Majority			18,423	41.1	+35.4
Turnout			44,885	60.2	-10.1
	Labour hold		Swing

General Election 1992: Streatham^[11]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Labour	Keith Hill	18,925	47.0
	Conservative	Bill Shelton	16,608	41.3
	Liberal Democrat	John Pindar	3,858	9.6
	Green	Roger C. L. Baker	443	1.1
	Islamic Party	A. Hakin	154	0.4
	Rainbow Dream Ticket	Cynthia Payne	145	0.4
	Natural Law	John V. Parsons	97	0.2
Majority			2,317	5.7
Turnout			40,230	70.3
	Labour gain from Conservative		Swing	5.75

Elections in the 1980s

General Election 1987: Streatham^[12]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Conservative	Bill Shelton	18,916	45.0
	Labour	E. Anna Tapsall	16,509	39.2
	Liberal	Mike Tuffrey	6,663	15.8
Majority			2,407	5.8
Turnout			42,088	69.5
	Conservative hold		Swing	4.6%

General Election 1983: Streatham^[13]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Conservative	Bill Shelton	18,264	46.5
	Labour	M. M. Long	12,362	31.5
	Liberal	Peter H. Billenness	8,321	21.2
	National Front	K. D. Handy	321	0.8
Majority			5,902	15.0
Turnout			39,268	65.4
	Conservative hold		Swing

Elections in the 1970s

General Election 1979: Streatham

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Conservative	Bill Shelton	19,630	51.44
	Labour	T. P. C. Daniel	14,130	37.02
	Liberal	J. S. Pincham	3,779	9.9
	National Front	G. W. Bryant	523	1.37
	Providers Through Care	A. J. Hollander	102	0.27
Majority			5,500	14.41
Turnout			38,164	71.54
	Conservative hold		Swing

General Election October 1974: Streatham

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Conservative	Bill Shelton	16,515	45.65
	Labour	J. Gaffin	13,648	37.73
	Liberal	R. Silver	4,987	13.79
	National Front	T. Lamb	817	2.26
	Independent	Teresa E. Moore	210	0.58
Majority			2,867	7.92
Turnout			36,177	64.08
	Conservative hold		Swing

General Election February 1974: Streatham

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Conservative	Bill Shelton	18,457	45.15	-8.965
	Labour	J. Gaffin	13,982	34.21	-4.09
	Liberal	R. Silver	7,456	18.24	+10.69
	National Front	T. Lamb	937	2.29	+2.29
	Independent	Bill Boaks	45	0.11	+0.11
Majority			4,475	10.95	-4.89
Turnout			40,877	72.78	+6.08
	Conservative hold		Swing

General Election 1970: Streatham

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Conservative	Duncan Sandys	19,215	54.115	-0.515
	Labour	Ann S Ward	13,593	38.30	-7.07
	Liberal	Derrick Delaney	2,680	7.55	+7.55
Majority			5,622	15.84	+6.58
Turnout			35,488	66.70	-3.71

Elections in the 1960s

General Election 1966: Streatham

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Conservative	Duncan Sandys	19,872	54.63	+2.53
	Labour	James L Walker	16,505	45.37	+12.93
Majority			3,367	9.26
Turnout			36,377	70.41
	Conservative hold		Swing

General Election 1964: Streatham

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Conservative	Duncan Sandys	19,408	52.10	-7.66
	Labour	James L Walker	12,085	32.44	+5.02
	Liberal	Anthony H J Miller	5,261	14.12	+1.3
	Independent Loyalists	William Austen Brooks	497	1.33	+1.33
Majority			7,323	19.66
Turnout				71.76
	Conservative hold		Swing

Elections in the 1950s

General Election 1959: Streatham

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Conservative	Duncan Sandys	23,479	59.76	-5.79
	Labour	David Kerr	10,773	27.42	-7.03
	Liberal	Stephen Rubin	5,039	12.82	+12.82
Majority			12,706	32.34
Turnout				77.17
	Conservative hold		Swing

General Election 1955: Streatham

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Conservative	Duncan Sandys	25,862	65.55	+5.64
	Labour	Reg Prentice	13,594	34.45	+1.7
Majority			12,268	31.09
Turnout				74.38
	Conservative hold		Swing

General Election 1951: Streatham

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Conservative	Duncan Sandys	27,084	59.91	+2.61
	Labour	Norman John Smart	14,804	32.75	-0.11
	Liberal	Alexander William Wilson	3,319	7.34	-2.5
Majority			12,280	27.16
Turnout				81.53
	Conservative hold		Swing

General Election 1950: Streatham

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Conservative	Duncan Sandys	26,571	57.30	+5.07
	Labour	Peter Benenson	15,235	32.86	-0.92
	Liberal	Alexander William Wilson	4,562	9.84	-4.15
Majority			11,336	24.45
Turnout				81.01
	Conservative hold		Swing

Election in the 1940s

General Election 1945: Streatham

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Conservative	David Robertson	17,462	52.23	-23.95
	Labour	John Gross	11,296	33.78	+9.96
	Liberal	Charles William Ernest Remnant	4,677	13.99	+13.99
Majority			6,166	18.44
Turnout				73.45
	Conservative hold		Swing

Elections in the 1930s

Streatham by-election 1939

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Conservative	David Robertson	Unopposed	N/A	N/A
	Conservative hold		Swing

General Election 1935: Streatham

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Conservative	William Lane-Mitchell	25,429	76.18	-8.85
	Labour	Arthur Skeffington	7,951	23.82	+8.85
Majority			17,478	52.36
Turnout				64.11
	Conservative hold		Swing

General Election 1931: Streatham

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Conservative	William Lane-Mitchell	30,358	85.03
	Labour	R.B. Fraser	5,343	14.97	-3.43
Majority			25,015	70.07
Turnout				71.30
	Conservative hold		Swing

Elections in the 1920s

General Election 1929: Streatham

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Unionist	William Lane-Mitchell	19,024	57.0	-11.5
	Liberal	Percy Rawlins	8,191	24.6	+6.9
	Labour	Fred Hughes	6,134	18.4	n/a
Majority			10,833	32.4	-18.4
Turnout
	Unionist hold		Swing	-9.2

General Election 1924: Streatham

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Unionist	William Lane-Mitchell	15,936	68.5
	Liberal	Charles Parsloe	4,111	17.7
	Communist	Alfred M. Wall	3,204	13.8
Majority			11,825	50.8
Turnout			23,251	77.75
	Unionist hold		Swing

General Election 1923: Streatham ^[14]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Unionist	William Lane-Mitchell	10,598	60.0	-9.1
	Liberal	Charles Parsloe	7,075	40.0	+9.1
Majority			3,523	20.0	-18.2
Turnout				61.3	-1.7
	Unionist hold		Swing	-9.1

Graphical representation

2001

2.4	4.4%	57.3%	18.1%	17.8%
SA	Grn	Labour	Lib Dems	Conservative

2005

	5.5%	46.7%	28.3%				17.8%
	Green	Labour	Lib Dems				Conservative

2010

		42.8%	35.8%	18.3%
		Labour	Lib Dems	Conservative

2015

		8.9%		53.0%	9.0%	25.1%	3.2
		Green		Labour	Lib Dems	Conservative	UK

See also

• List of Parliamentary constituencies in Greater London

Notes

References

Sources

• Leigh Rayment's Historical List of MPs – Constituencies beginning with "S" (part 5)

Coordinates: 51°26′20″N 0°07′30″W / 51.439°N 0.125°W / 51.439; -0.125