Luton (UK Parliament constituency)

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Luton
Former Borough constituency
for the House of Commons
County Bedfordshire
Major settlements Luton
1950–1974 (1974)
Number of members One
Replaced by Luton East and Luton West
1885–1950
Number of members One
Type of constituency County constituency
Created from Bedfordshire

Luton was a parliamentary constituency centred on the town of Luton in Bedfordshire. It returned one Member of Parliament (MP) to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, elected by the first past the post system.

The Bedfordshire Southern or Luton constituency[1] was created for the 1885 general election as a county division of Bedfordshire, when the former Bedfordshire county constituency was abolished.

Luton became a borough constituency in 1950 ([1]).

At the February 1974 general election the Borough constituency was abolished, and replaced by two new borough constituencies: Luton East and Luton West.

Boundaries

1885-1918: The Municipal Boroughs of Dunstable and Luton, the Sessional Divisions of Leighton Buzzard, Luton, and Woburn, and part of the Sessional Division of Ampthill.

1918-1950: The Municipal Boroughs of Dunstable and Luton, and the Rural District of Luton.

1950-1974: The Municipal Borough of Luton wards of Central, Crawley, Dallow, High Town, Icknield, Lewsey, South, Stopsley, Sundon Park, and Wardown.

The 1885 county constituency was created under the Redistribution of Seats Act 1885, when the former two-seat constituency of Bedfordshire was divided into two single-member seats of Biggleswade and Luton.

Members of Parliament

Election Member Party
1885 Cyril Flower Liberal
1892 by-election Samuel Howard Whitbread Liberal
1895 Thomas Gair Ashton Liberal
1911 by-election Cecil Bisshopp Harmsworth Liberal
1922 Sir John Prescott Hewett Unionist
1923 Geoffrey William Algernon Howard Liberal
1924 Terence James O'Connor Unionist
1929 Edward Leslie Burgin Liberal
1931 National Liberal
1945 Will Warbey Labour
1950 Charles Hill National Liberal and Conservative
1963 by-election Will Howie Labour
1970 Charles Simeons Conservative
Feb 1974 constituency abolished: see Luton East and Luton West

Election results

Elections in the 1910s

File:Thomas Gair Ashton.jpg
Thomas Ashton
General Election December 1910
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Liberal Thomas Gair Ashton 7,601 53.4 +0.5
Conservative John Owen Hickman 6,623 46.6 -0.5
Majority 6.8
Turnout 85.9
Liberal hold Swing +0.5
C.B. Harmsworth
Luton by-election, 1911
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Liberal Cecil Bisshopp Harmsworth 7,619 52.1 -1.3
Conservative John Owen Hickman 7,006 47.9 +1.3
Majority 613 4.2
Turnout 85.1
Liberal hold Swing -1.3

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 from 1914 and by the end of this year, the following candidates had been selected;

General Election 1918: Luton
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Liberal Cecil Bisshopp Harmsworth 13,501 69.4
Labour Willet Ball 5,964 30.6
Majority 7,537 38.8
Turnout 62.5
Liberal hold Swing

Harmsworth was endorsed by the Coalition Government.

Elections in the 1920s

Percy Alden
General Election 1922: Luton
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Unionist Sir John Prescott Hewett 13,301 43.5 n/a
Liberal Harry Arnold 10,137 33.2 -36.2
Labour Percy Alden 7,107 23.3 -7.3
Majority 3,164 10.3 49.1
Turnout 81.0 +18.5
Unionist gain from Liberal Swing n/a
Geoffrey Howard
General Election 1923: Luton
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Liberal Hon. Geoffrey William Algernon Howard 15,569 51.4 +18.2
Unionist Sir John Prescott Hewett 11,738 38.7 -4.8
Labour Willet Ball 2,998 9.9 -13.4
Majority 3,831 12.7 23.0
Turnout 78.1
Liberal gain from Unionist Swing +11.5
General Election 1924: Luton
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Unionist Terence James O'Connor 15,443 47.1
Liberal Hon. Geoffrey William Algernon Howard 11,495 35.1
Labour Philip L Millwood 5,850 17.8
Majority 3,948 12.0
Turnout 82.6
Unionist gain from Liberal Swing
General Election 1929: Luton
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Liberal Edward Leslie Burgin 20,248 45.5 +10.4
Unionist Terence James O'Connor 16,930 38.0 -9.1
Labour Florence Nightingale Harrison Bell 7,351 16.5 -1.3
Majority 3,318 7.5 19.5
Turnout 81.5 -1.1
Liberal gain from Unionist Swing +9.8

Elections in the 1930s

General Election 1931: Luton
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Liberal National Edward Leslie Burgin 32,015 80.2
Labour James H MacDonnell 7,897 19.8
Majority 24,118 60.4
Turnout 39,912 67.8
Liberal National hold Swing
General Election 1935: Luton
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Liberal National Edward Leslie Burgin 28,809 65.5
Labour Ferdinand Louis Kerran 15,181 34.5
Majority 13,628 31.0
Turnout 43,990 63.2
Liberal National hold Swing

Elections in the 1940s

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;

General Election 1945: Luton
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour William Noble Warbey 39,335 55.2
Liberal National Leonard Graham Brown 31,914 44.8
Majority 7,421 10.4
Turnout 74.9
Labour gain from Liberal National Swing

Elections in the 1950s

General Election 1950: Luton
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
National Liberal and Conservative Dr. Charles Hill 22,946 46.59
Labour William Noble Warbey 21,860 44.38
Liberal Wilfred G Matthews 4,447 9.03
Majority 1,086 2.20
Turnout 87.07
National Liberal and Conservative gain from Labour Swing
General Election 1951: Luton
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
National Liberal and Conservative Dr. Charles Hill 26,554 52.69
Labour William Noble Warbey 23,842 47.31
Majority 2,712 5.38
Turnout 87.59
National Liberal and Conservative hold Swing
General Election 1955: Luton
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
National Liberal and Conservative Dr. Charles Hill 24,722 51.33
Labour Morris Janis 20,304 42.15
Liberal Jean Mary Henderson 3,140 6.52
Majority 4,418 9.17
Turnout 83.14
National Liberal and Conservative hold Swing
General Election 1959: Luton
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
National Liberal and Conservative Dr. Charles Hill 27,153 55.09
Labour Cyril Rawlett Fenton 22,134 44.91
Majority 5,019 10.18
Turnout 82.46
National Liberal and Conservative hold Swing

Elections in the 1960s

Luton by-election, 1963
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour William Howie 21,108 48.02
Conservative Sir John Fletcher-Cooke 17,359 39.49
Liberal M A Benjamin 5,001 11.38
Communist Anthony P J Chater 490 1.11
Majority 3,749 8.53
Turnout 43,958
Labour gain from National Liberal and Conservative Swing
General Election 1964: Luton
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour William Howie 23,751 50.16
Conservative Charles Fitzmaurice Creighton Simeons 23,028 48.64
Communist Anthony P J Chater 567 1.20
Majority 723 1.53
Turnout 79.84
Labour hold Swing
General Election 1966: Luton
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour William Howie 23,069 48.76
Conservative Charles Fitzmaurice Creighton Simeons 20,605 43.55
Liberal Thomas H Daniels 3,049 6.44
Communist Anthony P J Chater 586 1.24
Majority 2,464 5.21
Turnout 79.21
Labour hold Swing

Elections in the 1970s

General Election 1970: Luton
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Charles Fitzmaurice Creighton Simeons 23,308 50.99
Labour William Howie 21,959 48.04
Communist Anthony P J Chater 447 0.98
Majority 1,349 2.95
Turnout 73.17
Conservative gain from Labour Swing

See also

References

References

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