Harrow West (UK Parliament constituency)

Harrow West is a constituency[n 1][n 2] which was created in 1945 and is represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament. Until 1997, it only returned Conservative MPs; since then, it has elected the Labour Co-operative MP Gareth Thomas on a fluctuating majority. Since 2010, this has been bolstered by the loss of Pinner from the seat and the gain of a favourable ward for Labour from Harrow East.

Harrow West
Borough constituency
for the House of Commons
Boundary of Harrow West in Greater London
CountyGreater London
Electorate69,135 (December 2010)[1]
Major settlementsHarrow, Wealdstone, Headstone, Rayners Lane, South Harrow
Current constituency
Created1945
Member of ParliamentGareth Thomas (Labour Co-op)
Number of membersOne
Created fromHarrow and Hendon
During its existence contributed to new seat(s) of:Ruislip, Northwood and Pinner (as to Pinner), since 2010
Harrow West in Middlesex 1945–50

Political history
Summary of results

The Labour Party have held the seat since 1997, with the Conservative Party second-placed in each election. The 2015 result made the seat the 215th safest of the party's 232 seats (by majority percentage), and thus the 18th most marginal seat.[2] Thomas's majority has ranged from 2.3% in 1997 to 26.4% in 2017.

Unlike Harrow East, it had always been won by the Conservative Party until Labour's landslide in 1997, when a swing of 17.5% was the eighth-highest swing in that election; it was the safest Tory seat lost to Labour.[3] Its electorate produced another better than average result for Labour in 2001, with a swing from the Conservatives to Labour of 5.4%, bettered in only four seats out of 650. The 2005 challenge by future Conservative MP Mike Freer produced a pro-Conservative swing of 4.5%.[3]

The 2010 inceptive seat saw a notional swing to the Tories in line with that nationally of 5.7%; in overall outcome the incumbent Labour MP's swing increased. The Harrow West and East seats now present as less marginal than they were in previous decades.

After a 1.1% swing to the Tories in 2015, the seat swung to Labour in 2017 by around 11%, with a local record number of votes for their incumbent candidate. At 34.4%, the Conservative vote share was the lowest in the seat's history, but the party received more votes in 2017 than in 2001 and 2010.

Other parties

UKIP, Liberal Democrat and Green Party candidates won less than 5% of the vote in 2015 and 2017, therefore forfeiting their deposits.

Boundaries
YearsLocal authorityWards
1945–1950Urban District of HarrowHarrow-on-the-Hill and Greenhill, Headstone, Pinner North, Pinner South, Roxeth, West Harrow; part of Harrow Weald.
1950–1955Urban District of HarrowPinner North and Hatch End, Pinner South, Roxbourne, Roxeth.
1955–1983Municipal Borough of HarrowHeadstone, Pinner North and Hatch End, Pinner South, Roxbourne, Roxeth.
1983–2010London Borough of HarrowHarrow on the Hill, Hatch End, Headstone North, Headstone South, Pinner, Pinner West, Rayners Lane, Ridgeway, Roxbourne, Roxeth.
2010–presentLondon Borough of HarrowGreenhill, Harrow on the Hill, Headstone North, Headstone South, Marlborough (an easterly projection centred on Harrow and Wealdstone station and its compact urban hub), Rayners Lane, Roxbourne, Roxeth, West Harrow.

The constituency was created for the 1945 general election when the Harrow constituency was split into the new seats of Harrow East and Harrow West. It was reduced in size for the 1950 general election, when a third Harrow seat, Harrow Central, was created. The Boundary Commission review before the 1983 general election saw the London Borough of Harrow contained in two seats, resulting in Harrow West gaining parts of the abolished Harrow Central.

The area covers the largely Georgian conservation area on a stand-alone, partly park-lined hill which hosts the famous Harrow School; it also includes the urban Harrow town centre, as well as suburban streets of homes with good-sized gardens and well-kept small parklands. The seat has fast London Underground links to the city centre and rail services, few dual carriageways and few high speed roads. Labour's union leader Tony McNulty lost the neighbouring Harrow East in 2010 to Blackman, who held on in 2015 and 2017. However, Harrow West's Gareth Thomas retained his seat with a reduced majority.

2010 boundaries

Reviewing such representation in North London, the Boundary Commission for England (de facto), as is custom agreed by Parliament, altered the area's limits to avoid malapportionment, as London's housing and rates of occupancy have altered. The western border district, town or neighbourhood of Pinner went to a new cross-Borough seat, Ruislip, Northwood and Pinner, making its source, based on a ward breakdown of the last result, and mirrored by local election results, a stronger seat for Labour; this was coupled with the inclusion of Marlborough ward which had returned many Labour councillors since World War II.

Members of Parliament
ElectionMember[4] Party
1945 Norman Bower Conservative
1951 by-election Sir Albert Braithwaite Conservative
1960 by-election Sir John Page Conservative
1987 Robert Hughes Conservative
1997 Gareth Thomas Labour, then Labour Co-op

Election results

Elections in the 2010s
General election 2019: Harrow West[5]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Co-op Gareth Thomas 25,132 52.4 -8.4
Conservative Anwara Ali 16,440 34.3 -0.1
Liberal Democrats Lisa-Maria Bornemann 4,310 9.0 +6.5
Green Rowan Langley 1,109 2.3 +1.0
Brexit Party Richard Jones 931 1.9 N/A
Majority 8,692 18.1 -8.3
Turnout 47,922 66.1 -6.0
Registered electors 72,477
Labour hold Swing -4.2
General election 2017: Harrow West[6][7]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Co-op Gareth Thomas 30,640 60.8 +13.9
Conservative Hannah David 17,326 34.4 -7.8
Liberal Democrats Christopher Noyce 1,267 2.5 -0.8
Green Rowan Langley 652 1.3 -1.5
UKIP Rathy Alagaratnam 470 0.9 -3.5
Majority 13,314 26.4 +21.7
Turnout 50,355 72.1 +5.2
Registered electors 68,797
Labour hold Swing +10.8
General election 2015: Harrow West[8][9]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Co-op Gareth Thomas 21,885 47.0 +3.3
Conservative Hannah David 19,677 42.2 +5.4
UKIP Ali Bhatti 2,047 4.3 +2.2
Liberal Democrats Chris Noyce 1,567 3.3 −12.9
Green Rowan Langley 1,310 2.8 +1.4
Independent Kailash Trivedi 117 0.2 N/A
Majority 2,208 4.7 −2.1
Turnout 46,603 66.9 −0.7
Registered electors 69,644
Labour hold Swing −1.1

Note: From 2010 historically Conservative-strong Pinner formed part of the new seat Ruislip, Northwood and Pinner. The 2010 changes are not based on the 2005 result as the constituency underwent major changes.

General election 2010: Harrow West[10][11][12]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Co-op Gareth Thomas 20,111 43.6 −5.0
Conservative Rachel Joyce 16,968 36.8 +6.4
Liberal Democrats Christopher Noyce 7,458 16.2 −2.5
UKIP Herbert Crossman 954 2.1 +0.8
Green Rowan Langley 625 1.4 N/A
Majority 3,143 6.8 +2.6
Turnout 46,116 67.6 +3.2
Registered electors 68,554
Labour hold Swing −5.7 (nominal, instead seen, on new definition)

Elections in the 2000s
General election 2005: Harrow West[13]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Co-op Gareth Thomas 20,298 42.5 −7.1
Conservative Mike Freer 18,270 38.3 +1.9
Liberal Democrats Christopher Noyce 8,188 17.1 +4.2
UKIP Janice Cronin 576 1.2 +0.1
Independent Berjis Daver 427 0.9 N/A
Majority 2,028 4.2 -9.0
Turnout 47,759 64.3 +1.3
Registered electors 74,133
Labour Co-op hold Swing −4.5
General election 2001: Harrow West[14]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Co-op Gareth Thomas 23,142 49.6 +8.1
Conservative Daniel Finkelstein 16,986 36.4 −2.8
Liberal Democrats Chris Noyce 5,995 12.9 −2.6
UKIP Peter Kefford 525 1.1 N/A
Majority 6,156 13.2 +10.9
Turnout 46,648 63.0 −9.8
Registered electors 74,083
Labour hold Swing +5.4

Elections in the 1990s
General election 1997: Harrow West[15]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Gareth Thomas 21,811 41.5 +18.97
Conservative Robert Hughes 20,571 39.2 −16.0
Liberal Democrats Pash Nandhra 8,127 15.5 −4.67
Referendum Herbert Crossman 1997 3.8 N/A
Majority 1,240 2.3 N/A
Turnout 52,506 72.8 -5.89
Registered electors 72,146
Labour gain from Conservative Swing -17.5
General election 1992: Harrow West[16]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Robert Hughes 30,240 55.20 -0.04
Labour Claude Moraes 12,343 22.53 +5.00
Liberal Democrats C. Noyce 11,050 20.17 N/A
Liberal G. Aitman 845 1.54 N/A
Natural Law J. Argyle 306 0.56 N/A
Majority 17,897 32.67 +4.66
Turnout 54,784 78.69 +4.23
Registered electors 69,616
Conservative hold Swing

Elections in the 1980s
General election 1987: Harrow West[17]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Robert Hughes 30,456 55.2 +2.2
SDP Stuart Bayliss 15,012 27.23 -4.97
Labour Colin Bastin 9,665 17.53 +3.76
Majority 15,444 28.01 +7.18
Turnout 55,133 74.46 +2.14
Registered electors 74,041
Conservative hold Swing
General election 1983: Harrow West[18]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative John Page 28,056 53.03 -5.03
SDP Stuart Bayliss 17,035 32.20 N/A
Labour K.A. Toms 7,811 14.77 -9.33
Majority 11,021 20.83 -13.13
Turnout 52,902 72.32 -6.40
Registered electors 73,151
Conservative hold Swing

Elections in the 1970s
General election 1979: Harrow West
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative John Page 26,007 58.06 +6.07
Labour M.T. Catterson 10,794 24.10 -0.43
Liberal R. Dick 7,350 16.41 -7.07
National Front R. Bennett 646 1.44 N/A
Majority 15,213 33.96 +6.49
Turnout 44,797 78.72 +4.27
Registered electors 56,907
Conservative hold Swing
General election October 1974: Harrow West
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative John Page 21,924 51.99 +0.44
Labour M.P. Reynolds 10,342 24.53 +2.08
Liberal R.E. Bell 9,903 23.48 -2.52
Majority 11,582 27.47 +1.92
Turnout 42,169 74.45 -8.34
Registered electors 56,641
Conservative hold Swing
General election February 1974: Harrow West
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative John Page 23,950 51.55 -7.98
Liberal R.E. Bell 12,081 26.00 +12.98
Labour L. Wagner 10,430 22.45 -4.99
Majority 11,869 25.55 -6.54
Turnout 46,461 82.79 +10.04
Registered electors 56,122
Conservative hold Swing
General election 1970: Harrow West
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative John Page 24,867 59.53 +6.40
Labour Timothy P C Daniel 11,462 27.44 -1.43
Liberal Jeffrey F Smith 5,440 13.02 -4.98
Majority 13,405 32.09 +7.83
Turnout 41,769 72.75 -7.40
Registered electors 57,418
Conservative hold Swing

Elections in the 1960s
General election 1966: Harrow West
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative John Page 22,660 53.13 -0.78
Labour Christopher Hubert Beaumont 12,313 28.87 +3.88
Liberal Harry Charles Seigal 7,676 18.00 -3.10
Majority 10,347 24.26 -4.65
Turnout 42,649 80.15 +0.32
Registered electors 53,210
Conservative hold Swing
General election 1964: Harrow West
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative John Page 23,132 53.91 -17.01
Labour Kenneth W Childerhouse 10,725 24.99 -4.09
Liberal Arnold E. Bender 9,055 21.10 N/A
Majority 12,407 28.91 -12.93
Turnout 42,912 79.83 +0.59
Registered electors 53,756
Conservative hold Swing
1960 Harrow West by-election[19]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative John Page 18,526 55.77 -15.15
Liberal John M. Wallbridge 7,100 21.38 N/A
Labour Philip J. Jenkins 6,030 18.15 -10.93
New Conservative John E. Dayton 1,560 4.70 N/A
Majority 11,426 34.39 -7.45
Turnout 33,216 61.60 -17.64
Registered electors 53,756
Conservative hold Swing

Elections in the 1950s
General election 1959: Harrow West
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Albert Braithwaite 30,512 70.92 +0.29
Labour Philip J. Jenkins 12,512 29.08 -0.29
Majority 18,000 41.84 +0.58
Turnout 43,024 79.24 -1.95
Registered electors 54,295
Conservative hold Swing
General election 1955: Harrow West
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Albert Braithwaite 31,321 70.63 +3.16
Labour Richard Leonard 13,024 29.37 -3.16
Majority 18,297 41.26 +6.33
Turnout 44,345 81.19 -2.57
Registered electors 54,616
Conservative hold Swing
General election 1951: Harrow West
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Albert Braithwaite 26,549 67.47 +8.93
Labour Leslie Littlewood 12,802 32.53 +3.02
Majority 13,747 34.93 +5.90
Turnout 39,351 83.76 -2.94
Registered electors 46,979
Conservative hold Swing
1951 Harrow West by-election[20]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Albert Braithwaite 22,826 72.00 +13.46
Labour Leslie Littlewood 8,877 28.00 -13.46
Majority 13,949 44.00 +14.97
Turnout 31,703 68.00 -18.70
Registered electors 46,599
Conservative hold Swing
General election 1950: Harrow West
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Norman Bower 23,744 58.54 +8.69
Labour Leslie Littlewood 11,971 29.51 -3.52
Liberal Philip Montague Syrett 4,846 11.95 -0.88
Majority 11,773 29.03 +12.21
Turnout 40,561 86.70 +8.09
Registered electors 46,781
Conservative hold Swing

Elections in the 1940s
General election 1945: Harrow West
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Norman Bower 28,617 49.85 N/A
Labour Joan Thompson 18,961 33.03 N/A
Liberal Hubert Winthrop Young 7,364 12.83 N/A
Common Wealth Hugh Lawson 2,462 4.29 N/A
Majority 9,656 16.82 N/A
Turnout 57,404 78.61 N/A
Registered electors 73,024
Conservative win (new seat)

See also

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. Archived from the original on 6 November 2010. Retrieved 13 March 2011.
  2. List of Labour MPs elected in 2015 by % majority UK Political.info. Retrieved 2017-01-29
  3. "Highest constituency swings in each general election since 1951". www.election.demon.co.uk.
  4. Leigh Rayment's Historical List of MPs – Constituencies beginning with "H" (part 1)
  5. https://www.harrow.gov.uk/downloads/file/26709/statement-of-persons-nominated-and-notice-of-poll-harrow-west
  6. "Harrow West parliamentary constituency". BBC News.
  7. http://researchbriefings.files.parliament.uk/documents/CBP-7979/CBP-7979.pdf
  8. "Election Data 2015". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 17 October 2015. Retrieved 17 October 2015.
  9. webmaster@harrow.gov.uk (1 January 2004). "Election results for Harrow West, 7 May 2015".
  10. "Election Data 2010". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 26 July 2013. Retrieved 17 October 2015.
  11. "BBC News – Election 2010 – Constituency – Harrow West". news.bbc.co.uk.
  12. Changes based upon 2005 notional results
  13. "Election Data 2005". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
  14. "Election Data 2001". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
  15. "Election Data 1997". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
  16. "Election Data 1992". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
  17. "Election Data 1987". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
  18. "Election Data 1983". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
  19. "1960 By Election Results". Archived from the original on 2013-10-16. Retrieved 2015-08-15.
  20. "1951 By Election Results". Archived from the original on 2012-02-25. Retrieved 2015-08-12.

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