Penrith and The Border (UK Parliament constituency)

Penrith and the Border
County constituency for the House of Commons
Boundary of Penrith and the Border in Cumbria.
Location of Cumbria within England.
County	Cumbria
Electorate	65,234 (December 2010)"Electorate Figures - Boundary Commission for England". 2011 Electorate Figures. Boundary Commission for England. 4 March 2011. Retrieved 13 March 2011.
Major settlements	Appleby-in-Westmorland, Brampton, Penrith and Wigton
Current constituency
Created	1950
Member of parliament	Rory Stewart (Conservative)
Number of members	One
Created from	Penrith & Cockermouth North Cumberland
Overlaps
European Parliament constituency	North West England

Penrith and the Border is a constituency^{[n 1]} in Cumbria represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2010 by Rory Stewart, a Conservative.^{[n 2]}

History

Penrith and the Border was first contested in 1950 since which it has to date been a safe Conservative seat and on rare occasions a marginal. The Conservatives came close to losing the seat in a 1983 by-election, when the former cabinet minister 'Willie' Whitelaw became the leader of the House of Lords: the by-election took place a mere seven weeks after his success in the 1983 general election. Since that year the Liberal Democrats have come second behind the Conservatives until the 2015 general election when they came fourth.

History of boundaries

The constituency was created in 1950 by merging part of Penrith and Cockermouth with North Cumberland. The constituency was enlarged in 1983 by taking most of the northern part of the former Westmorland constituency and in 1997 by taking the Kirkby Stephen/Tebay area of the Westmorland and Lonsdale constituency.

From 1983-1997, the constituency was formed from:

Aspatria, Boltons, Marsh, Silloth, Tarns, Wampool, Warnell, Waver, and Wigton in Allerdale District
Arthuret, Brampton, Burgh, Dalston, Great Corby and Geltsdale, Hayton, Irthing, Lyne, St Cuthbert Without, Stanwix Rural, and Wetheral in the City of Carlisle
Alston Moor, Appleby, Appleby Bongate, Askham, Brough, Crosby Ravensworth, Dacre, Eamont, Greystoke, Hartside, Hesket, Kirkby Thore, Kirkoswald, Langwathby, Lazonby, Long Marton, Lowther, Penrith East, Penrith North, Penrith South, Penrith West, Skelton, Ullswater, and Warcop in Eden District

Penrith and The Border is the largest constituency by area in England. Despite the name it only includes part of the English border with Scotland. The neighbouring constituency of Hexham (together with Berwick-upon-Tweed) also takes in the border area. The name stems from the fact that when the constituency was first created it consisted of the Penrith Rural and Urban Districts, the Border Rural District and also the Alston with Garrigill Rural District

Parliament accepted the Boundary Commission's Fifth Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies which slightly altered this constituency for the 2010 general election since which it includes the following electoral wards:

Alston Moor, Appleby, Appleby (Bongate), Askham, Brough, Crosby Ravensworth, Dacre, Eamont, Greystoke, Hartside, Hesket, Kirkby Stephen, Kirkby Thore, Kirkoswald, Langwathby, Lazonby, Long Marton, Lowther, Morland, Orton with Tebay, Penrith: Carleton, East, North, Pategill, South and West; Ravenstonedale, Shap, Skelton, Ullswater, and Warcop, i.e. the Eden District
Brampton, Great Corby and Geltsdale, Hayton, Irthing, Longtown and Rockcliffe, Lyne and Stanwix Rural in the City of Carlisle
Warnell, and Wigton in Allerdale District 2010 post-revision map non-metropolitan areas and unitary authorities of England

Constituency profile

A heavily undulating, mostly farmed terrain dotted by market towns and historic villages, with wooded mountainsides and heath-covered tops, the constituency is focussed on the Eden Valley beside the Pennines and the Lake District, with the vale of the River Irthing above Carlisle. In the north towards Scotland are 8 of its 42 wards all beside or in the market town of Brampton which sits beside Hadrian's Wall.

The constituency tends to have modest incomes,2001 Census low unemploymentUnemployment claimants by constituency The Guardian and a rate of dependency on social housing lower than urban centres2011 census interactive maps

Members of Parliament

Despite its location, Penrith and the Border has been continuously represented by Scots MPs for the last sixty years. The seat was represented for nearly three decades by William Whitelaw, who served as a cabinet minister in various capacities during Conservative governments of the 1970s and 1980s and later joined the House of Lords. His successor the former Conservative Chief Whip and junior minister, David Maclean sat as MP from 1983 to 2010 when he stood down due to the state of his health; he was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 1996. He was succeeded by Rory Stewart.

	Member^[1]	Party
1950	Robert Scott	Conservative
1955	William Whitelaw	Conservative
1983 by-election	David Maclean	Conservative
2010	Rory Stewart	Conservative

Elections

Elections in the 2010s

General Election 2015: Penrith and The Border^[2]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Rory Stewart	26,202	59.7	+6.3
	Labour	Lee Rushworth	6,308	14.4	+1.4
	UKIP	John Stanyer	5,353	12.2	+9.4
	Liberal Democrat	Neil Hughes	3,745	8.5	-19.9
	Green	George Burrow	2,313	5.3	+5.3
Majority			19,894	45.3	+20.4
Turnout			43,921	67.4	-2.5
	Conservative hold		Swing

General Election 2010: Penrith and The Border
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Rory Stewart	24,071	53.4	+2.0
	Liberal Democrat	Peter Thornton	12,830	28.5	+2.6
	Labour	Barbara Cannon	5,834	12.9	−6.1
	UKIP	John Stanyer	1,259	2.8	+0.3
	BNP	Chris Davidson	1,093	2.4	N/A
Majority			11,241	24.9	−0.6
Turnout			45,087	69.9	+3.2
	Conservative hold		Swing	−0.3

Elections in the 2000s

General Election 2005: Penrith and The Border
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	David Maclean	24,046	51.3	−3.6
	Liberal Democrat	Kenneth Geyve Walker	12,142	25.9	+4.1
	Labour	Michael William Boaden	8,958	19.1	+0.6
	UKIP	William Robinson	1,187	2.5	+0.4
	Legalise Cannabis	Mark Gibson	549	1.2	−0.8
Majority			11,904	25.4
Turnout			46,882	66.1	+1.6
	Conservative hold		Swing	−3.9

General Election 2001: Penrith and The Border
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	David Maclean	24,302	54.9	+7.3
	Liberal Democrat	Kenneth Geyve Walker	9,625	21.8	−4.9
	Labour	Michael William Boaden	8,177	18.5	−3.1
	UKIP	Thomas Scott Anthony Lowther	938	2.1	N/A
	Legalise Cannabis	Mark Gibson	870	2.0	N/A
	Independent	John James Moffat	337	0.8	N/A
Majority			14,677	33.1
Turnout			44,249	64.5	−9.1
	Conservative hold		Swing	+6.1

Elections in the 1990s

General Election 1997: Penrith and The Border
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	David Maclean	23,300	47.6	−11.1
	Liberal Democrat	Kenneth Geyve Walker	13,067	26.7	−2.3
	Labour	Margaret Meling	10,576	21.6	+10.6
	Referendum	Charles Pope	2,018	4.1	N/A
Majority			10,233	20.9	−8.8
Turnout			48,961	73.6
	Conservative hold		Swing	−4.4

General Election 1992: Penrith and The Border
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	David Maclean	33,808	57.5	−2.7
	Liberal Democrat	Kenneth Geyve Walker	15,359	26.1	−2.6
	Labour	John Metcalfe	8,871	15.1	+4.0
	Green	Robert A. Gibson	610	1.0	+1.0
	Natural Law	Ian Docker	129	0.2	+0.2
Majority			18,449	31.4	−0.2
Turnout			58,777	79.7	+2.2
	Conservative hold		Swing	−0.1

Elections in the 1980s

General Election 1987: Penrith and The Border
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	David Maclean	33,148	60.3	+1.5
	Liberal	David James Ivison	15,782	28.7	+0.8
	Labour	John Matthew Patrick Hutton	6,075	11.0	−2.3
Majority			17,366	31.6	+1.5
Turnout			55,005	77.5	+4.4
	Conservative hold		Swing	+0.8

By-election 1983: Penrith and The Border
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	David Maclean	17,530	46.0	−12.8
	Liberal	Michael Alan Young	16,978	44.6	+16.7
	Labour	Lindsay Williams	2,834	7.4	−5.8
	Monster Raving Loony	Screaming Lord Sutch	412	1.1	N/A
	Retired Naval Officer	Eric Morgan	150	0.4	N/A
	Death off Roads: Freight on Rail	Helen Mary Anscomb	72	0.2	N/A
	Independent Socialist	John Connell	69	0.2	N/A
	New Britain	Peter Smith	35	0.1	N/A
Majority			552	1.4	−29.5
Turnout			38,080	55.9	−17.2
	Conservative hold		Swing	−14.8

General Election 1983: Penrith and The Border
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	William Whitelaw	29,304	58.8	−2.4
	Liberal	Michael Alan Young	13,883	27.9	+11.4
	Labour	Lindsay Williams	6,612	13.3	−9.1
Majority			15,421	30.1	−8.7
Turnout			49,799	73.1	−3.9
	Conservative hold		Swing

Elections in the 1970s

General Election 1979: Penrith and The Border
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	William Whitelaw	26,940	61.2
	Labour	L.R. West	9,844	22.4
	Liberal	B. Wates	7,257	16.5
Majority			17,096	38.8
Turnout				76.98
	Conservative hold		Swing

General Election October 1974: Penrith and The Border
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	William Whitelaw	23,547	58.06
	Labour	Joseph Norman David Weedall	9,791	24.14
	Liberal	Joseph Gurney Pease	7,215	17.79
Majority			13,756	33.92
Turnout				72.93
	Conservative hold		Swing

General Election February 1974: Penrith and The Border
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	William Whitelaw	26,433	60.12
	Labour	Joseph Norman David Weedall	9,095	20.69
	Liberal	Peter Alexander	8,202	18.66
	Independent	William Hesmondalgh	235	0.53
Majority			17,338	39.44
Turnout				79.79
	Conservative hold		Swing

General Election 1970: Penrith and The Border
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	William Whitelaw	23,800	58.95
	Labour	R. Longworth	10,256	25.40
	Liberal	W. Jackson	6,316	15.64
Majority			13,544	33.55
Turnout				74.39
	Conservative hold		Swing

Elections in the 1960s

General Election 1966: Penrith and The Border
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	William Whitelaw	20,982	52.69
	Labour	Mrs. Kate M.A. Roberts	12,081	30.34
	Liberal	John R. Howe	6,757	16.97
Majority			8,901	22.35
Turnout				78.66
	Conservative hold		Swing

General Election 1964: Penrith and The Border
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	William Whitelaw	21,288	51.78
	Labour	Mrs. Kate M.A. Roberts	10,490	25.59
	Liberal	W. Jackson	9,279	22.63
Majority			10,738	26.19
Turnout				80.64
	Conservative hold		Swing

Elections in the 1950s

General Election 1959: Penrith and The Border
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	William Whitelaw	23,551	58.16
	Labour	Bernard P. Atha	9,342	23.07
	Liberal	Brian G. Ashmore	7,602	18.77
Majority			14,209	35.09
Turnout				79.11
	Conservative hold		Swing

General Election 1955: Penrith and The Border
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	William Whitelaw	22,791	57.52
	Labour	Thomas L MacDonald	9,119	23.02
	Liberal	Frederick James Sleath	7,342	18.53
	Independent Conservative	William Brownrigg	368	0.93
Majority			13,672	34.51
Turnout				77.88
	Conservative hold		Swing

General Election 1951: Penrith and The Border
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Robert Scott	23,274	54.07
	Labour	John Rafferty	10,759	24.99
	Liberal	Stafford Vaughan Stepney Howard	8,857	20.57
	Independent Conservative	William Brownrigg	158	0.37
Majority			12,515	29.07
Turnout				83.47
	Conservative hold		Swing

General Election 1950: Penrith and The Border
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Robert Scott	21,214	48.23
	Liberal	Wilfrid Hugh Wace Roberts	12,333	28.04
	Labour	C.J. Taylor	10,441	23.74
Majority			8,881	20.19
Turnout				85.26
	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

↑ Leigh Rayment's Historical List of MPs – Constituencies beginning with "P" (part 2)
↑ "Penrith & The Border". BBC News. Retrieved 11 May 2015.

Constituencies in North West England (75)

Labour (51)	Ashton-under-Lyne Barrow and Furness Birkenhead Blackburn Blackley and Broughton Blackpool South Bolton North East Bolton South East Bootle Burnley Bury South Chorley City of Chester Copeland Denton and Reddish Ellesmere Port and Neston Garston and Halewood Halton Heywood and Middleton Hyndburn Knowsley Lancaster and Fleetwood Leigh Liverpool Riverside Liverpool Walton Liverpool Wavertree Liverpool West Derby Makerfield Manchester Central Manchester Gorton Manchester Withington Oldham East and Saddleworth Oldham West and Royton Preston Rochdale St Helens North St Helens South and Whiston Salford and Eccles Sefton Central Stalybridge and Hyde Stockport Stretford and Urmston Wallasey Warrington North West Lancashire Wigan Wirral South Wirral West Workington Worsley and Eccles South Wythenshawe and Sale East

Conservative (22)	Altrincham and Sale West Blackpool North and Cleveleys Bolton West Bury North Carlisle Cheadle Congleton Crewe and Nantwich Eddisbury Fylde Hazel Grove Macclesfield Morecambe and Lunesdale Pendle Penrith and The Border Ribble Valley Rossendale and Darwen South Ribble Tatton Warrington South Weaver Vale Wyre and Preston North

Liberal Democrats (2)	Southport Westmorland and Lonsdale

North West England European constituency: Conservative (2) Labour (3) UKIP (3)

Coordinates: 54°42′N 2°42′W / 54.7°N 2.7°W / 54.7; -2.7

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