Post by greenhert on Apr 10, 2020 20:40:47 GMT
Altrincham & Sale West was created from the old Altrincham & Sale constituency in 1997, with three wards in Sale going to the new constituency of Wythenshawe & Sale East that year. It also took in Ashton-on-Mersey from the constituency of Davyhulme, which disappeared completely that year.
The town of Altrincham, once part of Cheshire, is an affluent market town in the borough of Trafford, and along with the village of Timperley and the even wealthier areas of Bowdon and Hale forms Greater Manchester's "stockbroker belt". These areas are also popular with professional footballers and self-made millionaires, meaning the constituency contains some of the most expensive streets outside London and the South East. Sale is also a middle-class town but it is not quite as desirable or as expensive as Altrincham or villages to the south of it. Employment in property, business services and finance is considerably higher than the national average. Altrincham & Sale West's proportion of people holding degree-level qualifications is one of the highest in the country outside London, 40.3%, which is the highest figure in the North West.
Altrincham & Sale West and its predecessors, Altrincham & Sale and Altrincham, have had Conservative MPs since 1924 and it is the safest Conservative seat in Greater Manchester. From 2001-2010 it was in fact the only Conservative seat in Greater Manchester. Since its creation in 1997 its MP has been Graham Brady, chair of the 1922 Committee. Labour has been catching up recently to the point where they came close to matching their vote share in the Blair landslides of 1997 and 2001. This is not only due to a substantial campaign but also because it voted Remain in the 2016 EU membership referendum, yet Mr Brady campaigned for the Leave side. Angela Smith, then MP for Penistone & Stocksbridge (originally elected as a Labour MP, she defected to Change UK and later the Liberal Democrats), contested this seat in 2019 but finished a poor third with only 11%, in an affluent pro-Remain constituency. At a local the Conservative dominance is being chipped away; Timperley and Village are key Conservative-Liberal Democrat marginals, Labour is gaining significant ground in Sale, and the Green Party now hold all three seats of the Altrincham ward. Local Labour gains here in 2019 proved critical in them gaining control of Trafford MBC that year.
The town of Altrincham, once part of Cheshire, is an affluent market town in the borough of Trafford, and along with the village of Timperley and the even wealthier areas of Bowdon and Hale forms Greater Manchester's "stockbroker belt". These areas are also popular with professional footballers and self-made millionaires, meaning the constituency contains some of the most expensive streets outside London and the South East. Sale is also a middle-class town but it is not quite as desirable or as expensive as Altrincham or villages to the south of it. Employment in property, business services and finance is considerably higher than the national average. Altrincham & Sale West's proportion of people holding degree-level qualifications is one of the highest in the country outside London, 40.3%, which is the highest figure in the North West.
Altrincham & Sale West and its predecessors, Altrincham & Sale and Altrincham, have had Conservative MPs since 1924 and it is the safest Conservative seat in Greater Manchester. From 2001-2010 it was in fact the only Conservative seat in Greater Manchester. Since its creation in 1997 its MP has been Graham Brady, chair of the 1922 Committee. Labour has been catching up recently to the point where they came close to matching their vote share in the Blair landslides of 1997 and 2001. This is not only due to a substantial campaign but also because it voted Remain in the 2016 EU membership referendum, yet Mr Brady campaigned for the Leave side. Angela Smith, then MP for Penistone & Stocksbridge (originally elected as a Labour MP, she defected to Change UK and later the Liberal Democrats), contested this seat in 2019 but finished a poor third with only 11%, in an affluent pro-Remain constituency. At a local the Conservative dominance is being chipped away; Timperley and Village are key Conservative-Liberal Democrat marginals, Labour is gaining significant ground in Sale, and the Green Party now hold all three seats of the Altrincham ward. Local Labour gains here in 2019 proved critical in them gaining control of Trafford MBC that year.
