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Post by BossMan on Apr 28, 2020 23:06:59 GMT
HUDDERSFIELD
The large market town of Huddersfield has long had an association with politics of liberalism and the left. This was the birthplace of former Labour Prime Minister Harold Wilson in 1916. A bronze statue of him stands in St. George’s Square in front of Huddersfield Railway Station, a Grade I listed building. Going back much further, even before the town was given its own MP in the Great Reform Act of 1832, this was a centre of civil unrest during the Industrial Revolution. Local weavers saw their livelihoods threatened by the introduction of machines, and a secret organisation of textile workers known as the Luddites began attacking cotton mills and their machinery in response.
West Yorkshire’s first ever Green councillor was elected here, in Newsome ward in 1996. Previously a Labour leaning ward, its voters have continued to vote for a full slate of Green councillors at every opportunity since. As with many former mill towns, Huddersfield has a significant ethnic minority population, according to the 2011 making up just under a fifth of its population. Most of this community are Asian, originating from the Indian subcontinent. The town is also home to a university and three sixth form colleges, bringing a large student population to the area.
With such a background, it is unsurprising that the constituency was originally held by the Whigs rather than the Tories, then the Liberals almost continuously from 1832 until 1923, when it was first gained by the Labour Party, which had been competitive ever since they began contesting the seat in 1906. The Conservatives had held it for just two years, between 1893 and 1895, as the result of a by-election. Between 1931 and 1945 there was a National Liberal MP, who was unseated by Labour candidate J.P.W. Mallalieu, who would serve as an MP until he retired in 1979.
However, in 1950, the constituency was split into two by boundary changes, into Huddersfield East and Huddersfield West. Mallalieu took on the eastern constituency, which contained Huddersfield itself and was always reliably Labour. West took in more semi-rural areas now in the present Colne Valley seat, and was much more marginal, alternately electing a Liberal, Labour and Conservative Member. The Conservative was Geoffrey Dickens, who took the seat in 1979 but migrated to Littleborough and Saddleworth in 1983 when another boundary change revived Huddersfield as a single constituency again.
Barry Sheerman, who had succeeded Mallalieu in 1979, won the redrawn seat in 1983 and still represents it today, under the Labour and Co-operative banner, as with 25 other Labour MPs. His majorities have ranged between three and sixteen thousand, depending on national circumstances, usually with the Conservatives taking second place (2005 was the exception, with the fallout over the Iraq war causing many Labour voters to lend their support to the Lib Dems).
Labour dominate at local level, but they are not without competition. As well as Newsome voting Green continuously since 1996, the Lib Dems continue their traditional strength in the south east of the seat, in Almondbury – which they have usually been able rely on, the odd Labour and Tory win aside in recent years. The Lib Dems did have some strength in Dalton ward, which includes the village of Kirkheaton, but Labour have not lost there since 2008. The two best wards of all for Labour are Ashbrow, which includes the north east of Huddersfield; and the monolithical stronghold of Greenhead, which covers the north west side.
The constituency was estimated to have voted 52% in favour of leaving the European Union in the 2016 referendum, which was about the national average. There was a swing of 7.8% against the 79 year old Barry Sheerman in the 2019 general election, but he still held on by 4,937 votes. Given the circumstances of that year, it seems more than secure for any Labour candidate in 2024, whether Sheerman seeks a twelfth term or not.
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Post by greenhert on Apr 28, 2020 23:26:12 GMT
You mean West Yorkshire's first ever Green councillor.
The first Ecology Party councillor was elected as early as 1976, and John Marjoram has been a Green councillor in Stroud continuously since 1986.
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Post by BossMan on Apr 29, 2020 5:26:34 GMT
You mean West Yorkshire's first ever Green councillor. The first Ecology Party councillor was elected as early as 1976, and John Marjoram has been a Green councillor in Stroud continuously since 1986. Thanks.
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Post by hullenedge on Apr 29, 2020 7:41:09 GMT
I reckon that Greenhead would have been comfortably Conservative some years back (a fair chunk of the old Marsh and Paddock wards).
Tweaking the ward boundaries and likely more housing developments it should be possible to create a Tory ward in the Fixby area.
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Post by Davıd Boothroyd on Apr 29, 2020 8:41:38 GMT
This is now the only constituency in the UK, if we accept Huddersfield East as its linear predecessor, which has still had only 2 postwar MPs. This was the case for Bolsover until December. There are bits of Staffordshire where that's true as well, but boundary changes complicate it in terms of a constituency comparison.
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Post by Devil Wincarnate on Apr 29, 2020 11:06:49 GMT
You mean West Yorkshire's first ever Green councillor. The first Ecology Party councillor was elected as early as 1976, and John Marjoram has been a Green councillor in Stroud continuously since 1986. What an unusual surname. I don't think I've ever met anyone with that before.
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Post by greenhert on Apr 29, 2020 11:33:47 GMT
The surname Marjoram is derived from a herb, in the same way Juniper and Sage are.
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Post by finsobruce on Apr 29, 2020 14:01:45 GMT
You mean West Yorkshire's first ever Green councillor. The first Ecology Party councillor was elected as early as 1976, and John Marjoram has been a Green councillor in Stroud continuously since 1986. What an unusual surname. I don't think I've ever met anyone with that before. The Labour candidate for Finchley in 1992 was called Anni Marjoram and she later became one of Ken's advisors when he was Mayor. As she had the Women's Rights portfolio, as soon as Boris took over she was out of a job.
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Post by Davıd Boothroyd on Apr 29, 2020 15:46:37 GMT
There are bits of Staffordshire where that's true as well, but boundary changes complicate it in terms of a constituency comparison. Yes, I presume you're referring to Hugh Fraser and Bill Cash. The problem being that the current Stone constituency does not have a linear predecessor since Stone ceased to be an independent constituency in 1950. That is to elevate constituency names to a level they may not merit. The village of Eccleshall has had only three MPs since 1922 (Joseph Lamb, Hugh Fraser, Bill Cash).
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Post by BossMan on Apr 29, 2020 15:55:05 GMT
You mean West Yorkshire's first ever Green councillor. The first Ecology Party councillor was elected as early as 1976, and John Marjoram has been a Green councillor in Stroud continuously since 1986. What an unusual surname. I don't think I've ever met anyone with that before. Mallalieu is an interesting surname also. There was the (J.P.) William mentioned in my profile. His brother Lance was Labour MP for Colne Valley and later Brigg. Their father Frederick was also MP for Colne Valley, but as a Liberal. They're descended from Huguenots. William's daughter Ann has had a seat in the Lords since 1991, is president of the Countryside Alliance and voted Leave in 2016.
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Post by Merseymike on Apr 29, 2020 20:12:00 GMT
I reckon that Greenhead would have been comfortably Conservative some years back (a fair chunk of the old Marsh and Paddock wards). Tweaking the ward boundaries and likely more housing developments it should be possible to create a Tory ward in the Fixby area. The old Paddock ward which included Marsh and Edgerton was usually Tory but it's an area which has become both more Guardianista and more BME. I'm not sure what could be added to Fixby to tip it into the blue camp. It was part of the old Birkby ward when it was Tory held in the mid 80s but recreated that would be a very safe Labour ward now.
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rr
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Post by rr on Nov 7, 2020 11:47:03 GMT
I reckon that Greenhead would have been comfortably Conservative some years back (a fair chunk of the old Marsh and Paddock wards). Tweaking the ward boundaries and likely more housing developments it should be possible to create a Tory ward in the Fixby area. The old Paddock ward which included Marsh and Edgerton was usually Tory but it's an area which has become both more Guardianista and more BME. I'm not sure what could be added to Fixby to tip it into the blue camp. It was part of the old Birkby ward when it was Tory held in the mid 80s but recreated that would be a very safe Labour ward now. Bits of Lindley perhaps? Weird that the poshest area of town is currently in such a safe Labour ward. IIRC Paddock was voting Labour by the 1980s though there was a freak Tory win in 1987. Huddersfield stands out among Northern Mill Towns in not only having a large Asian minority but also a sizeable Afro Caribbean community which is concentrated in the estates to the north east and east. Not sure of the historical reason for this. This makes the seat more akin to the likes of Leeds and other big cities than, say, Halifax, Oldham or Blackburn.
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bsjmcr
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Post by bsjmcr on Nov 7, 2020 17:48:49 GMT
Was there ever any overlap between L'borough and S'worth and Huddersfield (West) at any time in history or did the Conservative simply move there because it was next door and safer? If not, where was Saddleworth included in when it was in G.Manchester?
Only because Wikipedia says: The victorious MP on each of these occasions was Geoffrey Dickens, who was elected in 1979 for Huddersfield West (which was a predecessor seat to this constituency, however no part of it was added to this seat when it was created in 1983). But neither the entry for Huddersfield or West says the pre-83 boundaries.
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Post by hullenedge on Nov 7, 2020 17:51:48 GMT
Was there ever any overlap between L'borough and S'worth and Huddersfield (West) at any time in history or did the Conservative simply move there because it was next door and safer? If not, where was Saddleworth included in when it was in G.Manchester? No overlap and Geoffrey Dickens moved because it was a better prospect than Colne Valley.
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Post by Merseymike on Nov 7, 2020 19:52:05 GMT
The old Paddock ward which included Marsh and Edgerton was usually Tory but it's an area which has become both more Guardianista and more BME. I'm not sure what could be added to Fixby to tip it into the blue camp. It was part of the old Birkby ward when it was Tory held in the mid 80s but recreated that would be a very safe Labour ward now. Bits of Lindley perhaps? Weird that the poshest area of town is currently in such a safe Labour ward. IIRC Paddock was voting Labour by the 1980s though there was a freak Tory win in 1987. Huddersfield stands out among Northern Mill Towns in not only having a large Asian minority but also a sizeable Afro Caribbean community which is concentrated in the estates to the north east and east. Not sure of the historical reason for this. This makes the seat more akin to the likes of Leeds and other big cities than, say, Halifax, Oldham or Blackburn. Paddock didn't switch to Labour until 1990. It had been a Tory ward, but two right wing Tory councillors , Ken and Molly Matheson, had a spat with the local party and joined the SDP. In an all out three Alliance councillors were elected - the Mathesons and Kathleen Hasler who was one of the most left wing Liberals I have ever met! The Matheson later went independent and Molly Matheson lost her seat to Labour's John Harman in 1986. The Tories and Libs stood too. They went back to the Tories and retook the seats - both had a personal vote but they died in office within months of each other and Labour took the seats. The LibDems won once in the post Iraq election - the ward was made to be lost given its population - it's replacement Greenhead ward is very safe Labour, though on paper it's more middle class
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YL
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Post by YL on Nov 8, 2020 14:34:01 GMT
Was there ever any overlap between L'borough and S'worth and Huddersfield (West) at any time in history or did the Conservative simply move there because it was next door and safer? If not, where was Saddleworth included in when it was in G.Manchester? Only because Wikipedia says: The victorious MP on each of these occasions was Geoffrey Dickens, who was elected in 1979 for Huddersfield West ( which was a predecessor seat to this constituency, however no part of it was added to this seat when it was created in 1983). But neither the entry for Huddersfield or West says the pre-83 boundaries. I presume you mean before it was in GM? If so, it was in Colne Valley. There is a map of the 1955-74 boundaries at www.visionofbritain.org.uk/maps/sheet/bc_reports_1900s/Yorkshire_West_Riding_1954NB this contradicts the Wikipedia article on the Colne Valley constituency which says Kirkburton was in it from 1950 to 1983, but that map shows it having been moved to Huddersfield East.
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bsjmcr
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Post by bsjmcr on Nov 8, 2020 18:26:28 GMT
Was there ever any overlap between L'borough and S'worth and Huddersfield (West) at any time in history or did the Conservative simply move there because it was next door and safer? If not, where was Saddleworth included in when it was in G.Manchester? Only because Wikipedia says: The victorious MP on each of these occasions was Geoffrey Dickens, who was elected in 1979 for Huddersfield West ( which was a predecessor seat to this constituency, however no part of it was added to this seat when it was created in 1983). But neither the entry for Huddersfield or West says the pre-83 boundaries. I presume you mean before it was in GM? If so, it was in Colne Valley. There is a map of the 1955-74 boundaries at www.visionofbritain.org.uk/maps/sheet/bc_reports_1900s/Yorkshire_West_Riding_1954NB this contradicts the Wikipedia article on the Colne Valley constituency which says Kirkburton was in it from 1950 to 1983, but that map shows it having been moved to Huddersfield East. Thanks, so Wikipedia is wrong then on H'field West being a 'predecessor' to L&S!
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Post by Davıd Boothroyd on Nov 8, 2020 18:39:12 GMT
Quite wrong. Took the MP, but not one single voter - in fact they were quite far apart:
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rr
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Post by rr on Nov 15, 2020 12:21:52 GMT
Bits of Lindley perhaps? Weird that the poshest area of town is currently in such a safe Labour ward. IIRC Paddock was voting Labour by the 1980s though there was a freak Tory win in 1987. Huddersfield stands out among Northern Mill Towns in not only having a large Asian minority but also a sizeable Afro Caribbean community which is concentrated in the estates to the north east and east. Not sure of the historical reason for this. This makes the seat more akin to the likes of Leeds and other big cities than, say, Halifax, Oldham or Blackburn. Paddock didn't switch to Labour until 1990. It had been a Tory ward, but two right wing Tory councillors , Ken and Molly Matheson, had a spat with the local party and joined the SDP. In an all out three Alliance councillors were elected - the Mathesons and Kathleen Hasler who was one of the most left wing Liberals I have ever met! The Matheson later went independent and Molly Matheson lost her seat to Labour's John Harman in 1986. The Tories and Libs stood too. They went back to the Tories and retook the seats - both had a personal vote but they died in office within months of each other and Labour took the seats. The LibDems won once in the post Iraq election - the ward was made to be lost given its population - it's replacement Greenhead ward is very safe Labour, though on paper it's more middle class Good knowledge. I remember the Mountjoy Road area in Edgerton (Paddock ward) from 80s/90s childhood - seemed pretty posh then and I see there are still some nice houses there on the likes of Rightmove. The area around Westbourne Road and Paddock itself was more modest (though not really that "rough"). The mansions around Greenhead park were already subdivided. There was also a sizeable Council estate up at Reinwood Road on the border with Lindley.
Of course the new Greenhead ward now includes the Birkby area from the oldf Birkby ward - though that ward was semi-marginal Birkby itself was the Labour area. Fixby was the Tory area in that ward.
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Post by Merseymike on Nov 15, 2020 12:26:21 GMT
True but Birkby became more and more Labour for demographic reasons. At one time it was a safe Tory ward and it shifted Labour as the Asian population grew
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