Post by BossMan on May 5, 2020 22:23:34 GMT
COLNE VALLEY
The semi-rural West Yorkshire constituency of Colne Valley is a contender for one of the most famous constituency names, and has been competitive for all three main parties until relatively recently. It has a fascinating heritage which is impossible to ignore, so much so that one of its Labour MPs, David Clark (from 1970-4) wrote a book about it. The area played an important part in the Industrial Revolution – and many textile mills were built alongside the streams and rivers, which provided employment for the residents of its numerous villages. Rebel politics reared its head at a very early stage, for this area was strongly associated with the Luddite movement.
The local Labour Party proudly describes itself on its Twitter page as the “oldest Constituency Labour Party in the World”. Victor Grayson won the seat in a 1907 by-election under the “Colne Valley Labour Party” banner. He held the seat until 1910, and disappeared under mysterious circumstances in 1920. Philip Snowden (MP from 1922 to 1931) served as the first Labour MP to become Chancellor of the Exchequer.
The Liberal tradition continued here long after the 1920s – as it did in parts of eastern Lancashire and other parts of West Yorkshire after it had mostly died out in other parts of the country outside the “Celtic Fringe”. This was attributed mostly to the strength of Nonconformity in northern England as well as pacts with the Tories, a supportive local press and good local organisation. They, not the Tories, gained the seat in the Labour disaster of 1931. Violet Bonham Carter, a long standing friend of Winston Churchill, was given a free run as a Liberal candidate against Labour in 1951, although it wasn’t quite enough to win. The 1963 by-election, although won by Labour, put the Liberal candidate Richard Wainwright in pole position, and he went on to win the seat in 1966, and - with a break between 1970 and 1974 - held it until 1987.
The Conservatives were finally given a boost by boundary changes in 1983, which brought in two western wards of the town of Huddersfield to supplement the traditional valley communities. When Wainwright retired in 1987, the Tories gained the seat for the first time. Since then the seat has usually been a bellwether, won by either the Conservatives or Labour, depending on which party prevailed nationally. The exception was in 2017, when Labour’s Thelma Walker defeated Conservative incumbent Jason McCartney by 915 votes. However, in 2019, McCartney took the seat back by 5,103. The constituency was estimated to have voted for Brexit extremely narrowly in the 2016 EU referendum. It should be remembered that for all its Liberal and Labour traditions, this is a prosperous constituency. It has a higher than average proportion of professional and managerial workers. Eight out of ten houses are owner-occupied, and unemployment is low.
As for the Liberal Democrats, they have not won the seat since the Wainwright days. They were able to score at least 20% of the vote until 2010, but as in so many other seats, suffered a disaster in 2015 as a consequence of their Coalition with the Conservative led government, their share of the vote dropping by 22% to just 6%. They have not recovered since.
At a local level, however, the Lib Dems remain very competitive, and have beaten the Conservatives more often than not in Lindley ward, a suburban part of northwestern Huddersfield known for its longstanding Liberal Club. And in Golcar ward, home to the Colne Valley Museum and the village of Milnsbridge, they usually beat Labour.
The Colne Valley constituency should not be confused with its ward of the same name, which includes the villages of Marsden and Slaithwaite, with its lively commercial centre - and is ironically just as competitive between the three main parties as the constituency as a whole was before 2010. Bank Bottom Mill in Marsden was still producing woollen cloth materials as recently as 2003, when it finally closed.
Labour’s best ward by far is Crosland Moor and Netherton, which takes in the southwestern part of Huddersfield.
To the south of the constituency is the Holme Valley and its two wards. Holme Valley North, containing the villages of Honley and Meltham, has been electing Independents since 2010; prior to that it was a Tory/Lib Dem battleground.
Holme Valley South, not far north of the Peak District, is the best ward for the Conservatives in the constituency, although Labour did win it in May 2019. It includes Holmfirth, famous for being the filming location of the situation comedy Last of the Summer Wine. In fact the whole area has been popular as a filming location, and tourism is actively promoted.
It remains to be seen if the Lib Dems can make some sort of comeback here at a parliamentary level, but it seems a very tall order. For the moment this famous constituency looks like a classic Conservative-Labour marginal, and one which should certainly be watched closely.
The semi-rural West Yorkshire constituency of Colne Valley is a contender for one of the most famous constituency names, and has been competitive for all three main parties until relatively recently. It has a fascinating heritage which is impossible to ignore, so much so that one of its Labour MPs, David Clark (from 1970-4) wrote a book about it. The area played an important part in the Industrial Revolution – and many textile mills were built alongside the streams and rivers, which provided employment for the residents of its numerous villages. Rebel politics reared its head at a very early stage, for this area was strongly associated with the Luddite movement.
The local Labour Party proudly describes itself on its Twitter page as the “oldest Constituency Labour Party in the World”. Victor Grayson won the seat in a 1907 by-election under the “Colne Valley Labour Party” banner. He held the seat until 1910, and disappeared under mysterious circumstances in 1920. Philip Snowden (MP from 1922 to 1931) served as the first Labour MP to become Chancellor of the Exchequer.
The Liberal tradition continued here long after the 1920s – as it did in parts of eastern Lancashire and other parts of West Yorkshire after it had mostly died out in other parts of the country outside the “Celtic Fringe”. This was attributed mostly to the strength of Nonconformity in northern England as well as pacts with the Tories, a supportive local press and good local organisation. They, not the Tories, gained the seat in the Labour disaster of 1931. Violet Bonham Carter, a long standing friend of Winston Churchill, was given a free run as a Liberal candidate against Labour in 1951, although it wasn’t quite enough to win. The 1963 by-election, although won by Labour, put the Liberal candidate Richard Wainwright in pole position, and he went on to win the seat in 1966, and - with a break between 1970 and 1974 - held it until 1987.
The Conservatives were finally given a boost by boundary changes in 1983, which brought in two western wards of the town of Huddersfield to supplement the traditional valley communities. When Wainwright retired in 1987, the Tories gained the seat for the first time. Since then the seat has usually been a bellwether, won by either the Conservatives or Labour, depending on which party prevailed nationally. The exception was in 2017, when Labour’s Thelma Walker defeated Conservative incumbent Jason McCartney by 915 votes. However, in 2019, McCartney took the seat back by 5,103. The constituency was estimated to have voted for Brexit extremely narrowly in the 2016 EU referendum. It should be remembered that for all its Liberal and Labour traditions, this is a prosperous constituency. It has a higher than average proportion of professional and managerial workers. Eight out of ten houses are owner-occupied, and unemployment is low.
As for the Liberal Democrats, they have not won the seat since the Wainwright days. They were able to score at least 20% of the vote until 2010, but as in so many other seats, suffered a disaster in 2015 as a consequence of their Coalition with the Conservative led government, their share of the vote dropping by 22% to just 6%. They have not recovered since.
At a local level, however, the Lib Dems remain very competitive, and have beaten the Conservatives more often than not in Lindley ward, a suburban part of northwestern Huddersfield known for its longstanding Liberal Club. And in Golcar ward, home to the Colne Valley Museum and the village of Milnsbridge, they usually beat Labour.
The Colne Valley constituency should not be confused with its ward of the same name, which includes the villages of Marsden and Slaithwaite, with its lively commercial centre - and is ironically just as competitive between the three main parties as the constituency as a whole was before 2010. Bank Bottom Mill in Marsden was still producing woollen cloth materials as recently as 2003, when it finally closed.
Labour’s best ward by far is Crosland Moor and Netherton, which takes in the southwestern part of Huddersfield.
To the south of the constituency is the Holme Valley and its two wards. Holme Valley North, containing the villages of Honley and Meltham, has been electing Independents since 2010; prior to that it was a Tory/Lib Dem battleground.
Holme Valley South, not far north of the Peak District, is the best ward for the Conservatives in the constituency, although Labour did win it in May 2019. It includes Holmfirth, famous for being the filming location of the situation comedy Last of the Summer Wine. In fact the whole area has been popular as a filming location, and tourism is actively promoted.
It remains to be seen if the Lib Dems can make some sort of comeback here at a parliamentary level, but it seems a very tall order. For the moment this famous constituency looks like a classic Conservative-Labour marginal, and one which should certainly be watched closely.
