Post by Pete Whitehead on Jul 12, 2023 12:35:50 GMT
This constituency name appeared in 1983 but this was the successor seat to East Hertfordshire with the majority of the electorate (though not the area) of that seat forming this one. Initially it included three semi-rural wards from East Hertfordshire district in addition to the Northaw & Cuffley ward from Welwyn Hatifield but the East Herts wards were removed in 1997 leaving only the one ward besides the borough of Broxbourne itself. Now in a kind of reversal of this, Northaw & Cuffley is removed to Hertsmere and the three East Hertfordshire wards are returned from Hertford & Stortford, namely Hertford Heath, Great Amwell and Stanstead Abbots (the last two named have subsequently been merged into a single ward)
Broxbourne is a quite singular part of Hertfordshire. There are many clichés employed to describe the area – that it is a ‘part of Essex, migrated across the River Lea’ or that it is the spiritual home of ‘white van man’. As with all stereotypes, these are not without some basis of truth. Compared to the rest of the county, Broxbourne has a low proportion of Higher Managerial and Professional workers and a very low proportion of graduates (much lower than Stevenage for example).
On the other hand, it has high levels of owner-occupation and car ownership and a high proportion of self-employed workers such as electricians and builders. Indeed, the proportion of those employed in construction is the second highest of all constituencies in Great Britain.
It was also an outlier in the EU referendum. In a county which voted by just over 50% to Leave the EU and where a majority of districts voted similarly, Broxbourne voted Leave by two to one. It is the antithesis of St Albans in almost every respect.
The borough of Broxbourne covers a compact area in the South Eastern corner of Hertfordshire, bordering Enfield to the South and the Epping Forest district of Essex to the East. The M25 forms the whole of the Southern boundary and the River Lea the whole of the Eastern boundary. But for these physical barriers, the urban area continues almost seamlessly from Watham Cross south to Enfield itself and East to Waltham Abbey.
Within the borough itself, the built-up area is indeed continuous from Waltham Cross, through Cheshunt, Wormley, Broxboune itself and up to Hoddesdon. The majority of the population is packed into a long narrow strip between the A10 and the West Anglia Main line. There is some inter-war development, particularly in the parts closest to London but most development is post-war.
There is some subtle difference between the two main centres – Cheshunt and Hoddesdon – though the social profile described above applies to both. Cheshunt is very much a suburb of London – part of the Metropolitan Police district prior to 2000 and only narrowly escaped being included in Greater London in the 1960s.
Hoddesdon has slightly more of the feel of a Hertfordshire country town, with closer links to Hertford and Ware. Hoddesdon has tended to have a slightly higher level of Lib Dem support in the past than Cheshunt (though that party is generally very weak across the borough).
Broxbourne itself is a quite small settlement between the two main centres, the name chosen presumably to avoid picking the name of one over the other.
Cheshunt is clearly the largest town here and with a population well in excess of 50,000 is one of the largest towns in Hertfordshire if relatively little-known. It used to provide workers for the ordnance factories in Enfield and more recently was the headquarters of Tescos. Market gardening has been an important industry in the area in the past as well.
The area of the old Cheshunt Urban district covers 7 of the 10 Broxbourne borough wards and the only one that Labour has won in recent years has been Waltham Cross which is usually pretty reliable for them. This sits right on the border with Enfield and has a sizeable black population (mostly African) in common with that borough. There is also some quite grim council housing here, in Holdbrook especially.
As a whole there is not a large number of non-whites in the borough beyond the Waltham Cross end – there is a certain number of ‘White other’ including (in addition to the ubiquitous Poles etc) European ethnicities which are present in large numbers in North London such as Italians and (especially) Greek Cypriots, these being second or third generation immigrants rather than more recent arrivals.
There are other areas of erstwhile Labour support and/or social housing in the Cheshunt area. Bury Green & Rosedale brings together two council estate areas which Labour were able to win in the distant past but where they haven’t been competitive recently. The old Rosedale ward was an incongruous Lib Dem voting ward through much of the 1980s and 1990s and subsequently elected a BNP councillor, but the area is fairly solid for the Conservatives now. In very good years in the mid-90s Labour were also able to win in Cheshunt North and in Wormley & Turnford.
Their best ward in recent years, besides Waltham Cross, has been Cheshunt South & Theobalds – the next ward closest to London, reflecting probably the increased presence of an Enfield type demographic. The area around Theobalds Grove looks every inch the slightly faded Outer London suburb that it basically is. The areas further out in the West such as Flamstead End remain the most solidly Conservative and Goffs Oak is one of the few genuinely upmarket areas here.
Hoddesdon is generally weaker ground for Labour than Cheshunt, but they did have longstanding support in Rye Park, the working class and industrial area to the East of the town. Their support has been weakened here by ward boundary changes as well as political realignment. The Hoddesdon Town & Rye Park ward is the only one in Hertfordshire to have elected a UKIP councillor (in 2014) but the Conservatives dominate the ward now and are even stronger in the rest of Hoddesdon.
The wards coming in from Hertford & Stortford are archetypally safe Conservative in general elections too but will add a bit more variety at the local level. The Lib Dems won the Stanstead Abbots ward in 2019 and held one of the two seats in the merged Great Amwell & Stansteads ward in 2023 while Hertford Heath was one of the many Green gains which made that party the largest on East Herts council.
Apart from the East Herts wards, only three MPs have represented this area since the war. Sir Derek Walker-Smith represented the area as part of Hertford, then East Hertfordshire from 1945 to 1983 when he became Baron Broxbourne. Marion Roe represented the new Broxbourne constituency for 22 years from its creation in 1983 until 2005 and since then Sir Charles Walker has been the MP. He has announced his retirement even though he is only 55 and will have no problem handing this on to the new Conservative candidate.
It may not be surprising these days that this most pro-Brexit of constituencies should be the most Conservative seat in Hertfordshire, but in actual fact it nearly always was, long before the referendum which changed the dynamics in so many other areas.
Broxbourne is a quite singular part of Hertfordshire. There are many clichés employed to describe the area – that it is a ‘part of Essex, migrated across the River Lea’ or that it is the spiritual home of ‘white van man’. As with all stereotypes, these are not without some basis of truth. Compared to the rest of the county, Broxbourne has a low proportion of Higher Managerial and Professional workers and a very low proportion of graduates (much lower than Stevenage for example).
On the other hand, it has high levels of owner-occupation and car ownership and a high proportion of self-employed workers such as electricians and builders. Indeed, the proportion of those employed in construction is the second highest of all constituencies in Great Britain.
It was also an outlier in the EU referendum. In a county which voted by just over 50% to Leave the EU and where a majority of districts voted similarly, Broxbourne voted Leave by two to one. It is the antithesis of St Albans in almost every respect.
The borough of Broxbourne covers a compact area in the South Eastern corner of Hertfordshire, bordering Enfield to the South and the Epping Forest district of Essex to the East. The M25 forms the whole of the Southern boundary and the River Lea the whole of the Eastern boundary. But for these physical barriers, the urban area continues almost seamlessly from Watham Cross south to Enfield itself and East to Waltham Abbey.
Within the borough itself, the built-up area is indeed continuous from Waltham Cross, through Cheshunt, Wormley, Broxboune itself and up to Hoddesdon. The majority of the population is packed into a long narrow strip between the A10 and the West Anglia Main line. There is some inter-war development, particularly in the parts closest to London but most development is post-war.
There is some subtle difference between the two main centres – Cheshunt and Hoddesdon – though the social profile described above applies to both. Cheshunt is very much a suburb of London – part of the Metropolitan Police district prior to 2000 and only narrowly escaped being included in Greater London in the 1960s.
Hoddesdon has slightly more of the feel of a Hertfordshire country town, with closer links to Hertford and Ware. Hoddesdon has tended to have a slightly higher level of Lib Dem support in the past than Cheshunt (though that party is generally very weak across the borough).
Broxbourne itself is a quite small settlement between the two main centres, the name chosen presumably to avoid picking the name of one over the other.
Cheshunt is clearly the largest town here and with a population well in excess of 50,000 is one of the largest towns in Hertfordshire if relatively little-known. It used to provide workers for the ordnance factories in Enfield and more recently was the headquarters of Tescos. Market gardening has been an important industry in the area in the past as well.
The area of the old Cheshunt Urban district covers 7 of the 10 Broxbourne borough wards and the only one that Labour has won in recent years has been Waltham Cross which is usually pretty reliable for them. This sits right on the border with Enfield and has a sizeable black population (mostly African) in common with that borough. There is also some quite grim council housing here, in Holdbrook especially.
As a whole there is not a large number of non-whites in the borough beyond the Waltham Cross end – there is a certain number of ‘White other’ including (in addition to the ubiquitous Poles etc) European ethnicities which are present in large numbers in North London such as Italians and (especially) Greek Cypriots, these being second or third generation immigrants rather than more recent arrivals.
There are other areas of erstwhile Labour support and/or social housing in the Cheshunt area. Bury Green & Rosedale brings together two council estate areas which Labour were able to win in the distant past but where they haven’t been competitive recently. The old Rosedale ward was an incongruous Lib Dem voting ward through much of the 1980s and 1990s and subsequently elected a BNP councillor, but the area is fairly solid for the Conservatives now. In very good years in the mid-90s Labour were also able to win in Cheshunt North and in Wormley & Turnford.
Their best ward in recent years, besides Waltham Cross, has been Cheshunt South & Theobalds – the next ward closest to London, reflecting probably the increased presence of an Enfield type demographic. The area around Theobalds Grove looks every inch the slightly faded Outer London suburb that it basically is. The areas further out in the West such as Flamstead End remain the most solidly Conservative and Goffs Oak is one of the few genuinely upmarket areas here.
Hoddesdon is generally weaker ground for Labour than Cheshunt, but they did have longstanding support in Rye Park, the working class and industrial area to the East of the town. Their support has been weakened here by ward boundary changes as well as political realignment. The Hoddesdon Town & Rye Park ward is the only one in Hertfordshire to have elected a UKIP councillor (in 2014) but the Conservatives dominate the ward now and are even stronger in the rest of Hoddesdon.
The wards coming in from Hertford & Stortford are archetypally safe Conservative in general elections too but will add a bit more variety at the local level. The Lib Dems won the Stanstead Abbots ward in 2019 and held one of the two seats in the merged Great Amwell & Stansteads ward in 2023 while Hertford Heath was one of the many Green gains which made that party the largest on East Herts council.
Apart from the East Herts wards, only three MPs have represented this area since the war. Sir Derek Walker-Smith represented the area as part of Hertford, then East Hertfordshire from 1945 to 1983 when he became Baron Broxbourne. Marion Roe represented the new Broxbourne constituency for 22 years from its creation in 1983 until 2005 and since then Sir Charles Walker has been the MP. He has announced his retirement even though he is only 55 and will have no problem handing this on to the new Conservative candidate.
It may not be surprising these days that this most pro-Brexit of constituencies should be the most Conservative seat in Hertfordshire, but in actual fact it nearly always was, long before the referendum which changed the dynamics in so many other areas.
