Hitchin and Harpenden is a constituency represented in the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. T ...

of the

UK Parliament The Parliament of the United Kingdom is the supreme legislative body of the United Kingdom, the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories. It meets at the Palace of Westminster, London. It alone possesses legislative suprema ...

since 2017 by

Bim Afolami Abimbola "Bim" Afolami (born 11 February 1986) is a British Conservative Party politician. He has served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Hitchin and Harpenden since the 2017 general election. Early life Afolami was born and brought up ...

, a

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...

History

The constituency was created for the 1997 general election from parts of several former Hertfordshire seats. Prior to 1997, Hitchin was included in the abolished North Hertfordshire constituency and Harpenden in the St Albans constituency, while the village of

Wheathampstead Wheathampstead is a village and civil parish in Hertfordshire, England, north of St Albans. The population of the ward at the 2001 census was 6,058. Included within the parish is the small hamlet of Amwell. History Settlements in this area were ...

was part of the

Welwyn Hatfield The Borough of Welwyn Hatfield is a Non-metropolitan district, local government district in southern Hertfordshire, England, governed by Welwyn Hatfield Borough Council. It covers the two towns of Welwyn Garden City and Hatfield, Hertfordshire, ...

constituency. The seat's first MP was

Peter Lilley Peter Bruce Lilley, Baron Lilley, PC (born 23 August 1943) is a British politician and life peer who served as a cabinet minister in the governments of Margaret Thatcher and John Major. A member of the Conservative Party, he was Member of Parl ...

, a former Secretary of State for various government departments in the Major ministry in the 1990s, who had previously represented St Albans from 1983 to 1997. He announced he would not contest the seat at the 2017 general election. He was succeeded in 2017 by

of the Conservatives, who retained it at the 2019 general election, albeit with a reduced majority.

Boundaries

1997–2010: The District of North Hertfordshire wards of Ashbrook, Bearton, Cadwell, Highbury, Hitchwood, Hoo, Kimpton, Offa, Oughton, Priory, and Walsworth, and the City of St Albans wards of Harpenden East, Harpenden North, Harpenden South, Harpenden West, Redbourn, Sandridge, and Wheathampstead. 2010–present: The District of North Hertfordshire wards of Cadwell, Graveley and Wymondley, Hitchin Bearton, Hitchin Highbury, Hitchin Oughton, Hitchin Priory, Hitchin Walsworth, Hitchwood, Hoo, Kimpton, and Offa, and the City of St Albans wards of Harpenden East, Harpenden North, Harpenden South, Harpenden West, Redbourn, Sandridge, and Wheathampstead. Minor gain from North East Hertfordshire due to revision of local authority wards.

Members of Parliament

Election results

Elections in the 2010s

Elections in the 2000s

Elections in the 1990s

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hitchin And Harpenden (Uk Parliament Constituency) Parliamentary constituencies in Hertfordshire Constituencies of the Parliament of the United Kingdom established in 1997 Hitchin Politics of St Albans Politics of North Hertfordshire District