Luton North is a

constituency An electoral district, also known as an election district, legislative district, voting district, constituency, riding, ward, division, or (election) precinct is a subdivision of a larger State (polity), state (a country, administrative region, ...

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. ...

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 supremac ...

since 2019 by

Sarah Owen Sarah Mei Li Owen (; born 11 January 1983) is a British politician and trade unionist serving as Member of Parliament (MP) for Luton North since 2019. A member of the Labour Party, she has served Shadow Minister for Local Government and Faith ...

, of the Labour Party. Luton North was created in 1983, primarily from the former seat of Luton West. It consists of the northern portion of the town of

Luton Luton () is a town and unitary authority with borough status, in Bedfordshire, England. At the 2011 census, the Luton built-up area subdivision had a population of 211,228 and its built-up area, including the adjacent towns of Dunstable an ...

, excluding Stopsley.

Constituency profile

One constituency other than Luton North includes

;

Luton South Luton South is a constituency in Bedfordshire represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2019 by Rachel Hopkins, a member of the Labour Party. History This seat was created in 1983, primarily from the former seat of Luton ...

. Both cover a similar housing profile and economic ambit that have seen house prices increase above the national average since 1997, two periods of relatively high numbers of the unemployed and lowest wage earners (the 1990s and 2008–2011

global recession A global recession is recession that affects many countries around the world—that is, a period of global economic slowdown or declining economic output. Definitions The International Monetary Fund defines a global recession as "a decline i ...

). The former covers roughly the LU3 and 4 postcode districts and excludes the town centre of what one broadsheet characterised as a tough town whereas other commentators state that Luton has a resilient economy which "revolves around the airport as well as the retail sector." At creation, Luton North included eight wards from the neighbouring districts of Mid Bedfordshire and

South Bedfordshire South Bedfordshire was, from 1974 to 2009, a non-metropolitan district of Bedfordshire, in the East of England. Its main towns were Dunstable, Houghton Regis and Leighton Buzzard. Creation The district was formed on 1 April 1974 as part of a gen ...

; these made it a much safer seat for the Conservatives than Luton South, which included only one ward from outside the Borough of Luton. Boundary changes in 1997 reduced the Conservative majority from 13,094 to 7,357, and it was 81st on Labour's list of target seats; Labour duly gained it on a 17.1% swing, and since then the Labour MP elected in 1997,

Kelvin Hopkins Kelvin Peter Hopkins (born 22 August 1941) is a British politician. He was first elected as the Labour Member of Parliament for Luton North in 1997. Hopkins was suspended by the Labour Party in 2017 after allegations of sexual misconduct were ...

, had held the seat with comfortable majorities. From 2005 to 2015, Luton North was Labour's safest seat in the East of England by both vote and vote share majority; in 2017 it was overtaken in the former count by

Norwich South Norwich South is a constituency in Norfolk represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, since 2015 by Clive Lewis, of the Labour Party. History The constituency was created by the Representation of the Peopl ...

, but the percentage margin in Luton North (30.8% compared to 30.4% in Norwich South) is slightly higher.

Boundaries and boundary changes

1983–1997: The Borough of Luton wards of Bramingham, Challney, Icknield, Leagrave, Lewsey, Limbury, and Sundon Park, the District of Mid Bedfordshire wards of Flitton and Pulloxhill, Flitwick East, Flitwick West, Harlington, and Westoning, and the District of South Bedfordshire wards of Barton-le-Clay, Streatley, and Toddington. Created as a County Constituency formally known as North Luton, incorporating the bulk of the abolished Borough Constituency of Luton West. Extended northwards to include part of the abolished County Constituency of

as well as Flitwick, transferred from Mid Bedfordshire. 1997–2010: The Borough of Luton wards of Bramingham, Challney, Icknield, Leagrave, Lewsey, Limbury, Saints, and Sundon Park. Redesignated as the Borough Constituency of Luton North. The Saints ward of the Borough of Luton transferred from

. The parts of the Districts of Mid Bedfordshire (including Flitwick) and South Bedfordshire transferred to the County Constituency of Mid Bedfordshire. 2010–present: The Borough of Luton wards of Barnfield, Bramingham, Challney, Icknield, Leagrave, Lewsey, Limbury, Northwell, Saints, and Sundon Park. Marginal loss changes due to revision of local authority wards.

Members of Parliament

Elections

Elections in the 2010s

Elections in the 2000s

Elections in the 1990s

Elections in the 1980s

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Luton North (Uk Parliament Constituency) Politics of Luton Parliamentary constituencies in Bedfordshire Constituencies of the Parliament of the United Kingdom established in 1983