Mid Staffordshire was a

parliamentary 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 (a country, administrative region, or other poli ...

in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

from 1983 until 1997. It covered a swathe of territory across the centre of

Staffordshire Staffordshire (; postal abbreviation Staffs.) is a landlocked county in the West Midlands region of England. It borders Cheshire to the northwest, Derbyshire and Leicestershire to the east, Warwickshire to the southeast, the West Midlands Cou ...

, stretching from

Lichfield Lichfield () is a cathedral city and civil parish in Staffordshire, England. Lichfield is situated roughly south-east of the county town of Stafford, south-east of Rugeley, north-east of Walsall, north-west of Tamworth and south-west o ...

and

Rugeley Rugeley ( ) is a market town and civil parish in the Cannock Chase District in Staffordshire, England. It lies on the north-eastern edge of Cannock Chase next to the River Trent; it is situated north of Lichfield, south-east of Stafford, nort ...

in the south to

Stone In geology, rock (or stone) is any naturally occurring solid mass or aggregate of minerals or mineraloid matter. It is categorized by the minerals included, its Chemical compound, chemical composition, and the way in which it is formed. Rocks ...

in the north. At the 1983 general election, the seat was won by

John Heddle Bentley John Heddle (15 September 1943 – 19 December 1989) was a British Conservative Party politician. Political career Heddle contested Gateshead West in February 1974, being beaten by Labour's John Horam. In October 1974 he stood in B ...

of the

Conservative Party The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right. Political parties called The Conservative P ...

, who had previously represented the Lichfield and Tamworth constituency. Heddle held the seat at the 1987 general election. Following Heddle's suicide in December 1989, a

by-election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, a bye-election in Ireland, a bypoll in India, or a Zimni election (Urdu: ضمنی انتخاب, supplementary election) in Pakistan, is an election used to f ...

followed on 22 March 1990. The by-election attracted a blaze of publicity, and a large number of candidates (14), as it took place at the height of the public dissatisfaction with the Conservative government over the Community Charge or

Poll Tax A poll tax, also known as head tax or capitation, is a tax levied as a fixed sum on every liable individual (typically every adult), without reference to income or resources. Head taxes were important sources of revenue for many governments fr ...

(indeed, the notorious

Poll Tax Riots The poll tax riots were a series of riots in British towns and cities during protests against the Community Charge (commonly known as the "poll tax"), introduced by the Conservative government of Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. The largest pr ...

took place only days after the by-election). Sylvia Heal of the Labour Party was victorious in the by-election; however she failed to retain the seat at the 1992 general election, losing to the Conservatives'

Michael Fabricant Michael Louis David Fabricant (born 12 June 1950) is a British politician. A member of the Conservative Party, he has served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Lichfield in Staffordshire, formerly Mid Staffordshire, since 1992. Fabricant w ...

. In 1997, a review by the

Boundary Commission A boundary commission is a legal entity that determines borders of nations, states, constituencies. Notable boundary commissions have included: * Afghan Boundary Commission, an Anglo-Russian Boundary Commission, of 1885 and 1893, delineated the no ...

reorganised the constituencies in Staffordshire, and Mid Staffordshire was abolished. It was replaced by parts of four constituencies: mostly by the

and

constituencies, apart from Rugeley which was included in

Cannock Chase Cannock Chase (), often referred to locally as The Chase, is a mixed area of countryside in the county of Staffordshire, England. The area has been designated as the Cannock Chase Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and is managed by Forestry E ...

, and the area around the village of

Great Haywood Great Haywood is a village in central Staffordshire, England, just off the A51 and about northwest of Rugeley and southeast of the county town of Stafford. Population details taken at the 2011 census can be found under Colwich. Haywood ...

which was covered by the

Stafford Stafford () is a market town and the county town of Staffordshire, in the West Midlands region of England. It lies about north of Wolverhampton, south of Stoke-on-Trent and northwest of Birmingham. The town had a population of 70,145 in t ...

constituency. Michael Fabricant became MP for Lichfield at the 1997 general election.

Boundaries

The District of Lichfield wards of Armitage with Handsacre, Central, Chadsmead, Colton and Ridwares, Curborough, King's Bromley, Longdon, Leomansley, St John's, and Stowe, the Borough of Stafford wards of Barlaston, Chartley, Fulford, Haywood, Milwich, Oulton, St Michael's, and Stonefield and Christchurch, and the District of Cannock Chase wards of Brereton and Ravenhill, Brindley Heath, Etching Hill, Hagley, and Western Springs.

Members of Parliament

Elections

Elections in the 1980s

Elections in the 1990s

Notes and references

Sources

United Kingdom Election Results
{{DEFAULTSORT:Staffordshire Mid Parliamentary constituencies in Staffordshire (historic) Borough of Stafford Politics of Lichfield Cannock Chase District Constituencies of the Parliament of the United Kingdom established in 1983 Constituencies of the Parliament of the United Kingdom disestablished in 1997