North Cornwall 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

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by Scott Mann, 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 i ...

since the 2015 general election. Like all British constituencies, the seat elects one

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...

(MP) by the

first past the post In a first-past-the-post electoral system (FPTP or FPP), formally called single-member plurality voting (SMP) when used in single-member districts or informally choose-one voting in contrast to ranked voting, or score voting, voters cast their ...

system of election at least every five years. The seat was created in 1918. Since 1950, the constituency has been held by MPs from either the Conservative Party or the Liberal Democrats (including the party's predecessor, the

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. __TOC__ Active liberal parties This is a li ...

History

This constituency was created under the

Representation of the People Act 1918 The Representation of the People Act 1918 was an Act of Parliament passed to reform the electoral system in Great Britain and Ireland. It is sometimes known as the Fourth Reform Act. The Act extended the franchise in parliamentary elections, also ...

. With exceptions in 1997 and 2001 the seat's margin of victory has been less than 20% of the vote; it has been consistently fought over between and won by 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 ...

and the Liberal Democrats's candidate (or predecessor party in the latter case), and can be considered a

marginal seat A marginal seat or swing seat is a constituency held with a small majority in a legislative election, generally one conducted under a single-winner voting system. In Canada, they may be known as target ridings. The opposite is a safe seat. The ...

. In 1997 and 2001 the seat turned out strongly overall for the latter party. However, in the 2019 general election, the Conservatives won a large majority of 28.6% over the Liberal Democrat candidate. A third-placed (other party) candidate has not polled more in North Cornwall than 16.38%, which took place in 1951. The seat saw three years of defection of its Liberal MP to join the post-

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

Attlee Ministry Clement Attlee was invited by King George VI to form the Attlee ministry in the United Kingdom in July 1945, succeeding Winston Churchill as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. The Labour Party had won a landslide victory at the 1945 gene ...

however in 2015 saw the lowest share of the Labour Party's vote nationally – reinforcing a consistent result by a great majority supporting

left-wing politics Left-wing politics describes the range of Ideology#Political%20ideologies, political ideologies that support and seek to achieve social equality and egalitarianism, often in opposition to social hierarchy. Left-wing politics typically in ...

to vote for a

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

and later Liberal Democrat at general elections since the seat's inception.

Boundaries

1918–1950: The Borough of Launceston, the Urban Districts of Newquay, Padstow, Stratton and Bude, and Wadebridge, the Rural Districts of Calstock, Camelford, Launceston, St Columb Major, and Stratton, and parts of the Rural Districts of Bodmin and Holsworthy (these areas such as Whitstone and Week St Mary were on the Cornish side of the border). 1950–1974: The Borough of Launceston, the Urban Districts of Bude-Stratton, Newquay, and Padstow, the Rural Districts of Camelford, Launceston, and Stratton, and parts of the Rural Districts of St Austell and Wadebridge. 1974–1983: The Borough of Launceston, the Urban Districts of Bude-Stratton and Newquay, the Rural Districts of Camelford, Launceston, and Stratton, and parts of the Rural Districts of St Austell, and Wadebridge and Padstow. 1983–2010: The District of North Cornwall wards of Allan, Altarnun, Bodmin St Mary's, Bodmin St Petroc, Bude and Poughill, Camelford, Grenville, Lanivet, Launceston North, Launceston South, Lesnewth, North Petherwin, Ottery, Padstow and St Merryn, Penfound, Rumford, St Breward, St Endellion, St Minver, St Teath, South Petherwin, Stratton, Tintagel, Trigg, Wadebridge, and Week St Mary, and the Borough of Restormel wards of Edgcumbe, Gannel, Rialton, St Columb, and St Enoder. 2010–present: The District of North Cornwall. Historically four

borough constituencies In the United Kingdom (UK), each of the electoral areas or divisions called constituencies elects one member to the House of Commons. Within the United Kingdom there are five bodies with members elected by electoral districts called "constituenc ...

lay within the boundaries, three of which were abolished as 'rotten boroughs' by the

Great Reform Act, 1832 The Representation of the People Act 1832 (also known as the 1832 Reform Act, Great Reform Act or First Reform Act) was an Act of Parliament of the United Kingdom (indexed as 2 & 3 Will. IV c. 45) that introduced major changes to the electo ...

: * Bossiney (abolished 1832) *

Camelford Camelford ( kw, Reskammel) is a town and civil parish in north Cornwall, England, United Kingdom, situated in the River Camel valley northwest of Bodmin Moor. The town is approximately ten miles (16 km) north of Bodmin and is governed by ...

(abolished 1832) * Launceston (abolished 1885) * Newport (abolished 1832 - settlement now a suburb of Launceston).

Members of Parliament

Elections

Elections in the 2010s

Elections in the 2000s

Elections in the 1990s

Elections in the 1980s

Elections in the 1970s

* February 1974; new constituency boundaries applied.

Elections in the 1960s

Elections in the 1950s

Elections in the 1940s

Elections in the 1930s

* Death of Maclean 15 June 1932

Elections in the 1920s

Elections in the 1910s

Notes

References

Sources

* ''British Parliamentary Election Results 1918-1949'', compiled and edited by F.W.S. Craig (Macmillan Press 1977) {{DEFAULTSORT:Cornwall North Parliamentary constituencies in Cornwall Constituencies of the Parliament of the United Kingdom established in 1918