The Wrekin (historic UK Parliament constituency)
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The Wrekin is a constituency 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
British 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 suprem ...
, located in the
county A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposes Chambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...
of
Shropshire Shropshire (; alternatively Salop; abbreviated in print only as Shrops; demonym Salopian ) is a landlocked historic county in the West Midlands region of England. It is bordered by Wales to the west and the English counties of Cheshire to ...
in the
West Midlands West or Occident is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sun sets on the Earth. Etymology The word "west" is a Germanic word passed into some ...
of
England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
. It has existed continuously since its creation by the Representation of the People Act 1918, and is named after a prominent landmark hill in the area,
The Wrekin The Wrekin is a hill in east Shropshire, England. It is located some five miles (8 km) west of Telford, on the border between the unitary authorities of Shropshire and Telford and Wrekin. Rising above the Shropshire Plain to a height of 4 ...
. The constituency has periodically swung back and forth between the
Labour Labour or labor may refer to: * Childbirth, the delivery of a baby * Labour (human activity), or work ** Manual labour, physical work ** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer ** Organized labour and the labour ...
and
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 ...
parties since the 1920s, and has been held since 2005 by a Conservative MP, Mark Pritchard.


History

;Political history The seat saw a first winning candidate from the Labour Party relatively early in its history, in 1923. The seat alternated between the two largest modern parties eight times between 1923 and 1979. In more recent history, reflecting the growing population of
Telford Telford () is a town in the borough of Telford and Wrekin and ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Shropshire, England, about east of Shrewsbury, south west of Stafford, north west of Wolverhampton and from Birmingham in t ...
and the rich iron smelting, railway and mining industries as major historic employers in the area, the seat was more Labour-leaning than the national average but still
marginal Marginal may refer to: * ''Marginal'' (album), the third album of the Belgian rock band Dead Man Ray, released in 2001 * ''Marginal'' (manga) * '' El Marginal'', Argentine TV series * Marginal seat or marginal constituency or marginal, in polit ...
, being represented by 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 ...
for the first eight years of the Thatcher ministry and then (from 1987) returning a Labour member, who went on to serve a new seat created to serve Telford in 1997, and another Labour member until 2005, followed by the present Conservative who was elected that year. The current Conservative majority is 18,726 votes. ;Most prominent members in Parliament Gerald Fowler (Labour) reached the frontbenches of government as the Minister for Education and Science from 1969 to 1970, again in 1974 and 1976 and as Minister for the Privy Council Office from 1974 to 1976. Anthony Trafford (Conservative) went on after serving as MP to serve as a health minister, from the
House of Lords The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by appointment, heredity or official function. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminste ...
in 1989.
Bruce Grocott Bruce Joseph Grocott, Baron Grocott PC (born 1 November 1940) is a Labour Party politician in the United Kingdom. Early life Grocott was born in Kings Langley near Watford, and was educated at the University of Leicester. He obtained an MA ...
(Labour) went on, after serving as MP for the newly created neighbouring seat from 1997 to 2001, to serve as the Government's Chief Whip in the House of Lords for six years.


Boundaries

1918–1950: The Borough of Wenlock, the Urban Districts of Dawley, Newport, Oakengates, and Wellington, and the Rural Districts of Newport, and Shifnal and Wellington. 1950–1983: The Urban Districts of Dawley, Newport, Oakengates, and Wellington, and the Rural Districts of Shifnal and Wellington. 1983–1997: The District of The Wrekin wards of Arleston, Brookside, College, Cuckoo Oak, Dawley Magna, Donnington, Donnington Wood, Dothill, Ercall, Hadley, Haygate, Hollinswood/Randlay, Ironbridge (The Gorge), Ketley, Ketley Bank, Langley, Lawley, Leegomery, Lilleshall, Madeley, Malinslee, Park, Priorslee, Stirchley, Wombridge, Woodside, Wrockwardine, and Wrockwardine Wood. 1997–2010: The District of The Wrekin wards of Arleston, Church Aston, College, Donnington, Donnington Wood, Dothill and Park, Edgmond, Ercall, Ercall Magna, Hadley, Haygate, Ketley, Leegomery, Lilleshall, Newport East, Newport North, Newport West, and Wrockwardine, and the District of Bridgnorth wards of Albrighton, Idsall, Manor, and Sheriffhales. 2010–present: The Borough of Telford and Wrekin wards of Apley Castle, Arleston, Church Aston and Lilleshall, College, Donnington, Dothill, Edgmond, Ercall, Ercall Magna, Hadley and Leegomery, Haygate, Muxton, Newport East, Newport North, Newport South, Newport West, Park, Shawbirch, and Wrockwardine, and the District of Bridgnorth wards of Albrighton South, Donington and Albrighton North, Shifnal Idsall, Shifnal Manor, and Shifnal Rural. When originally constituted, the constituency, with a population of 71,352, was the largest division of Shropshire created in the 1918 boundary changes. In the Third Periodical Review of the Boundary Commission, which took effect for the 1983 general election, the constituency was redefined after major local government changes. This redefinition resulted in a quarter of the electorate being removed to Shropshire North and Ludlow. Parliament approved major boundary changes which took effect at the 1997 general election, which created a new constituency containing and named after the
town A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world. Origin and use The word "town" shares an ori ...
of
Telford Telford () is a town in the borough of Telford and Wrekin and ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Shropshire, England, about east of Shrewsbury, south west of Stafford, north west of Wolverhampton and from Birmingham in t ...
, before which Telford had been one of the largest elements of The Wrekin. The new Telford constituency took 62.9% of the electorate of The Wrekin leaving the remaining 37.1% to constitute a revised constituency of The Wrekin that incorporated areas previously within Shropshire North and
Ludlow Ludlow () is a market town in Shropshire, England. The town is significant in the history of the Welsh Marches and in relation to Wales. It is located south of Shrewsbury and north of Hereford, on the A49 road which bypasses the town. The ...
from two sides. The area almost encircles
Telford Telford () is a town in the borough of Telford and Wrekin and ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Shropshire, England, about east of Shrewsbury, south west of Stafford, north west of Wolverhampton and from Birmingham in t ...
, a 'New Town', encompassing much of the rural parts of the
Telford and Wrekin Telford and Wrekin is a borough and unitary authority in Shropshire, England. In 1974, a non-metropolitan district of Shropshire was created called The Wrekin. In 1998, the district became a unitary authority and was renamed "Telford and Wrekin" ...
borough, in which most of the constituency is. Its major settlements include:
Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by metr ...
, Newport and
Shifnal Shifnal is a market town and civil parish in Shropshire, England, about east of Telford, 17 miles (27 km) east of the county town of Shrewsbury and 13 miles (20 km) west-northwest of the city of Wolverhampton. It is near the M5 ...
, as well as the suburban northern reaches of Telford (including Donnington). A small but significant area relates to the former
Bridgnorth Bridgnorth is a town in Shropshire, England. The River Severn splits it into High Town and Low Town, the upper town on the right bank and the lower on the left bank of the River Severn. The population at the 2011 Census was 12,079. Histor ...
local government district (now part of the unitary
Shropshire Shropshire (; alternatively Salop; abbreviated in print only as Shrops; demonym Salopian ) is a landlocked historic county in the West Midlands region of England. It is bordered by Wales to the west and the English counties of Cheshire to ...
) and contains
RAF Cosford Royal Air Force Cosford or RAF Cosford (formerly DCAE Cosford) is a Royal Air Force station in Cosford, Shropshire, just to the northwest of Wolverhampton and next to Albrighton. History Origins RAF Cosford opened in 1938 as a joint aircraf ...
and a number of commuter villages along the
M54 motorway The M54 is a 23-mile (37 km) east-west motorway in the counties of Shropshire and Staffordshire, England. It is also referred to as the Telford motorway, after the road's primary westbound destination, the town of Telford. It cost £65&nbs ...
: the
civil parishes In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authority. ...
of
Sheriffhales Sheriffhales is a scattered village in Shropshire, England, north-east of Telford, north of Shifnal and south of Newport. The name derives from Halh (Anglican) and scīr-rēfa (Old English) which is a combination of Hales (a nook of land, ...
, Shifnal,
Tong Tong may refer to: Chinese *Tang Dynasty, a dynasty in Chinese history when transliterated from Cantonese *Tong (organization), a type of social organization found in Chinese immigrant communities *''tong'', pronunciation of several Chinese char ...
, Boscobel, Albrighton, Donington and Boningale make up the non-Telford and The Wrekin-administered portion. Boundary changes to realign the constituency boundaries to fit with the borough's most recent ward revisions resulted in the removal of
Ketley Ketley is a large village and part of Telford in the borough of Telford and Wrekin and ceremonial county of Shropshire, England. It is a civil parish. Immediately to the north of Ketley is Hadley. Residential development East Ketley is currentl ...
(to the constituency of
Telford Telford () is a town in the borough of Telford and Wrekin and ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county of Shropshire, England, about east of Shrewsbury, south west of Stafford, north west of Wolverhampton and from Birmingham in t ...
) for the 2010 general election. Future proposals: Under constituency boundary proposals announced in September 2016 this constituency was proposed to lose the Donnington and Hadley and Leegomery wards to Telford constituency, while the remainder would be merged into a new seat called Bridgnorth, Wellington and the Wrekin. In June 2021 the boundary commission put forward a new name for the constituency of "Wellington and Newport" and that the wards of
Hodnet Hodnet is a village and civil parish in Shropshire, England. The town of Market Drayton lies 5.7 miles (9.2 km) north-east of the village. History Evidence of a Bronze Age burial site was discovered during construction of the bypass in ...
and
Cheswardine Cheswardine is a rural village and civil parish in north east Shropshire, England. The village lies close to the border with Staffordshire and is about 8 miles north of Newport and 5 miles south east of Market Drayton. At the 2001 Census, the p ...
would be added from the
North Shropshire North Shropshire was a local government district in Shropshire, England from 1974 to 2009. The district council was based at Edinburgh House in Wem. Other settlements included the towns of Ellesmere, Market Drayton, Wem and Whitchurch, as w ...
constituency. The suggested name change has met with opposition locally.


Constituency profile

The constituency is in the east of
Shropshire Shropshire (; alternatively Salop; abbreviated in print only as Shrops; demonym Salopian ) is a landlocked historic county in the West Midlands region of England. It is bordered by Wales to the west and the English counties of Cheshire to ...
, specifically, around
The Wrekin The Wrekin is a hill in east Shropshire, England. It is located some five miles (8 km) west of Telford, on the border between the unitary authorities of Shropshire and Telford and Wrekin. Rising above the Shropshire Plain to a height of 4 ...
hill and therefore in undulating country within fast road access (and some rail access) commuter's reach to the
West Midlands West or Occident is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sun sets on the Earth. Etymology The word "west" is a Germanic word passed into some ...
, Stafford and Stoke on Trent. Workless claimants, registered jobseekers, were in November 2012 lower than the national average of 3.8%, at 3.1% of the population based on a statistical compilation by ''
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
''.Unemployment claimants by constituency
''
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
''


Members of Parliament


Elections


Elections in the 2010s


Elections in the 2000s


Elections in the 1990s

''Note: although The Wrekin was a Labour-held seat in the previous Parliament, boundary changes removed many Labour-leaning areas that now fall in the neighbouring seat of Telford, which Bruce Grocott decided to contest in 1997 instead of the new Wrekin seat. These changes made it notionally a Conservative seat, hence this is a gain rather than a hold.''


Elections in the 1980s


Elections in the 1970s


Elections in the 1960s


Elections in the 1950s


Elections in the 1940s


Elections in the 1930s

General Election 1939/40: Another General Election was required to take place before the end of 1940. The political parties had been making preparations for an election to take place from 1939 and by the end of this year, the following candidates had been selected; *Conservative:
James Baldwin-Webb Colonel James Baldwin-Webb TD (5 February 1894 – 17 September 1940) was a British Army officer, businessman, and Conservative Party politician who served in the House of Commons as a Member of Parliament (MP) for The Wrekin from 1931 to his de ...
*Labour:
Ivor Owen Thomas Ivor Owen Thomas (5 December 1898 – 11 January 1982) was a British trade unionist and Labour Party politician. Thomas was the son of Benjamin L. Thomas from Briton Ferry in South Wales. He was educated at Vernon Place School in Briton Ferry. H ...


Elections in the 1920s


Elections in the 1910s


See also

*
Parliamentary constituencies in Shropshire The ceremonial county of Shropshire, England (which comprises the local/unitary authorities of Shropshire Council and Telford and Wrekin), is divided into 5 parliamentary constituencies – 1 borough constituency and 4 county constituencies. A ...


Notes


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:The Wrekin (Uk Parliament Constituency)
Wrekin The Wrekin is a hill in east Shropshire, England. It is located some five miles (8 km) west of Telford, on the border between the unitary authorities of Shropshire and Telford and Wrekin. Rising above the Shropshire Plain to a height of 4 ...
Telford and Wrekin Constituencies of the Parliament of the United Kingdom established in 1918