Hinckley and Bosworth ( ) is a

constituency An electoral (congressional, legislative, etc.) district, sometimes called a constituency, riding, or ward, is a geographical portion of a political unit, such as a country, state or province, city, or administrative region, created to provi ...

represented in the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the Bicameralism, 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 ...

of the

UK Parliament The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body of the United Kingdom, and may also legislate for the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories. It meets at the Palace of ...

since

2019 This was the year in which the first known human case of COVID-19 was documented, preceding COVID-19 pandemic, the pandemic which was declared by the World Health Organization the following year. Up to that point, 2019 had been described as ...

by Luke Evans, a

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

. Prior to the

2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies The 2023 review of Westminster constituencies was the most recent cycle of the process to redraw the Constituencies of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, constituency map for the House of Commons of the United Kingdom. The new constituency b ...

, the seat was known as Bosworth up until the 2024 general election,

Boundaries

Historic (Bosworth)

1885–1918: The Sessional Divisions of

Ashby-de-la-Zouch Ashby-de-la-Zouch (), also spelled Ashby de la Zouch, is a market town and civil parish in the North West Leicestershire district of Leicestershire, England, near to the Derbyshire and Staffordshire borders. Its population at the 2021 census was ...

(except the parishes of Bardon, Breedon, Thringstone, Osgathorpe, and Whitwick) and Market Bosworth. 1918–1950: The Urban Districts of Coalville and

Hinckley Hinckley is a market town in south-west Leicestershire, England, administered by Hinckley and Bosworth Borough Council. Hinckley is the third largest settlement in Leicestershire, after Leicester and Loughborough, and is about halfway between L ...

, the Rural Districts of Hinckley and

Market Bosworth Market Bosworth ( ) is a market town and civil parish in Leicestershire, England. At the 2001 Census, it had a population of 1,906, increasing to 2,097 at the 2011 census. It is most famously near to the site of the decisive final battle of the ...

, and the parish of Bardon in the Rural District of Ashby-de-la-Zouch. 1950–1955: The Urban Districts of Coalville and Hinckley, and the Rural District of Market Bosworth. 1955–1974: The Urban District of Coalville as constituted by the County of Leicester (Coalville Urban District) Confirmation Order 1953, the Urban District of Hinckley, and the Rural District of Market Bosworth. 1974–1983: The Urban Districts of Coalville and Hinckley as altered by the West Midland Counties Order 1965 and the County of Leicester (Coalville Urban District) Confirmation Order 1969, and the Rural District of Market Bosworth. 1983–1997: The Borough of

Hinckley and Bosworth Hinckley and Bosworth is a Non-metropolitan district, local government district with borough status in Leicestershire, England. The council is based in Hinckley, the largest town. The borough also includes the town of Earl Shilton and numerous v ...

, and the

Borough of Charnwood Charnwood is a local government district with borough status in the north of Leicestershire, England. It is named after Charnwood Forest, much of which lies within the borough. Towns in the borough include Loughborough (where the council is ...

ward of Bradgate. 1997–2010: The Borough of Hinckley and Bosworth wards of Ambien, Bagworth, Barleston, Nailstone and Osbaston, Barwell, Burbage, Cadeby, Carlton and Market Bosworth, Castle, Clarendon, De Montfort, Desford and Peckleton, Earl Shilton, Markfield, Newbold Verdon, Sheepy and Witherley, Trinity, and Twycross and Shackerstone. 2010–2024: The Borough of Hinckley and Bosworth wards of Ambien, Barlestone, Nailstone and Osbaston, Barwell, Burbage St Catherines and Lash Hill, Burbage Sketchley and Stretton, Cadeby, Carlton and Market Bosworth with Shackerstone, Earl Shilton, Hinckley Castle, Hinckley Clarendon, Hinckley De Montfort, Hinckley Trinity, Markfield, Stanton and Fieldhead, Newbold Verdon with Desford and Peckleton, Ratby, Bagworth and Thornton, and Twycross and Witherley with Sheepy.

Current (Hinckley and Bosworth)

Further to the

, which came into effect for the 2024 general election, the composition of the constituency is as follows (as they existed on 1 December 2020): * The Borough of Hinckley and Bosworth wards of Ambien; Barlestone, Nailstone and Osbaston; Barwell; Burbage St. Catherines and Lash Hill; Burbage Sketchley and Stretton; Cadeby, Carlton and Market Bosworth with Shackerstone; Earl Shilton; Hinckley Castle; Hinckley Clarendon; Hinckley De Montfort; Hinckley Trinity; Newbold Verdon with Desford and Peckleton; Twycross and Witherley with Sheepy. * The District of North West Leicestershire wards of Appleby; Oakthorpe & Donisthorpe. ''Two Borough of Hinckley and Bosworth wards were transferred to the new constituency of

Mid Leicestershire Mid Leicestershire is a List of UK Parliament constituencies, constituency represented in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, UK Parliament since 2024 United Kingdom general electio ...

, partly offset by the addition of two small wards from the District/constituency of

North West Leicestershire North West Leicestershire is a Non-metropolitan district, local government district in Leicestershire, England. The towns in the district include of Ashby-de-la-Zouch, Castle Donington, Coalville, Leicestershire , Coalville (where the council is b ...

.''

History

The Western, or Bosworth, division was created in 1885, and included part of the Ashby de la Zouch and all of the Market Bosworth

petty sessional division A petty sessional division was, in England and Wales, the area that a magistrates' court had jurisdiction Jurisdiction (from Latin 'law' and 'speech' or 'declaration') is the legal term for the legal authority granted to a legal entity to ...

s. It was redefined in 1918 to cover the urban districts of Coalville and

, the rural districts of

and

and the

civil parish 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. Civil parishes can trace their origin to the ancient system of parishes, w ...

of Bardon from Ashby RD. Hinckley RD was abolished in the 1930s and in 1948 and 1970 the Bosworth constituency by which date it was shaped to eventually all of Coalville, Hinckley and Market Bosworth RD. Coalville has been part of

since the 1983 election. The seat was held by Labour for 25 years until the Conservatives gained it in the 1970 general election and they have represented it since then.

expanded greatly after

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

and is the most economically significant town other than

Leicester Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area, and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest city in the East Midlands with a popula ...

Leicestershire Leicestershire ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It is bordered by Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire to the north, Rutland to the east, Northamptonshire to the south-east, Warw ...

however unlike the borough the constituency retains under the independent Boundary Commission the poetic name of Bosworth, alluding to the

Battle of Bosworth The Battle of Bosworth or Bosworth Field ( ) was the last significant battle of the Wars of the Roses, the civil war between the houses of Lancaster and York that extended across England in the latter half of the 15th century. Fought on 22 ...

of the medieval

Wars of the Roses The Wars of the Roses, known at the time and in following centuries as the Civil Wars, were a series of armed confrontations, machinations, battles and campaigns fought over control of the English throne from 1455 to 1487. The conflict was fo ...

which is recreated annually on the battlefield. The seat had a

coal mining Coal mining is the process of resource extraction, extracting coal from the ground or from a mine. Coal is valued for its Energy value of coal, energy content and since the 1880s has been widely used to Electricity generation, generate electr ...

tradition; however, other industry, such as defence, trade and retail supports the residential town of Hinckley and its rural hinterland. The area of strongest Labour support is the former mining village of Earl Shilton, which is now in local elections generally over-shadowed by surrounding areas with majority-Conservative support. The constituency was once held for Labour by Woodrow Wyatt, who later left the party and became one of its most voluble critics in the 1980s. During the 2015 count, a police car outside the Hinckley Leisure Centre, where the count was taking place, caught fire then exploded while being hosed down by firefighters. Five men were arrested.

Members of Parliament

'' South Leicestershire prior to 1885''

Elections

Elections in the 2020s

Elections in the 2010s

Going into the 2015 general election, this was the 180th most marginal constituency in Great Britain, the Liberal Democrats requiring a swing from the Conservatives of 4.6% to take the seat (based on the result of the 2010 general election).

Elections in the 2000s

Elections in the 1990s

Elections in the 1980s

Elections in the 1970s

Elections in the 1960s

Elections in the 1950s

Elections in the 1940s

Elections in the 1930s

Election in the 1920s

*% change and swing from 1924

Election in the 1910s

Election results 1885–1918

Elections in the 1880s

Elections in the 1890s

Elections in the 1900s

Elections in the 1910s

General Election 1914–15: Another General Election was required to take place before the end of 1915. The political parties had been making preparations for an election to take place and by July 1914, the following candidates had been selected; *Liberal: Henry McLaren *Unionist:

Notes

References

External links

nomis Constituency Profile for Bosworth
– presenting data from the ONS annual population survey and other official statistics.

(boundaries April 1997 – April 2010) at ''MapIt UK''

(boundaries April 2010 – May 2024) at ''MapIt UK''

(boundaries from June 2024) at ''MapIt UK'' {{Coord, 52.6, -1.4, dim:20000_region:GB, display=title Parliamentary constituencies in Leicestershire Constituencies of the Parliament of the United Kingdom established in 1885