Derby South
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Derby South () 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 ...
formed of part of the city of
Derby Derby ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area on the River Derwent, Derbyshire, River Derwent in Derbyshire, England. Derbyshire is named after Derby, which was its original co ...
, most recently 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 2024 by
Baggy Shanker Bhagat Singh Shanker, known as Baggy Shanker, is a British Labour and Co-operative Party politician who has been Member of Parliament for Derby South since 2024. He was elected Derby City Council leader in 2023, making him the first Sikh counc ...
of the Labour and Co-op Party. Previous MP,
Margaret Beckett Margaret Mary Beckett, Baroness Beckett, (; born 15 January 1943), is a British politician. She was a member of Parliament (MP) for more than 45 years, first from 1974 to 1979 and then from 1983 to 2024. A member of the Labour Party, she was ...
, served the constituency for 41 years (from 1983 to 2024). She served under the Labour governments of
Harold Wilson James Harold Wilson, Baron Wilson of Rievaulx (11 March 1916 – 23 May 1995) was a British statesman and Labour Party (UK), Labour Party politician who twice served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, from 1964 to 1970 and again from 197 ...
,
James Callaghan Leonard James Callaghan, Baron Callaghan of Cardiff ( ; 27 March 191226 March 2005) was a British statesman and Labour Party (UK), Labour Party politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1976 to 1979 and Leader of the L ...
,
Tony Blair Sir Anthony Charles Lynton Blair (born 6 May 1953) is a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1997 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party (UK), Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007. He was Leader ...
and
Gordon Brown James Gordon Brown (born 20 February 1951) is a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Labour Party (UK), Leader of the Labour Party from 2007 to 2010. Previously, he was Chancellor of the Ex ...
. She became interim Leader of the Labour Party in 1994 when John Smith suddenly died. She also served in the Opposition front bench under
Neil Kinnock Neil Gordon Kinnock, Baron Kinnock (born 28 March 1942) is a Welsh politician who was Leader of the Opposition (United Kingdom), Leader of the Opposition and Leader of the Labour Party (UK), Leader of the Labour Party from 1983 Labour Party le ...
and
Smith Smith may refer to: People and fictional characters * Metalsmith, or simply smith, a craftsman fashioning tools or works of art out of various metals * Smith (given name) * Smith (surname), a family name originating in England ** List of people ...
himself.


Boundaries

Derby city centre has been in this constituency since 1974; from 1950 it had been in Derby North.


Historic

1950–1955: The County Borough of Derby wards of Alvaston, Arboretum, Castle, Dale, Litchurch, Normanton, Osmaston, and Peartree. 1955–1974: The County Borough of Derby wards of Alvaston, Arboretum, Castle, Dale, Litchurch, Normanton, Osmaston, and Peartree, and the parish of Littleover in the Rural District of Shardlow. 1974–1977: The Borough of Derby wards of Alvaston, Arboretum, Babington, Chellaston, Litchurch, Littleover, Normanton, Osmaston, and Peartree. 1977–1983: The City of Derby wards of Alvaston, Arboretum, Babington, Chellaston, Litchurch, Littleover, Normanton, Osmaston, and Peartree. 1983–1997: The City of Derby wards of Alvaston, Babington, Blagreaves, Kingsway, Litchurch, Littleover, Normanton, Osmaston, and Sinfin. 1997–2010: The City of Derby wards of Alvaston, Babington, Blagreaves, Kingsway, Litchurch, Littleover, Mickleover, Normanton, Osmaston, and Sinfin. 2010–2023: The City of Derby wards of Alvaston, Arboretum, Blagreaves, Boulton, Chellaston, Normanton, and Sinfin.


Current

Following a local government boundary review which came into effect in May 2023, the constituency now comprises the following wards of the City of Derby: * Abbey (small part); Alvaston North; Alvaston South; Arboretum (nearly all); Blagreaves; Chellaston & Shelton Lock; Darley (small part); Normanton (most); Sinfin & Osmaston. 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 ...
, which was based on the ward structure in place at 1 December 2020, left the boundaries unchanged.


Constituency profile

The constituency takes in Derby city centre including much of its varied income inner-city, a narrow majority of which used to be local council-built however which is offset by
conservation area Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural or cultural values. Protected areas are those areas in which human presence or the exploitation of natural resources (e.g. firewoo ...
s including beside
Derby Cathedral The Cathedral Church of All Saints, Derby, better known as Derby Cathedral, is a cathedral church in the city of Derby, England. In 1927, it was promoted from parish church status to that of a cathedral, creating a seat for the Bishop of ...
and
Derby Catacombs The Derby Catacombs (also referred to as the Guildhall Catacombs) are a series of tunnels running beneath the Derby, city of Derby, most notably beneath the Marketplace and Derby Guildhall. Access to the tunnels is available via a back room of th ...
. The remainder of the seat is generally more affluent suburbs, and much of the engineering industry traditionally associated with the city.


History

The constituency was created in 1950, when the former two-seat constituency of Derby was split into two single-member seats. Unlike
Derby North Derby North () is a constituency formed of part of the city of Derby, represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2024 by Catherine Atkinson from the Labour Party. It was previously held by Amanda Solloway, a Conservative. ...
, this seat has been held by the Labour Party continuously since its creation. A notable former MP for the seat was its first incumbent,
Philip Noel-Baker Philip John Noel-Baker, Baron Noel-Baker, (1 November 1889 – 8 October 1982), born Philip John Baker, was a British politician, diplomat, academic, athlete, and renowned campaigner for disarmament. He carried the British team flag and won a s ...
of the Labour Party. He served as a Cabinet minister in the post-war Attlee government, and was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1959 for his campaigning for disarmament. He had previously represented the former two-seat constituency of Derby since a by-election in 1936. The former Cabinet minister
Margaret Beckett Margaret Mary Beckett, Baroness Beckett, (; born 15 January 1943), is a British politician. She was a member of Parliament (MP) for more than 45 years, first from 1974 to 1979 and then from 1983 to 2024. A member of the Labour Party, she was ...
, who had represented Lincoln (under her maiden name of Margaret Jackson) from 1974 to 1979, represented Derby South for the Labour Party from 1983 until 2024. In 1983, Beckett won the seat with one of the smallest majorities seen of just 421 over the Conservative Party–she always achieved larger majorities since. The 2019 result, in line with other seats that voted for
Brexit Brexit (, a portmanteau of "Britain" and "Exit") was the Withdrawal from the European Union, withdrawal of the United Kingdom (UK) from the European Union (EU). Brexit officially took place at 23:00 GMT on 31 January 2020 (00:00 1 February ...
, saw a drop in votes for Labour, with both the Conservative and Liberal Democrat candidates making gains. Beckett still won a majority of all votes cast, however, representing a higher vote share than in the elections between 2005 and 2015, making Derby South a
safe seat A safe seat is an electoral district which is regarded as fully secure, for either a certain political party, or the incumbent representative personally or a combination of both. With such seats, there is very little chance of a seat changing h ...
for the Labour Party.


Members of Parliament

''
Derby Derby ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area on the River Derwent, Derbyshire, River Derwent in Derbyshire, England. Derbyshire is named after Derby, which was its original co ...
prior to 1950''


Elections


Elections in the 2020s


Elections in the 2010s

The vote share changes on 2005 and the turnout figures were notional based on boundary changes.


Elections in the 2000s


Elections in the 1990s


Elections in the 1980s


Elections in the 1970s


Elections in the 1960s


Elections in the 1950s


See also

*
List of parliamentary constituencies in Derbyshire The ceremonial county of Derbyshire (which includes the unitary authority of Derby) is divided into 11 parliamentary constituencies: three borough constituencies and eight county constituencies. Since the 2024 general election, all eleven consti ...


Notes


References


External links


Derby South UK Parliament constituency
(boundaries April 1997 – April 2010) at ''MapIt UK''

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

(boundaries from June 2024) at ''MapIt UK'' {{Coord, 52.90, -1.45, dim:5000_region:GB, display=title Parliamentary constituencies in Derbyshire Politics of Derby Constituencies of the Parliament of the United Kingdom established in 1950