Leyton and Wanstead 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 ...

Greater London Greater London is an administrative area in England, coterminous with the London region, containing most of the continuous urban area of London. It contains 33 local government districts: the 32 London boroughs, which form a Ceremonial count ...

created in 1997 and 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 Calvin Bailey of the Labour Party.

History

The seat arose from the enacting of the recommendations of the fourth periodic review of Westminster constituencies of the

Boundary Commission for England In the United Kingdom, the boundary commissions are non-departmental public bodies responsible for determining the boundaries of parliamentary constituencies for elections to the House of Commons. There are four boundary commissions: one each f ...

to take account of demographic population change and seek to equalise electorates whilst in preference retaining the historic connections with the local authorities of the United Kingdom. ;Political history The constituency has consistently elected Labour Party MPs (Members of Parliament); the narrowest winning majority was 16%; the greatest, 49%, in 2017.

Harry Cohen Harry Michael Cohen (born 10 December 1949) is a British people, British Labour Party (UK), Labour Party politician, who was the Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parliament (MP) for Leyton (UK Parliament constituency), Leyton f ...

was MP for the Leyton area from 1983 and this seat from 1997. Cohen retired before the 2010 election, after which the seat was retained by John Cryer. At the time of the 2015 result, the seat was the 46th safest of Labour's 232 seats by percentage of majority.

Constituency profile

This seat combines deprived and economic-cycle vulnerable areas around Leyton with the more affluent, resilient Wanstead area. It is an ethnically diverse area, with the biggest minority groups being Pakistani British and Caribbean British, although it has fewer ethnic minority constituents than in the

London Borough of Newham The London Borough of Newham () is a London borough created in 1965 by the London Government Act 1963. It covers an area previously administered by the Essex county boroughs of West Ham and East Ham, authorities that were both abolished by ...

Boundaries

Uniting for general elections areas from the boroughs of Redbridge and

Waltham Forest The London Borough of Waltham Forest () is an outer London borough formed in 1965 from the merger of the municipal boroughs of Leyton, Walthamstow and Chingford. The borough's administrative headquarters are at Waltham Forest Town Hall, wh ...

in inner north-east

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

, the constituency covers

Leyton Leyton ( ) is a town in East London, England, within the London Borough of Waltham Forest. It borders Walthamstow to the north, Leytonstone to the east, and Stratford to the south, with Clapton, Hackney Wick and Homerton, across the Ri ...

Wanstead Wanstead () is an area in East London, England, in the London Borough of Redbridge. It borders South Woodford to the north, Redbridge to the east and Manor Park to the south, with Leytonstone and Walthamstow to the west. It is located 8 m ...

Leytonstone Leytonstone ( ) is an area in East London, England, within the London Borough of Waltham Forest. It adjoins Wanstead to the north-east, Forest Gate to the south-east, Stratford to the south-west, Leyton to the west, and Walthamstow to the nor ...

. The seat was created for the 1997 election succeeding the Leyton constituency, with parts of what had been the formerly safe

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 ...

Wanstead and Woodford constituency. 1997–2024: The

London Borough of Redbridge The London Borough of Redbridge is a London boroughs, London borough established in 1965. The borough shares boundaries with the Epping Forest District and the ceremonial county of Essex to the north, with the London Borough of Waltham Forest t ...

wards of Snaresbrook and Wanstead; and the

London Borough of Waltham Forest The London Borough of Waltham Forest () is an Outer London, outer London boroughs, London borough formed in 1965 from the merger of the municipal boroughs of Municipal Borough of Leyton, Leyton, Municipal Borough of Walthamstow, Walthamstow an ...

wards of Cann Hall,

Cathall Cathall is a housing estate in the Cathall ward, Leytonstone, East London. It is currently managed by Community-based Housing Association. History Cathall estate was built in 1972, consisting of two 20-storey tower blocks, Hornbeam Tower and ...

, Forest, Grove Green, Leyton, and Leytonstone. 2024–present: The London Borough of Redbridge wards of South Woodford, Wanstead Park, and Wanstead Village; and the London Borough of Waltham Forest wards of Cann Hall, Cathall, Forest, Grove Green, Hoe Street (part), Leyton (part), and Leytonstone.

Members of Parliament

Elections

Elections in the 2020s

Elections in the 2010s

Elections in the 2000s

Elections in the 1990s

Notes

References

External links

Politics Resources
(Election results from 1922 onwards)

(Election results from 1955 onwards)
BBC constituency profile
(boundaries April 1997 – April 2010) at ''MapIt UK''

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

(boundaries from June 2024) at ''MapIt UK'' {{Coord, 51.571, 0.013, type:landmark_region:GB-WFT, display=title Politics of the London Borough of Waltham Forest Politics of the London Borough of Redbridge Parliamentary constituencies in London Constituencies of the Parliament of the United Kingdom established in 1997