Harrogate (UK Parliament constituency)

Harrogate (/ˈhærəɡət, -ɡeɪt, -ɡɪt/ HARR-ə-gət, -⁠gayt, -⁠ghit)^[1][2] was a constituency^{[n 1]} represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament. As with all constituencies, the constituency elected one Member of Parliament (MP) by the first past the post system of election. The constituency was renamed Harrogate and Knaresborough in 1997.

Harrogate
Former county constituency for the House of Commons
County	North Yorkshire
Major settlements	Harrogate and Knaresborough
1950–1997
Seats	One
Created from	Ripon
Replaced by	Harrogate and Knaresborough

Constituency profile

The seat covered an area with little unemployment, a relatively large retired population and large neighbourhoods of high house prices.^{[n 2][3]} Until former Chancellor Norman Lamont stood for the first time in the successor seat in the New Labour landslide general election in 1997, it had been part of a Conservative safe seat since 1910. However, Harrogate moved the way of other famous spa towns in England, such as Bath^{[n 3]} by returning a Liberal Democrat MP.

Boundaries

1950–1983: The Municipal Borough of Harrogate, the Urban District of Knaresborough, and the Rural District of Nidderdale except the parishes of Hessay, Knapton, Moor Monkton, Nether Poppleton, Rufforth, and Upper Poppleton.

1983–1997: The Borough of Harrogate wards of Bilton, Claro, Duchy, East Central, Granby, Harlow, Knaresborough East, Knaresborough West, Marston Moor, Nether Poppleton, New Park, Ouseburn, Pannal, Spofforth, Starbeck, Upper Poppleton, Wedderburn, and West Central.

History

Before 1950 Harrogate had been part of the Ripon constituency. The constituency was created as 'Harrogate' and following boundary changes in 1997 the name was changed to Harrogate and Knaresborough.

Members of Parliament

Election		Member[4]	Party	Notes
	1950	Christopher York	Conservative	Resigned February 1954
	1954 by-election	James Ramsden	Conservative
	Feb 1974	Robert Banks	Conservative

Election results

Elections in the 1950s

General election 1950: Harrogate

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Christopher York	28,582	68.55
	Labour	Edward J. Parris	13,114	31.45
Majority			15,468	37.10
Turnout			41,696	81.24
	Conservative win (new seat)

General election 1951: Harrogate

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Christopher York	28,806	70.56
	Labour	Christopher William Sewell	12,021	29.44
Majority			16,785	41.12
Turnout			40,827	78.74
	Conservative hold		Swing

1954 Harrogate by-election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	James Ramsden	20,263	70.78	+0.22
	Labour	Ernest Kavanagh	8,367	29.22	−0.22
Majority			11,896	41.56	+0.44
Turnout			28,630
	Conservative hold		Swing

General election 1955: Harrogate

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	James Ramsden	26,799	72.32
	Labour	Thomas Evers	10,258	27.68
Majority			16,541	44.64
Turnout			37,057	71.86
	Conservative hold		Swing

General election 1959: Harrogate

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	James Ramsden	29,466	74.29
	Labour	Frederick Bernard Singleton	10,196	25.71
Majority			19,270	48.58
Turnout			39,662	74.49
	Conservative hold		Swing

Elections in the 1960s

General election 1964: Harrogate

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	James Ramsden	24,474	57.64
	Liberal	Barrington Malcolm Black	9,332	21.98	New
	Labour	Edward Lyons	8,655	20.38
Majority			15,142	35.66
Turnout			42,461	77.00
	Conservative hold		Swing

General election 1966: Harrogate

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	James Ramsden	22,932	54.97
	Liberal	Walter Greaves	9,518	22.82
	Labour	Reginald Ernest Holmes	9,267	22.21
Majority			13,414	32.15
Turnout			41,717	74.47
	Conservative hold		Swing

Elections in the 1970s

General election 1970: Harrogate

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	James Ramsden	26,167	59.76
	Liberal	Walter Greaves	8,825	20.15
	Labour	Brian Hellowell	8,797	20.09
Majority			17,342	39.61
Turnout			43,789	69.93
	Conservative hold		Swing

General election February 1974: Harrogate

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Robert Banks	27,517	53.55
	Liberal	Ian DeCourcey Bayley	15,728	30.61
	Labour	Michael A. Wheaton	6,084	11.84
	National Front	Andrew Brons	1,186	2.31	New
	Democratic Christian	J. E. Stringfellow	875	1.70	New
Majority			11,789	22.94
Turnout			51,390	80.05
	Conservative hold		Swing

General election October 1974: Harrogate

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Robert Banks	24,583	53.85
	Liberal	Ian DeCourcey Bayley	11,269	24.69
	Labour	Barry Seal	8,047	17.63
	National Front	Andrew Brons	1,030	2.26
	Whig	Cecil Margolis	719	1.58	New
Majority			13,314	29.17
Turnout			45,648	70.49
	Conservative hold		Swing

General election 1979: Harrogate

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Robert Banks	30,551	59.46
	Liberal	Rodney Kent	12,021	23.40
	Labour	A. Fleming	8,221	16.00
	National Front	D. Waite	585	1.14
Majority			18,530	36.06
Turnout			51,378	74.26
	Conservative hold		Swing

Elections in the 1980s

General election 1983: Harrogate^[5]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Robert Banks	30,269	60.23
	SDP	John Burney	14,381	28.62
	Labour	John Dixon	5,128	10.20
	Reintroduction of Hanging and Corporal Punishment	D. Kelley	316	0.63	New
	National Front	P. Vessey	163	0.32
Majority			15,888	31.61
Turnout			50,257	69.02
	Conservative hold		Swing

General election 1987: Harrogate^[6]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Robert Banks	31,167	55.55
	SDP	Jonathan Leach	19,265	34.34
	Labour	Andrew Wright	5,671	10.10
Majority			11,902	21.21
Turnout			56,103	74.05
	Conservative hold		Swing

Elections in the 1990s

General election 1992: Harrogate^[7]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Robert Banks	32,023	53.85
	Liberal Democrats	T. J. Hurren	19,434	32.68
	Labour	A. J. Wright	7,230	12.16
	Green	Arnold Warneken	780	1.31	New
Majority			12,589	21.17
Turnout			59,467	77.99
	Conservative hold		Swing

See also

• List of parliamentary constituencies in North Yorkshire