City of Durham (UK Parliament constituency) explained

City of Durham is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2019 by Mary Kelly Foy of the Labour Party.

Constituency profile

The constituency contains a large minority of students, researchers and academics at the early 19th century founded University of Durham, that has a claim towards being the third oldest in England and has elected Labour MPs since 1935, although there have been strong SDP–Liberal Alliance and Liberal Democrat challenges to Labour since the 1980s.

The constituency includes a number of surrounding villages and suburbs as well as Durham itself, the largest of these are Brandon, Bowburn, Esh Winning, Framwellgate Moor, Sherburn, Ushaw Moor and Willington. The seat extends as far west as Satley and as far east as Shadforth.

The seat has traditionally been dominated by Labour, with support particularly strong in those villages historically connected to County Durham's mining industry. Durham is famous as an educational centre, for Durham University and the feepaying preparatory school, Chorister School where Tony Blair was educated. The city centre is more inclined to the Liberal Democrats. Like many other university cities such as Cambridge and Oxford, in the 2005 election it swung strongly towards the Liberal Democrats, one possible reason being these cities' sizeable student population who were viewed as being hostile to Labour's policies on areas such as top-up fees and the Iraq War. The Liberal Democrats were able to reduce Labour's majority by over 10,000 votes, although they were still unable to gain the seat from Labour, as was the case in the 2010 election. As reflected in throughout the country, the Liberal Democrat vote collapsed in the 2015 election.

History

The parliamentary borough (1678–1918)

The City of Durham was first given the right to return Members to Parliament by an Act of Parliament in 1673, although the first election was not held until 1678 due to drafting errors.^[3] It was the last new borough but one to be enfranchised before the Great Reform Act of 1832.^[4] It was the only borough in County Durham, the county also having been unrepresented until the same Act of Parliament, which created two MPs for the county and two for the city. Both constituencies were frequently referred to simply as Durham, which can make for some confusion.

The constituency as constituted in 1678 consisted only of the city of Durham itself, though this included its suburbs which were within the municipal boundary. The right to vote was held by the corporation and the freemen of the city, many of whom were not resident within the boundaries. Unlike the situation in many small rotten boroughs, the corporation had no jurisdiction over the creation of freemen: freemen were generally created by connection with companies of trade, either by apprenticeship or by birth (by being the son of an existing freeman), though the common council of the city had a power to create honorary freemen.

The creation of honorary freemen with the specific intention of swaying elections was a common abuse in a number of boroughs in the 18th century, and at the Durham election of 1762 became sufficiently controversial to force a change in the law. The election was disputed because 215 new freemen, most of them not resident in the city, had been made after the writ for the election was issued. The existing freemen petitioned against this dilution of their voting rights, the candidate who had been declared elected was unseated by the Commons committee which heard the case, and the following year an Act of Parliament was passed to prevent any honorary freeman from voting in a borough election within twelve months of their being accorded that status.

Through having a freeman franchise the electorate was comparatively numerous for the period, though comprising only a small fraction of the city's population; at the time of the Reform Act there were between 1,100 and 1,200 freemen in total, of whom 427 were resident and 558 lived within seven miles, while the total population of the borough was 9,269. The Lambton and Tempest families were influential, and were generally able to secure election, but fell far short of the sort of control common in pocket boroughs.

The city retained both its MPs under the 1832 Reform Act, with its boundaries adjusted only very slightly, although as elsewhere the franchise was reformed. The Reform Act 1867 extended the boundaries to include part of Framwellgate parish which had previously been excluded.^[5] Under the Redistribution of Seats Act 1885, the borough's representation was reduced from the 1885 general election to a single MP.^[6] In the boundary changes of 1918, the borough was abolished, but a division of County Durham was named after the city.

County constituency (since 1918)

From 1918, Durham City was included in a county constituency officially called The Durham Division of (County) Durham, consisting of the central part of the county.^[7] In the 1983 boundary changes, the constituency officially acquired the unambiguous City of Durham name for the first time and its boundaries were realigned to match the new City of Durham local government district.

Boundaries

1918–1950

• the Borough of Durham

• the Urban District of Hetton

• the Rural District of Durham except the parish of Brancepeth

• in the Rural District of Houghton-le-Spring, the parishes of East Rainton, Great Eppleton, Little Eppleton, Moor House, Moorsley, and West Rainton.

As well as absorbing the abolished parliamentary borough, the reconstituted seat included Hetton-le-Hole and surrounding rural areas, transferred from Houghton-le-Spring, and northern areas of the abolished Mid Division of Durham.

1950–1974

• the Borough of Durham

• the Urban Districts of Hetton and Spennymoor

• the Rural District of Durham.^[8]

Spennymoor and the parish of Brancepeth transferred in from the abolished constituency of Spennymoor. Other minor changes (the Rural District of Houghton-le-Spring had been abolished and absorbed into neighbouring local authorities).

1974–1983

• the Borough of Durham and Framwelgate

• the Rural District of Sedgefield and the Rural District of Durham except the parish of Brancepeth.^[9]

Hetton transferred back to Houghton-le-Spring, and Spennymoor and Brancepeth now included in Durham North West. Gained the Rural District of Sedgefield from the abolished constituency of Sedgefield.

1983–2024

• The City of Durham.^{[10] [11] [12]}

Sedgefield returned to the re-established constituency thereof. Gained the area comprising the former Urban District of Brandon and Byshottles which had been absorbed into the District of the City of Durham, previously part of North West Durham.

2024–present

• The County of Durham electoral districts of: Belmont; Brandon; Deerness; Durham South; Elvet and Gilesgate; Esh and Witton Gilbert; Framwellgate and Newton Hall; Neville's Cross; Sherburn; and Willington and Hunwick.^[13]

Coxhoe was transferred to the new constituency of Newton Aycliffe and Spennymoor, offset by gains from the abolished constituency of North West Durham, including the communities of Esh and Willington.

Members of Parliament

Durham City (borough)

• Constituency created 1678

MPs 1678–1885

Year		First member	First party		Second member	Second party
1678		Sir Ralph Cole	<	-- party -->		John Parkhurst
February 1679					William Tempest
September 1679		William Blakiston			Sir Richard Lloyd	<	-- party -->
1681		William Tempest
1685		Charles Montagu
1689		George Morland	<	-- party -->		Henry Liddell
1690					William Tempest
1695		Charles Montagu	<	-- party -->		Henry Liddell
1698					Thomas Conyers	Tory
1701					Sir Henry Belasyse	<	-- party -->
1702		Thomas Conyers	Tory
1708					James Nicolson
1710					Sir Henry Belasyse	Tory
1712					Robert Shafto	Tory
1713					George Baker	Tory
1722					Charles Talbot	<	-- party -->
1727		Robert Shafto	Tory
1730		John Shafto	Tory
1734					Henry Lambton	Whig
1742		John Tempest	<				-- party -->
1761					Ralph Gowland[14]
1762					Major General John Lambton	<	-- party -->
1768		John Tempest	Tory
1787					William Henry Lambton	Whig[15]
1794		Sir Henry Vane-Tempest	Tory
1798					Ralph John Lambton	Whig
1800		Michael Angelo Taylor	Whig
1802		Richard Wharton[16]	Tory
1804		Robert Eden Duncombe Shafto
1806		Richard Wharton	Tory
1813					George Allan	Tory
1818					Michael Angelo Taylor	Whig
1820		Sir Henry Hardinge	Tory
1830		Sir Roger Gresley[17]	Tory
March 1831		William Chaytor	Whig
May 1831					Hon. Arthur Trevor	Tory
1832					William Charles Harland	Whig[18] [19]
1835		Hon. Arthur Trevor	Conservative
1841		Thomas Colpitts Granger	Radical[20] [21] [22] [23]		Robert FitzRoy	Conservative
April 1843					The Viscount Dungannon[24]	Conservative
July 1843					John Bright	Radical/Anti-Corn Law
1847					Henry John Spearman	Whig[25] [26]
July 1852					William Atherton[27]	Radical[28] [29]
December 1852		Lord Adolphus Vane[30]	Conservative
1853		John Mowbray	Conservative
1859						Liberal
1864					John Henderson	Liberal
1868		John Robert Davison	Liberal
1871		John Lloyd Wharton	Conservative
February 1874		Thomas Charles Thompson	Liberal
June 1874[31]		Farrer Herschell	Liberal		Sir Arthur Middleton	Liberal
1880					Thomas Charles Thompson	Liberal
1885	Representation reduced to one member

MPs 1885–1918

Election		Member[32]	Party
			Conservative
			Liberal
			Liberal Unionist
			Liberal Unionist
	1918	Parliamentary borough abolished

Durham, Durham/City of Durham (county constituency)

MPs since 1918

Year		Member	Party
			Conservative
			Labour
			Liberal
			Labour
			Labour
			Labour
			Labour
			Labour
			Labour

Elections

Elections in the 1890s

• Caused by Fowler's death.

• These are the final 1895 results after a recount. The original result was Fowler with 1,111 votes, and Elliot with 1,110 votes, leaving a Liberal majority of just one vote.

Elections in the 1880s

• Caused by Herschell's appointment as Solicitor General for England and Wales

Elections in the 1870s

• Caused by the 1874 election being declared void on petition.

• Caused by Davison's death.

• Caused by Davison's appointment as Judge Advocate General of the Armed Forces.

Elections in the 1860s

• Caused by Mowbray's appointment as Judge Advocate General of the Armed Forces

• Caused by Atherton's death.

• Caused by Atherton's appointment as Attorney General for England and Wales.

• Caused by Atherton's appointment as Solicitor General for England and Wales.

Elections in the 1850s

• Caused by Mowbray's appointment as Judge Advocate General of the Armed Forces.

• Caused by the earlier by-election being declared void on petition due to bribery.^[33]

• Caused by Granger's death.

Elections in the 1840s

• Caused by the by-election being declared void on petition due to bribery by Hill-Trevor's agents.^[34]

• Caused by FitzRoy's appointment as Governor of New Zealand

Elections in the 1830s

• Caused by Gresley being unseated on petition.

See also

• List of parliamentary constituencies in County Durham
• History of parliamentary constituencies and boundaries in Durham

Sources

• F W S Craig, "British Parliamentary Election Results 1832–1885" (2nd edition, Aldershot: Parliamentary Research Services, 1989)
• J Holladay Philbin, "Parliamentary Representation 1832 – England and Wales" (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1965)
• Michael Kinnear, "The British Voter" (London: Batsford, 1968)
• E Porritt and AG Porritt, "The Unreformed House of Commons, Vol I: England and Wales" (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1903)
• Henry Stooks Smith, The Parliaments of England from 1715 to 1847 (2nd edition, edited by FWS Craig – Chichester: Parliamentary Reference Publications, 1973)
• Robert Waller, "The Almanac of British Politics" (3rd edition, London: Croom Helm, 1987)
• Frederic A Youngs, jr, "Guide to the Local Administrative Units of England, Vol II" (London: Royal Historical Society, 1991)
• The Constitutional Yearbook, 1913" (London: National Unionist Association, 1913)

External links

• nomis Constituency Profile for City of Durham — presenting data from the ONS annual population survey and other official statistics.
• City of Durham UK Parliament constituency (boundaries April 1997 – April 2010) at MapIt UK
• City of Durham UK Parliament constituency (boundaries April 2010 – May 2024) at MapIt UK
• City of Durham UK Parliament constituency (boundaries from June 2024) at MapIt UK

Notes and References

1. Web site: City of Durham: Usual Resident Population, 2011 . Neighbourhood Statistics . Office for National Statistics . 2 March 2015 . 4 March 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160304002806/http://neighbourhood.statistics.gov.uk/dissemination/LeadTableView.do?a=7&b=6507825&c=&d=27&e=62&g=6430187&i=1001x1003x1032x1004&o=362&m=0&r=1&s=1422104706393&enc=1&dsFamilyId=2473 . dead .
2. Web site: The 2023 Review of Parliamentary Constituency Boundaries in England – Volume two: Constituency names, designations and composition – North East . Boundary Commission for England . 3 July 2024 . dmy .
3. Web site: Durham City History of Parliament Online . 2022-09-27 . www.histparl.ac.uk.
4. Web site: Constituencies 1660–1690 History of Parliament Online . 2022-09-27 . www.histparl.ac.uk.
5. Web site: Boundary Act 1868 . 1807 . 131.
6. Web site: Redistribution of Seats Act 1885 . 126. Proprietors of the Law Journal Reports .
7. Web site: Representation of the People Act 1918 . 1918 . 497.
8. Web site: Representation of the People Act 1948 . 93.
9. Web site: The Parliamentary Constituencies (England) Order 1970 . 43.
10. Web site: The Parliamentary Constituencies (England) Order 1983 . 22.
11. Web site: The Parliamentary Constituencies (England) Order 1995 . In the County of Durham.
12. Web site: The Parliamentary Constituencies (England) Order 2007 . In Durham and Darlington.
13. Web site: The Parliamentary Constituencies Order 2023 . Schedule 1 Part 4 North East region.
14. On petition, Gowland's election was declared void and his opponent, Lambton, was seated in his place
15. Book: Stooks Smith , Henry. . . The Parliaments of England . 1844–1850 . 2nd . 1973 . Parliamentary Research Services . Chichester . 0-900178-13-2 . 99–102 .
16. Wharton was unseated on petition for illegal practices during the election
17. On petition, Gresley's election was declared void and a by-election was held
18. Book: Mosse . Richard Bartholomew . The Parliamentary Guide: A Concise Biography of the Members of Both House of Parliament, Their Connexions, Etc. . 1837 . A. H. Baily & Co. . London . 173 . 22 September 2020 . 3 January 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220103100415/https://books.google.com/books?id=PSNkAAAAcAAJ&pg=PA173 . live .
19. Book: Richardson . Moses Aaron . The Local Historian's Table Book of Remarkable Occurrences, Historical Facts, Traditions, Legendary and Descriptive Ballads, &c., &c., Connected With the Counties of Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Northumberland and Durham. Historical Division. Vol. IV . 1844 . M. A. Richardson . Newcastle-upon-Tyne . 374 . 22 September 2020 . 3 January 2022 . https://web.archive.org/web/20220103100415/https://books.google.com/books?id=IwFNAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA374 . live .
20. Book: Froude. James Anthony. Tulloch. John. Fraser's Magazine, Volume 17. 1838. J. Fraser. 71. 7 May 2018. 3 January 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20220103100417/https://books.google.com/books?id=09dLAQAAMAAJ&pg=PA71. live.
21. Web site: Radice. Paula Kim Vandersluys. Identification, interests and influence : voting behaviour in four English constituencies in the decade after the Great Reform Act.. Durham E-Theses. Durham University. 7 May 2018. 318. 1992. 7 May 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180507222915/http://etheses.dur.ac.uk/1189/1/1189_v1.pdf. live.
22. Book: The Spectator, Volume 10. 1837. F.C. Westley. 628. 7 May 2018. 3 January 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20220103100416/https://books.google.com/books?id=5zA_AQAAIAAJ&pg=PA628. live.
23. News: Electoral Movements. 7 May 2018. John O'Groat Journal. 18 June 1841. 2. British Newspaper Archive. subscription.
24. Dungannon's election at the by-election of April 1843 was declared void on petition and a new election held
25. Book: Dod, Charles Roger. Dod, Robert Phipps. Charles Roger Dod. Dod's Parliamentary Companion, Volume 15. 1847. Dod's Parliamentary Companion. 238. 7 May 2018. 4 April 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20220404032427/https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/imgsrv/html?id=nyp.33433081634291;seq=250. live.
26. Book: Ollivier. John. Ollivier's Parliamentary and Political Directory for the Session 1841, 1848, Volume 1. 1848. https://books.google.com/books?id=9J2cuPxlkIMC&pg=PA30. 7 May 2018. Alphabetical List of the House of Commons. 30. 3 January 2022. https://web.archive.org/web/20220103100418/https://books.google.com/books?id=9J2cuPxlkIMC&pg=PA30. live.
27. Sir William Atherton from 1861
28. Atherton, William (1806-1864).
29. News: The Late Sir William Atherton, M.P.. 7 May 2018. The Argus. 1 April 1864. 3. 7 May 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180507221830/https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/5746662. live.
30. Vane's election at the by-election of December 1852 was declared void on petition and a new election held
31. Henderson and Wharton were re-elected at the general election of 1874, but the election was declared void on petition, and neither stood in the ensuing by-election
32. Web site: Durham (city) 1678-. Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). 2 March 2015. 3 March 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160303221422/http://hansard.millbanksystems.com/constituencies/durham-city. live.
33. News: Political. 7 May 2018. Oxford University and City Herald. 11 June 1853. 6–7. British Newspaper Archive. subscription.
34. News: Gloucester Journal . 5 November 2018 . 15 July 1843 . 3 . . subscription .