Since its creation it has been a Conservative or Liberal/Liberal Democrat seat, sometimes seemingly marginal and sometimes seen as a safe seat, with a tendency towards being Conservative.[n 2] West Berkshire which is similar to its neighbours has a rather thriving economy with the headquarters of the communications company Vodafone that has created a cluster of around 80 mobile phone related businesses in Newbury,[2] while the Lambourn area is the second most important centre for the racehorse industry in Great Britain, employing over 800 people directly, and producing an annual income of £20 million.[3]
The Conservatives have held the constituency for all but seventeen years since the creation of the seat – only three spells of Liberal Party, or Liberal Democrat, majorities have intersected their control. In 2015, the party held the largest majority in the seat since 1935 at 46%, before being reduced to 40.1% in 2017.
Since the February 1974 election, the Liberal Democrats have been one of the two largest parties in the constituency. They most recently gained the seat at the 1993 by-election, holding it until 2005 where it was regained by the Conservatives.
The constituency in 2010 produced the third lowest share of the vote for Labour (4.3%), one of five lost deposits for Labour nationally, below the 5% of the vote deposit threshold.[6][n 3] In 2017, Labour earned its highest share of the vote in Newbury since the October 1974 election with 14.1% of the vote.
It was estimated that the constituency voted 51% in favour of remaining in the European Union during the 2016 referendum on EU membership, with 49% voting to leave.[7]
In December 2023, the Labour Party included the seat in its published list of 211 non-battleground seats, suggesting they did not see it as winnable.[8]
The constituency was created as the Southern or Newbury Division of Berkshire under the Redistribution of Seats Act 1885, when the three-member Parliamentary County of Berkshire was divided into the three single-member constituencies of Abingdon, Newbury and Wokingham. It comprised:
The Boroughs of Newbury and Reading;
the Sessional Divisions of Ilsley, Lambourn, Newbury (including Hungerford), and Reading (except the parishes of East Swallowfield and West Swallowfield); and
The Rural Districts of Hungerford and Newbury; and
Parts of the Rural Districts of Bradfield and Wokingham.[10]
Extended eastwards, with the addition of Wokingham and surrounding areas from the abolished Wokingham Division. Small area in the north transferred to Abingdon and areas which had been annexed by Reading County Borough transferred to the Parliamentary Borough thereof.
The Rural Districts of Bradfield, Hungerford and Newbury.[10]
Wokingham and rural areas to the south and east of Reading transferred to the re-established constituency of Wokingham. Small area transferred from Abingdon.
The Rural Districts of Bradfield, Hungerford and Newbury; and
The County Borough of Reading ward of Tilehurst.[10]
Gained the Tilehurst ward from the abolished constituency of Reading North. From the 1964 general election, the wards of Norcot and Tilehurst were included following a revision to the local authority wards in Reading.[10]
The rural districts of Bradfield, Hungerford, and Newbury.[11]
The two Reading wards were transferred back to the re-established constituency of Reading North. The boundary with Abingdon was slightly amended to take account of changes to local government boundaries.
The District of Newbury wards of Aldermaston, Basildon, Beenham, Bradfield, Bucklebury, Burghfield, Chieveley, Cold Ash, Compton, Craven, Downlands, Falkland, Greenham, Hungerford, Kintbury, Lambourn Valley, Mortimer, Northcroft, St John's, Shaw-cum-Donnington, Speen, Thatcham North, Thatcham South, Thatcham West, Turnpike, and Winchcombe.[12]
Gained a small area of the abolished constituency of Abingdon (part of the former Rural District of Wantage) which was retained by Berkshire when the rest of the area comprising Abingdon was transferred to Oxfordshire by the Local Government Act 1972. Areas to the west of Reading included in the new constituency of Reading West.
The District of West Berkshire wards of Aldermaston, Basildon, Bucklebury, Chieveley, Clay Hill, Cold Ash, Compton, Downlands, Falkland, Greenham, Hungerford, Kintbury, Lambourn Valley, Northcroft, St John's, Speen, Thatcham Central, Thatcham North, Thatcham South and Crookham, Thatcham West, and Victoria.[14]
The District of West Berkshire wards of: Chieveley & Cold Ash; Downlands (polling districts BG, CA, CB, EA, FA, FB, GA1, GA2, LB and PC); Hungerford & Kintbury; Lambourn; Newbury Central; Newbury Clay Hill; Newbury Greenham; Newbury Speen; Newbury Wash Common; Thatcham Central; Thatcham Colthrop & Crookham; Thatcham North East; Thatcham West.[15]
The electorate was further reduced to bring it within the permitted range by transferring eastern, rural areas to the new constituency of Reading West and Mid Berkshire.
After the 1970 general election, Newbury's boundaries were altered to reduce the size of the electorate which had grown to over 85,000. After the boundary changes, the electorate numbered around 72,000 people. This came into effect for the first general election in February 1974.
^Burghfield, Mortimer and Sulhamstead; and, respectively Burch Copse, Calcot, Pangbourne, Purley on Thames, Theale and Westwood
^The total period served by either a Liberal or Liberal Democrat MP is 17 years, Conservative MPs have served for the remaining 110 years (to the end of 2012)
^Other lost Labour deposits took place in Eastbourne, Somerton & Frome, Cornwall North and Westmorland & Lonsdale
^Great Britain, Incorporated Council of Law Reporting for England and Wales. The public general acts. unknown library. Proprietors of the Law Journal Reports, 1884.
^ abcdS., Craig, Fred W. (1972). Boundaries of parliamentary constituencies 1885–1972;. Chichester: Political Reference Publications. ISBN0900178094. OCLC539011.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
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