Reading West (UK Parliament constituency)
Encyclopedia
Reading West is a county constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom
. Like all such constituencies, it elects one Member of Parliament
(MP) by the first past the post system of election. The constituency covers an area in and around the town of Reading
in the county of Berkshire
.
, Southcote
, Tilehurst
and Whitley
) together with the parishes of Holybrook
, Pangbourne
, Purley-on-Thames
, Tidmarsh with Sulham
, Theale
and Tilehurst
in West Berkshire District
. It is bounded by the constituencies of Newbury
, Henley
, Reading East, and Wokingham
.
by Tony Durant, the sitting MP for the previous Reading North
constituency. He held the seat through all subsequent general elections until he retired before the 1997 election
.
The constituency was then won for the Labour Party
by Martin Salter
, as part of the landslide that brought Labour back to power under Tony Blair
. Salter held the seat through two subsequent general elections until Parliament was dissolved in April 2010, but did not stand in the 2010 general election, when Alok Sharma
won the seat for the Conservative
s.
Parliament of the United Kingdom
The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London...
. Like all such constituencies, it elects one Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
(MP) by the first past the post system of election. The constituency covers an area in and around the town of Reading
Reading, Berkshire
Reading is a large town and unitary authority area in England. It is located in the Thames Valley at the confluence of the River Thames and River Kennet, and on both the Great Western Main Line railway and the M4 motorway, some west of London....
in the county of Berkshire
Berkshire
Berkshire is a historic county in the South of England. It is also often referred to as the Royal County of Berkshire because of the presence of the royal residence of Windsor Castle in the county; this usage, which dates to the 19th century at least, was recognised by the Queen in 1957, and...
.
Boundaries
The constituency comprises the western part of the Borough of Reading (specifically the wards of Battle, Kentwood, Minster, NorcotNorcot
Norcot is an area of Tilehurst and a ward of Reading in the English county of Berkshire.-Location and origins:Norcot ward is the south-eastern sector of the Reading borough portion of Tilehurst. However, as a suburban area, Norcot centres on Norcot Road and the upper Oxford Road on Norcot Hill. It...
, Southcote
Southcote, Berkshire
Southcote is a suburb and local government ward of Reading in the English county of Berkshire.The suburb of Southcote is bounded to the north by the Bath Road and Prospect Park, to the west by the more recently developed suburb of Fords Farm, to the south by the Holy Brook and the water meadows of...
, Tilehurst
Tilehurst
Tilehurst is a suburb of the town of Reading in the English county of Berkshire. It is also, with different boundaries as described below, a civil parish in West Berkshire district.-History:...
and Whitley
Whitley, Berkshire
Whitley is a suburb of Reading in the English county of Berkshire.-Geography:Whitley, commonly known as one of the larger suburbs of Reading, is bounded to the north and east by a ridge of high ground carrying the road to Shinfield, to the west by the valleys of the River Kennet and the Foudry...
) together with the parishes of Holybrook
Holybrook
Holybrook is a civil parish on the outskirts of Reading in the English county of Berkshire. The parish takes its name from the Holy Brook, a watercourse which forms its southern boundary....
, Pangbourne
Pangbourne
Pangbourne is a large village and civil parish on the River Thames in the English county of Berkshire. Pangbourne is the home of the independent school, Pangbourne College.-Location:...
, Purley-on-Thames
Purley-on-Thames
Purley on Thames or simply Purley, is a village and civil parish in Berkshire, England. It forms part of the Reading urban area, but remains outside the borough, in West Berkshire. The village is situated about north-west of Reading, and east of Pangbourne...
, Tidmarsh with Sulham
Tidmarsh with Sulham
Tidmarsh with Sulham is a combined parish council area in the English county of Berkshire. It covers the villages of Tidmarsh and Sulham, together with the hamlets of Maidenhatch and Nunhide....
, Theale
Theale, Berkshire
Theale is a large village and civil parish in the English county of Berkshire. The village has many of the attributes of a small town, with a high street lined with shops, pubs and restaurants.- Location :...
and Tilehurst
Tilehurst
Tilehurst is a suburb of the town of Reading in the English county of Berkshire. It is also, with different boundaries as described below, a civil parish in West Berkshire district.-History:...
in West Berkshire District
West Berkshire
West Berkshire is a local government district in the ceremonial county of Berkshire, England, governed by a unitary authority . Its administrative capital is Newbury, located almost equidistantly between Bristol and London.-Geography:...
. It is bounded by the constituencies of Newbury
Newbury (UK Parliament constituency)
Newbury is a parliamentary constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It returns one Member of Parliament , elected by the first-past-the-post voting system....
, Henley
Henley (UK Parliament constituency)
Henley is a county constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It covers south Oxfordshire, including Henley-on-Thames. The constituency elects one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election. It has long been a safe Conservative...
, Reading East, and Wokingham
Wokingham (UK Parliament constituency)
Wokingham is a parliamentary constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election.-Boundaries:...
.
History
The Reading West parliamentary constituency was first contested in 1983, when it was won for the Conservative PartyConservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
by Tony Durant, the sitting MP for the previous Reading North
Reading North (UK Parliament constituency)
Reading North was a borough constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elected one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election...
constituency. He held the seat through all subsequent general elections until he retired before the 1997 election
United Kingdom general election, 1997
The United Kingdom general election, 1997 was held on 1 May 1997, more than five years after the previous election on 9 April 1992, to elect 659 members to the British House of Commons. The Labour Party ended its 18 years in opposition under the leadership of Tony Blair, and won the general...
.
The constituency was then won for the Labour Party
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
by Martin Salter
Martin Salter
Martin John Salter is a British Labour Party politician who was the Member of Parliament for Reading West from 1997 to 2010.-Early life:...
, as part of the landslide that brought Labour back to power under Tony Blair
Tony Blair
Anthony Charles Lynton Blair is a former British Labour Party politician who served as the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2 May 1997 to 27 June 2007. He was the Member of Parliament for Sedgefield from 1983 to 2007 and Leader of the Labour Party from 1994 to 2007...
. Salter held the seat through two subsequent general elections until Parliament was dissolved in April 2010, but did not stand in the 2010 general election, when Alok Sharma
Alok Sharma
Alok Sharma is an Indian-born British politician with the Conservative Party in the United Kingdom. He was elected in 2010 as Member of Parliament for Reading West county constituency in and around the town of Reading in the county of Berkshire.Sharma grew up in Earley and Whitley Wood and went to...
won the seat for the Conservative
Conservative Party (UK)
The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
s.
Members of Parliament
| Election | Member | Party | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1983 United Kingdom general election, 1983 The 1983 United Kingdom general election was held on 9 June 1983. It gave the Conservative Party under Margaret Thatcher the most decisive election victory since that of Labour in 1945... |
Tony Durant Tony Durant Sir Robert Anthony Bevis Durant , also known as Tony Durant, was a member of the Conservative Party, and was Member of Parliament for Reading North from 1974–83. After Reading's constituencies were reshuffled, he was Member of Parliament for Reading West from 1983–97. He retired from politics... |
Conservative Conservative Party (UK) The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House... |
|
| 1997 United Kingdom general election, 1997 The United Kingdom general election, 1997 was held on 1 May 1997, more than five years after the previous election on 9 April 1992, to elect 659 members to the British House of Commons. The Labour Party ended its 18 years in opposition under the leadership of Tony Blair, and won the general... |
Martin Salter Martin Salter Martin John Salter is a British Labour Party politician who was the Member of Parliament for Reading West from 1997 to 2010.-Early life:... |
Labour Labour Party (UK) The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after... |
|
| 2010 | Alok Sharma Alok Sharma Alok Sharma is an Indian-born British politician with the Conservative Party in the United Kingdom. He was elected in 2010 as Member of Parliament for Reading West county constituency in and around the town of Reading in the county of Berkshire.Sharma grew up in Earley and Whitley Wood and went to... |
Conservative Conservative Party (UK) The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House... |
|