BBC Profile:
Created in 1983, this has been a Labour seat ever since. Mark Hendrick took over the seat for Labour in a 2000 by-election caused by the death of previous MP Audrey Wise. He won a majority of 9,407 in 2005.

At the election, the seat gains the part-ward of Ingol from Fylde. It loses the wards of Bamber Bridge East, Bamber Bridge North and Walton-le-Dale to Ribble Valley, as well as the part-wards of Bamber Bridge West, Lostock Hall, Samlesbury and Walton and Tardy Gate; it also loses the part-ward of College to Wyre and Preston North. To find out what might have happened had this boundary change been in force at the last election, see a notional - or estimated - result below.

Preston is an old cotton town at the heart of the county of Lancashire, on the river Ribble. Preston moved from town to city status in 2002 to celebrate the Golden Jubilee.

It has excellent transport links: the West Coast mainline serves Preston as do the M6, the M61 and the M65. These links are crucial for Preston to revitalise the local economy.

Preston had a key involvement in the industrial revolution. The city is the home of Richard Arkwright, who invented the spinning frame, and this partly led to the cotton industry developing around this area.

Today's employers are of a very different ilk, with BAE Systems one of the largest employers. The service industry is dominant in Preston with over a quarter of jobs in public administration.

The University of Central Lancashi

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BBC Profile:
Created in 1983, this has been a Labour seat ever since. Mark Hendrick took over the seat for Labour in a 2000 by-election caused by the death of previous MP Audrey Wise. He won a majority of 9,407 in 2005.

At the election, the seat gains the part-ward of Ingol from Fylde. It loses the wards of Bamber Bridge East, Bamber Bridge North and Walton-le-Dale to Ribble Valley, as well as the part-wards of Bamber Bridge West, Lostock Hall, Samlesbury and Walton and Tardy Gate; it also loses the part-ward of College to Wyre and Preston North. To find out what might have happened had this boundary change been in force at the last election, see a notional - or estimated - result below.

Preston is an old cotton town at the heart of the county of Lancashire, on the river Ribble. Preston moved from town to city status in 2002 to celebrate the Golden Jubilee.

It has excellent transport links: the West Coast mainline serves Preston as do the M6, the M61 and the M65. These links are crucial for Preston to revitalise the local economy.

Preston had a key involvement in the industrial revolution. The city is the home of Richard Arkwright, who invented the spinning frame, and this partly led to the cotton industry developing around this area.

Today's employers are of a very different ilk, with BAE Systems one of the largest employers. The service industry is dominant in Preston with over a quarter of jobs in public administration.

The University of Central Lancashire, based in Preston, is now one of the biggest universities in the country. This has brought a new sector and income to the local economy.

Rallings & Thrasher Notional:
Lab 14,663 (48.65%)
C 6,325 (20.99%)
LD 5,986 (19.86%)
Others 2,318 (7.69%)
UKIP 845 (2.80%)

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