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> United Kingdom > England > North East > North East
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| Established | December 18, 1885 |
| Disbanded | Still Active |
| Contributor | RP |
| Last Modified | RBH December 18, 2019 05:36pm |
| Description |
Bishop Auckland is not the archetypal north east industrial and working-class seat. It is comprises the primarily rural south west of County Durham where the chief occupations are farming and tourism. The other main towns are Barnard Castle, site of a Glaxo Wellcome manufacturing plant and Spennymoor, Coundon and Shildon where the remnants of the old Durham coalfield are to be found. The remaining heavy industry is limited to Bishop Auckland itself which includes electronics, electricals, glass, packaging and textiles. This diverse seat has been Labour since 1935 and was once represented by Attlee's post-war Chancellor, Hugh Dalton. Salvation Army member, Derek Foster, had been MP here since 1979 but retired at this election. He provided the party's best result in Durham county in 1997 when he increased his share of the vote by more than 18% and his majority to 21,000. Opposition Chief Whip for ten years (1985-95), he was one of Tony Blair's shortest-lived ministerial appointments in 1997 when he resigned as Public Service minister after three days. The Conservatives have one seat on Teesdale District Council. In the 2001 Durham County Council elections, the Tories scored less than 10% in West Auckland, Bishop Auckland Town, Shildon and Spennymoor.
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