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UK Parliament - Witney

RACE DETAILS

Parents

> United Kingdom > England > South East > South East > Witney

Office

Parliament

Type

General Election

Filing Deadline

00, 0000 - 06:00pm

Polls Open

May 06, 2010 - 01:00am

Polls Close

May 06, 2010 - 04:00pm

Term Start

May 17, 2010 - 12:00pm

Term End

May 17, 2015 - 12:00pm

Contributor

Ralphie

Last Modified

Ralphie May 06, 2010 09:02pm

Data Sources

[Link]

Description

BBC Profile:
The seat today known as Witney was established in 1974 and has been represented by a Conservative ever since: Douglas Hurd was the MP for 23 years until he retired in 1997. He was succeeded by Shaun Woodward, who defected to Labour in 1999. Witney Conservative Association demanded that he resign, but he refused and stayed in the seat until 2001, when the Labour Party transferred him to the safe St Helens South.

For the 2001 election the local party selected David Cameron, who was a former special adviser to a number of Conservative ministers including Michael Howard, Norman Lamont and Michael Portillo. In 2001, with a swing from Labour of 1.9%, he gained a 45% share of the vote. Under Cameron at the 2005 election the Conservatives presided over a small swing in their favour, giving them a 26.3% majority.

At this election, the seat loses the part-ward of Kirtlington to Henley, and the part-ward of Yarnton, Gosford and Water Eaton to Oxford West and Abingdon. 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.

This Oxfordshire constituency west of Oxford covers the town of Witney itself, Eynsham, Chipping Norton, RAF Brize Norton, Carterton, Burford, Charlbury and Woodstock.

Witney is an old industrial town with a steadily growing population and was once most famous for its blanket factories. They have been replaced by a number of new factories and industrial estates.

The constituency also contains part of the Cotswolds and Blenheim Palace: tourism is therefore an important factor in sustaining the local economy.

Access roads, including the A40, A4095 and A415 provide vital links throughout the constituency. Train services are relatively limited but provide a vital means of transport for the smaller towns and villages.

Rallings & Thrasher Notional:
C 25,579 (49.37%)
LD 11,705 (22.59%)
Lab 11,592 (22.37%)
Green 1,620 (3.13%)
UKIP 1,315 (2.54%)