Conwy (UK Parliament constituency)

Conwy
Conwy
Former county constituency; for the House of Commons
	Boundary of Conwy in Wales for the 2005 general election
Preserved county	Clwyd, Gwynedd
Major settlements	Conwy, Bangor, Llandudno
1950–2010
Seats	One
Created from	Caernarvon Boroughs and Caernarvonshire
Replaced by	Aberconwy

Conwy (Conway prior to 1983) was an electoral constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It returned one Member of Parliament (MP) by the single-member district plurality (also known as first-past-the-post) system of voting.

The constituency was created for the 1950 general election, and abolished for the 2010 general election.

History

It was a marginal between the Conservative Party and the Labour Party throughout its existence.

The Conwy Welsh Assembly constituency was created with the same boundaries as the Conwy House of Commons constituency in 1999.

Boundaries

The constituency was, geographically, relatively small for its region, as it followed and tended to keep to the coast, taking in parts of two separate densely populated coastal conurbations.

As well as the walled castle town of Conwy from which it bore its name, the constituency mainly comprised the popular holiday resort and retail centre of Llandudno to the east, and the city of Bangor, which is home to the University of Wales, Bangor, to the west. It also included the smaller coastal towns of Penmaenmawr and Llanfairfechan, as well as some sparser inland areas including former slate-quarrying communities in the Ogwen Valley.

The constituency, notably, did not include Colwyn Bay (or outlying Rhos-on-Sea), which forms part of a coastal conurbation (and the Conwy county borough) with Llandudno and its outlying town of Penrhyn Bay—both in the constituency; this area comes under the constituency of Clwyd West to the east. Nor did it include the town of Caernarfon—just southwest of Bangor—which was in a constituency of the same name.

The constituency was also bordered by Meirionnydd Nant Conwy to the south, and the insular constituency of Ynys Mon to the west.

Following the decisions of the Welsh Boundary Commission, the Conwy seat was significantly altered, forming the base of a new Aberconwy constituency established for the 2010 general election. Part of the constituency (notably Bangor) became part of the new Arfon constituency.

Profile

Although the constituency included a student population from the university, most of the voters were towards the older end of the age spectrum as it was a popular retirement area. The constituency was also linguistically diverse, with mainly English speakers in the east and mainly Welsh speakers in the west and inland areas.^{[citation needed]}

Members of Parliament

The last MP was Betty Williams of the Labour Party, who held the seat from 1997 (when she gained 35.04% of the vote—a 9.4% swing from the Conservatives) until its abolition in 2010. Williams increased her share of the vote in 2001 (by 6.8%), but it was reduced in 2005 (by 4.7%). She is also the first female MP to hold the seat. The seat was previously held (since its renaming in 1983) by Sir Wyn Roberts for the Conservative Party, who was first elected for Conway, the old anglicised name of the constituency, in 1970.

	Member^[1]	Party
1950	Elwyn Jones	Labour
1951	Peter Thomas	Conservative
1966	Ednyfed Hudson Davies	Labour
1970	Wyn Roberts	Conservative
1997	Betty Williams	Labour
2010	Constituency abolished: see Aberconwy

Elections

Elections in the 1950s

General election 1950: Conway
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Labour	Elwyn Jones	15,176	38.4
	Conservative	David Price-White	14,373	36.4
	Liberal	Emlyn Hooson	9,937	25.2
Majority			803	2.0
Turnout			39,486	84.6
	Labour win (new seat)

General election 1951: Conway
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Peter Thomas	17,115	43.4	+7.0
	Labour	Elwyn Jones	16,532	41.9	+4.5
	Liberal	Emlyn Hooson	5,791	14.7	−10.5
Majority			583	1.5	N/A
Turnout			39,438	84.9	+0.3
	Conservative gain from Labour		Swing

General election 1955: Conway
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Peter Thomas	18,705	48.2	+4.8
	Labour	Elwyn Jones	13,881	35.8	−6.1
	Liberal	Herbert Mostyn Lewis	3,217	8.2	−6.5
	Plaid Cymru	Ioan Bowen Rees	3,019	7.8	New
Majority			4,824	12.4	+11.9
Turnout			38,822
	Conservative hold		Swing

General election 1959: Conway
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Peter Thomas	17,795	47.1	−1.1
	Labour	Silvan Jones	13,260	35.1	−0.7
	Liberal	John H. Bellis	3,845	10.2	+2.0
	Plaid Cymru	Ioan Bowen Rees	2,852	7.6	−0.2
Majority			4,535	12.0	−0.4
Turnout			37,752
	Conservative hold		Swing

Elections in the 1960s

General election 1964: Conway^[2]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Peter Thomas	18,753	50.6	+3.5
	Labour	Gwilym Roberts	15,234	41.1	+6.0
	Plaid Cymru	Gwilym Hughes	3,058	8.3	+0.7
Majority			3,519	9.5	−2.5
Turnout			37,045	80.3
	Conservative hold		Swing

General election 1966: Conway
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Ednyfed Davies	18,203	47.5	+6.4
	Conservative	Peter Thomas	17,622	45.9	−4.7
	Plaid Cymru	Robert E. Jones	2,552	6.6	−1.7
Majority			581	1.6	N/A
Turnout			38,377	83.7	+3.4
	Labour gain from Conservative		Swing

Elections in the 1970s

General election 1970: Conway^[3]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Wyn Roberts	16,927	42.4	−3.5
	Labour	Ednyfed Davies	16,024	40.2	−7.3
	Plaid Cymru	Dafydd Elis-Thomas	4,311	10.8	+4.2
	Liberal	Elfyn Lloyd Morris	2,626	6.6	New
Majority			903	2.2	N/A
Turnout			48,662	82.0	−1.7
	Conservative gain from Labour		Swing

General election February 1974: Conway
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Wyn Roberts	16,763	40.2	−2.2
	Labour	David Benjamin Rees	12,214	29.3	−10.9
	Liberal	David Thomas Jones	8,546	20.4	+13.8
	Plaid Cymru	Pryce Michael Farmer	4,203	10.1	−0.7
Majority			4,549	10.9	+8.7
Turnout			41,726	81.2	−0.8
	Conservative hold		Swing

General election October 1974: Conway
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Wyn Roberts	15,614	39.6	−0.6
	Labour	David Benjamin Rees	12,808	32.5	+3.2
	Liberal	David Thomas Jones	6,344	16.1	−4.3
	Plaid Cymru	Pryce Michael Farmer	4,668	11.8	+1.7
Majority			2,806	7.1	−3.8
Turnout			39,434	76.2	−5.0
	Conservative hold		Swing

General election 1979: Conway
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Wyn Roberts	18,142	44.7	+5.1
	Labour	Gerson Wyn Davies	12,069	29.8	−2.7
	Liberal	Roger Roberts	6,867	16.9	+0.8
	Plaid Cymru	Emyr Price	3,497	8.6	−3.2
Majority			6,073	14.9	+7.8
Turnout			40,575	79.0	+2.8
	Conservative hold		Swing

Elections in the 1980s

General election 1983: Conwy^[4]^[5]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Wyn Roberts	16,413	41.7	−1.5
	Liberal	Roger Roberts	12,145	30.8	+12.6
	Labour	Ira Walters	6,731	17.1	−12.0
	Plaid Cymru	Dafydd Iwan	4,105	10.4	+0.8
Majority			4,268	10.8	−4.2
Turnout			39,394	76.4	−2.6
	Conservative hold		Swing

General election 1987: Conwy^[6]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Wyn Roberts	15,730	38.7	−3.0
	Liberal	Roger Roberts	12,706	31.2	+0.4
	Labour	Betty Williams	9,049	22.3	+5.2
	Plaid Cymru	Rhodri Davies	3,177	7.8	−2.6
Majority			3,024	7.5	−3.3
Turnout			40,662	77.8	+1.4
	Conservative hold		Swing

Elections in the 1990s

General election 1992: Conwy^[7]^[8]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Wyn Roberts	14,250	33.7	−5.0
	Liberal Democrats	Roger Roberts	13,255	31.4	+0.2
	Labour	Betty Williams	10,883	25.8	+3.5
	Plaid Cymru	Rhodri Davies	3,108	7.4	−0.4
	Ind. Conservative	Owen Wainwright	637	1.5	New
	Natural Law	David Hughes	114	0.3	New
Majority			995	2.3	−5.2
Turnout			42,247	78.7	+0.9
	Conservative hold		Swing	−2.5

General election 1997: Conwy^[9]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Betty Williams	14,561	35.0	+9.2
	Liberal Democrats	Roger Roberts	12,965	31.2	−0.2
	Conservative	David Jones	10,085	24.3	−9.4
	Plaid Cymru	Rhodri Davies	2,844	6.8	−0.6
	Referendum	Allan Barham	760	1.8	New
	Independent	Richard Bradley	250	0.6	New
	Natural Law	David Hughes	95	0.2	−0.1
Majority			1,596	3.8	N/A
Turnout			41,560	75.4	−3.3
	Labour gain from Conservative		Swing	+9.3

Elections in the 2000s

General election 2001: Conwy^[10]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Betty Williams	14,366	41.8	+6.8
	Conservative	David Logan	8,147	23.7	−0.6
	Liberal Democrats	Victoria MacDonald	5,800	16.9	−14.3
	Plaid Cymru	Ann Owen	5,665	16.5	+9.7
	UKIP	Allan Barham	388	1.1	New
Majority			6,219	18.1	+14.3
Turnout			34,366	62.9	−12.5
	Labour hold		Swing

In the 2005 general election, the seat was the 81st easiest seat for the Liberal Democrats to gain, and the 153rd easiest seat for the Conservative Party to gain. The Labour Party did not include the seat on its list of vulnerable seats and eventually held the seat (with a reduced proportion of the vote).

General election 2005: Conwy^[11]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Betty Williams	12,479	37.1	−4.7
	Conservative	Guto Bebb	9,398	27.9	+4.2
	Liberal Democrats	Gareth Roberts	6,723	20.0	+3.1
	Plaid Cymru	Paul Rowlinson	3,730	11.1	−5.4
	Green	Jim Killock	512	1.5	New
	Socialist Labour	David Jones	324	1.0	New
	UKIP	Ken Khambatta	298	0.9	−0.2
	Legalise Cannabis	Tim Evans	193	0.6	New
Majority			3,081	9.2	−8.9
Turnout			33,723	62.6	−0.3
	Labour hold		Swing	−4.5

Official declaration of result of the poll (in PDF)

References

^ Leigh Rayment's Historical List of MPs – Constituencies beginning with "C" (part 5)
^ Wales at Westminster a History of Parliamentary representation in Wales 1800–1979 Arnold J James and John E Thomas Gwasg Gomer 1981 ISBN 0-85088-684-8
^ Wales at Westminster a History of Parliamentary representation in Wales 1800–1979 Arnold J James and John E Thomas Gwasg Gomer 1981 ISBN 0-85088-684-8
^ "Election Data 1983". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
^ "1983: Wales Counties". Election Demon. Archived from the original on 8 August 2011. Retrieved 23 September 2013.
^ "Election Data 1987". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
^ "Election Data 1992". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
^ "Politics Resources". Election 1992. Politics Resources. 9 April 1992. Archived from the original on 24 July 2011. Retrieved 6 December 2010.
^ "Election Data 1997". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
^ "Election Data 2001". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
^ "Election Data 2005". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.

External links

Conwy UK Parliament constituency (boundaries April 1997 – April 2010) at MapIt UK

53°11′28″N 3°41′17″W / 53.191°N 3.688°W / 53.191; -3.688

[1] Leigh Rayment's Historical List of MPs – Constituencies beginning with "C" (part 5)

[2] Wales at Westminster a History of Parliamentary representation in Wales 1800–1979 Arnold J James and John E Thomas Gwasg Gomer 1981 ISBN 0-85088-684-8

[3] Wales at Westminster a History of Parliamentary representation in Wales 1800–1979 Arnold J James and John E Thomas Gwasg Gomer 1981 ISBN 0-85088-684-8

[electoralcalculus1983-4] "Election Data 1983". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.

[5] "1983: Wales Counties". Election Demon. Archived from the original on 8 August 2011. Retrieved 23 September 2013.

[electoralcalculus1987-6] "Election Data 1987". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.

[electoralcalculus1992-7] "Election Data 1992". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.

[8] "Politics Resources". Election 1992. Politics Resources. 9 April 1992. Archived from the original on 24 July 2011. Retrieved 6 December 2010.

[electoralcalculus1997-9] "Election Data 1997". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.

[electoralcalculus2001-10] "Election Data 2001". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.

[electoralcalculus2005-11] "Election Data 2005". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.

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