Stourbridge (UK Parliament constituency)

Boundaries

Historic

1918–1950: The Municipal Borough of Stourbridge, the Urban Districts of Lye and Wollescote, and Oldbury, and the Rural District of Halesowen.

1997–2010: The Metropolitan Borough of Dudley wards of Amblecote, Lye and Wollescote, Norton, Pedmore and Stourbridge East, Quarry Bank and Cradley, and Wollaston and Stourbridge West.

2010–2024: The Metropolitan Borough of Dudley wards of Amblecote, Cradley and Foxcote, Lye and Wollescote, Norton, Pedmore and Stourbridge East, Quarry Bank and Dudley Wood, and Wollaston and Stourbridge Town.

Current

Under the 2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies which became effective for the 2024 general election, the constituency was defined as being composed of the following (as they existed on 1 December 2020):

• The Metropolitan Borough of Dudley wards of: Amblecote; Brierley Hill; Lye and Stourbridge North; Netherton, Woodside and St. Andrews; Norton; Pedmore and Stourbridge East; Wollaston and Stourbridge Town.

The seat was subject to significant boundary changes. These entailed the loss of the areas of Cradley, Wollescote, Quarry Bank and Dudley Wood which were moved to the new constituency of Halesowen, offset by the gain of Brierley Hill, Netherton and Woodside from the abolished constituency of Dudley South.

Further to a local government boundary review in Dudley which became effective from May 2024, the constituency now comprises the following from the 2024 general election:

• The Metropolitan Borough of Dudley wards of: Amblecote; Brierley Hill & Wordsley South; Lye & Stourbridge North; Netherton & Holly Hall; Norton; Pedmore & Stourbridge East; Wollaston & Stourbridge Town.

Stourbridge is one of three constituencies principally in the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley (alongside Dudley and Halesowen), covering the south-west of the borough.

Constituency profile

Much of the town consists of suburban streets, interspersed with green spaces, with the other settlements being contiguous. Stourbridge borders on green belt land, and is close to unspoiled countryside with rural Worcestershire, Staffordshire and Shropshire close by to the west. The Clent Hills, Kinver Edge and large areas of farmland lie to the south and west.

Workless claimants, registered jobseekers, were in November 2012 higher than the national average of 3.8%, at 4.8% of the population based on a statistical compilation by The Guardian.

History

;1918–1950

Stourbridge was one of just seventeen constituencies to have a woman candidate, Mary Macarthur, to contest the 1918 general election, the first occasion some women could vote and stand in Parliamentary elections. She stood as the Labour Party candidate. Macarthur was a trades union leader and well known in the area. However the returning officer insisted she should be listed under her married name, Mrs W. C. Anderson.

During this period no ministerial roles happened to have been awarded to any of the members. Prominent members in social history include Wilfred Wellock, who wrote 13 publications, and was an early Gandhian as well as a promoter of increased localism. At the end of this period, Lord Moyle (as he became) went on to serve Oldbury and Halesowen until 1964 and in the ballot for private member's bills achieved three to legislate in respect of:

• Humane Slaughter of Horses
• Air Pollution
• Children of the divorced (custody etc.) as recommended by the Royal Commission

The constituency was abolished in 1950, with the Stourbridge West and Stourbridge East wards being incorporated into the Dudley constituency. An Eastern section of the old constituency was included in the new Oldbury and Halesowen seat.

;1997–date Since its recreation in 1997, the seat has been a bellwether, elected an MP at each general election from the party that formed the Government.

The seat's forerunner, Halesowen and Stourbridge, created in 1974, was held by a Conservative and both of its replacements, including this seat, were taken by Labour in 1997. The smaller remainder of the eastern part of the predecessor forms part of Halesowen and Rowley Regis. To compensate for the loss of these areas, Amblecote ward was brought in from the Dudley West constituency, while the Quarry Bank & Cradley ward was brought in from Dudley East.

Labour retained the seat by just above a marginal majority at the general election in 2001, and retained it again in 2005, with a new candidate, Lynda Waltho, with a marginal majority of 1% of the vote.

Margot James regained the seat for the Conservatives at the 2010 election, retaining it with increased majorities in 2015 and 2017. James had the Conservative whip withdrawn in September 2019 and, although it was restored, she did not stand at the 2019 election and fellow Conservative Suzanne Webb was elected with over 60% of the vote.

In 2024, the seat reverted back to Labour with the election of Cat Eccles with a majority of 7.7%.

In 2015, Pete Lowe, Labour's parliamentary candidate for Stourbridge had his own beer brewed. 'Born Bred Believes' was brewed by Kinver Brewery in support of his candidacy.

Members of Parliament

MPs 1918–1950

MPs since 1997

Halesowen & Stourbridge, Dudley East and Dudley West prior to 1997

Elections

Elections in the 2020s

Elections in the 2010s

Elections in the 2000s

Elections in the 1990s

Elections in the 1940s

Electorate 97,095

General Election 1939–40: Another general election was required to take place before the end of 1940. The political parties had been making preparations for an election to take place from 1939 and by the end of this year, the following candidates had been selected;

• Conservative: Robert Morgan
• Liberal: Ralph Brown
• Labour: Wilfred Wellock

Elections in the 1930s

Electorate 80,598

Electorate 70,324

Elections in the 1920s

Elections in the 1910s

Notes

References

Sources

• {{cite book |author-link= F. W. S. Craig |orig-year=1969

References

1. (4 March 2011). "Electorate Figures – Boundary Commission for England". Boundary Commission for England.
2. "The Parliamentary Constituencies Order 2023".
3. "The 2023 Review of Parliamentary Constituency Boundaries in England – Volume one: Report – West Midlands {{!}} Boundary Commission for England".
4. LGBCE. "Dudley {{!}} LGBCE".
5. "Seat Details - Stourbridge".
6. [https://www.theguardian.com/news/datablog/2010/nov/17/unemployment-and-employment-statistics-economics Unemployment claimants by constituency] ''[[The Guardian]]''
7. Hallam, David J. A. [http://www.brewinbooks.com/taking_on_the_men ''Taking on the Men: the first women parliamentary candidates 1918''], Studley 2018, chapter 3 "Mary Macarthur in Stourbridge".
8. (2015-04-06). "Meet the only candidate in the election with his own election song AND his very own beer".
9. {{Rayment-hc. s. 5. (March 2012)
10. "Stourbridge". BBC News.
11. "Stourbridge Parliamentary constituency". BBC.
12. Bev Holder. (10 May 2017). "UKIP confirms General Election candidates for Stourbridge and Dudley South". Stourbridge News.
13. "Stourbridge results". [[BBC News]].
14. "Election Data 2015". [[Electoral Calculus]].
15. "Election Data 2010". [[Electoral Calculus]].
16. "Election Data 2005". [[Electoral Calculus]].
17. "Election Data 2001". [[Electoral Calculus]].
18. "Election Data 1997". [[Electoral Calculus]].
19. Craig, F. W. S. (1983). British parliamentary election results 1918–1949 (3 ed.). Chichester: Parliamentary Research Services. {{ISBN. 0-900178-06-X.
20. The Liberal Magazine, 1939
21. Report of the Annual Conference of the Labour Party, 1939
22. British parliamentary election results 1918–1949, Craig, F.W.S.