It was initially a safe seat for the Labour Party, held continuously by the party until 1983, when major boundary changes made the seat much more favourable to the Conservatives,[2] who then held the seat from 1983 to 1997. The Labour member from 1997 to 2009 was Dr Ian Gibson, who resigned as an MP with immediate effect on 5 June 2009 after being implicated in the expenses scandal. A by-election was held to replace him on 23 July 2009,[3] which was won by the Conservative Chloe Smith. Chloe Smith has retained the seat in the 2010, 2015, 2017 and 2019 general elections, achieving over 50% of the vote for the first time in 2019. Smith has announced her intention to stand down from Parliament at the next general election.[4]
Boundaries and boundary changesedit
1950–1951edit
The County Borough of Norwich wards of Catton, Coslany, Fye Bridge, Heigham, Hellesdon, Mousehold, Thorpe, and Westwick.[5]
1951–1974edit
The County Borough of Norwich wards of Catton, Coslany, Fye Bridge, Heigham, Hellesdon, Mousehold, Thorpe, and Westwick; and
The part of the civil parish of Thorpe-next-Norwich in the Rural District of Blofield and Flegg, and the part of the parish of Sprowston in the Rural District of St Faiths and Aylsham, added to the County Borough of Norwich by the Norwich Extension Act 1950.[6]
Minor expansion of boundaries under the provisions of Statutory Instrument 1951/325.[7]
1974–1983edit
The County Borough of Norwich wards of Catton, Coslany, Crome, Heigham, Hellesdon, Mancroft, Mousehold, and Thorpe.[8]
Further to the Second Periodic Review of Westminster Constituencies a redistribution of seats was enacted in 1970. However, in the case of the two Norwich constituencies, this was superseded before the February 1974 general election by the Parliamentary Constituencies (Norwich) Order 1973 which followed on from a revision of the County Borough of Norwich wards in 1971, resulting in a realignment of the boundary with Norwich South.
1983–1997edit
The District of Broadland wards of Catton, Hellesdon North, Hellesdon South East, Hellesdon West, Sprowston Central, Sprowston East, Sprowston South, Sprowston West, Thorpe St Andrew North East, Thorpe St Andrew North West, and Thorpe St Andrew South; and
The City of Norwich wards of Catton Grove, Coslany, Crome, Mile Cross, and Mousehold.[9]
The District of Broadland wards of Catton, Drayton, Hellesdon North, Hellesdon South East, Hellesdon West, Sprowston Central, Sprowston East, Sprowston South, Sprowston West, Taverham, Thorpe St Andrew North East, Thorpe St Andrew North West, and Thorpe St Andrew South; and
The City of Norwich wards of Catton Grove, Coslany, Crome, Mile Cross, and Mousehold.[10]
The District of Broadland wards of Hellesdon North West, Hellesdon South East, Old Catton and Sprowston West, Sprowston Central, Sprowston East, Thorpe St Andrew North West, and Thorpe St Andrew South East; and
The City of Norwich wards of Catton Grove, Crome, Mile Cross, and Sewell.[11]
Drayton and Taverham were transferred back out, to the new constituency of Broadland. In Norwich, the part of the Crome ward around Morse Road moved to Norwich North, while the area around Mousehold Street in Thorpe Hamlet became part of Norwich South.
Following their review of parliamentary constituencies in Norfolk that concluded in 2007 and came into effect for the 2010 general election, the Boundary Commission for England created a slightly modified Norwich North constituency. The changes were necessary to re-align the constituency boundaries with the new local government ward boundaries introduced in Broadland and Norwich and to take account of Norfolk being awarded an additional, ninth constituency by the Boundary Commission.
^A county constituency (for the purposes of election expenses and type of returning officer)
^As with all constituencies, the constituency elects one Member of Parliament (MP) by the first past the post system of election at least every five years.
Referencesedit
^"Electorate Figures – Boundary Commission for England". 2011 Electorate Figures. Boundary Commission for England. 4 March 2011. Archived from the original on 6 November 2010. Retrieved 13 March 2011.
^Waller, Robert; Criddle, Byron (2007). The Almanac of British Politics (8th ed.). UK: Routledge. p. 718. ISBN 978-0-415-37823-9.
^"MP quitting to force by-election". BBC News. 5 June 2009.
^"Ex-Cabinet minister Chloe Smith to stand down as MP at next election". Redditch Advertiser. 22 November 2022.
^"Representation of the People Act, 1948". www.legislation.gov.uk. Retrieved 14 March 2019.
^"The Parliamentary Constituencies (England) Order 1970". www.legislation.gov.uk. Retrieved 14 March 2019.
^S., Craig, Fred W. (1972). Boundaries of parliamentary constituencies 1885-1972;. Chichester: Political Reference Publications. ISBN 0900178094. OCLC 539011.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
^"The Parliamentary Constituencies (Norwich) Order 1973". www.legislation.gov.uk. Retrieved 14 March 2019.
^"The Parliamentary Constituencies (England) Order 1983". www.legislation.gov.uk. Retrieved 15 March 2019.
^"The Parliamentary Constituencies (England) Order 1995". www.legislation.gov.uk. Retrieved 15 March 2019.
^"The Parliamentary Constituencies (England) Order 2007". www.legislation.gov.uk. Retrieved 15 March 2019.
^"The Parliamentary Constituencies Order 2023". Schedule I Part 2 Eastern region.
^Leigh Rayment's Historical List of MPs – Constituencies beginning with "N" (part 3)
^"Full list of all Green Party candidates at the next general election". Bright Green. Retrieved 21 December 2023.
^"Labour selects Alice Macdonald as new Norwich North candidate". Norfolk Live. Retrieved 2 December 2023.
^"Find My PPC (Eastern England)" (PDF). Reform UK. Retrieved 15 December 2023.
^"Tory MP candidate resigns just THREE WEEKS after being selected". Eastern Daily Press. 22 November 2023. Retrieved 2 December 2023.
^"Norwich North Parliamentary constituency". BBC News. BBC. Retrieved 19 November 2019.
^Grimmer, Dan. "UKIP announce they will not have Norwich general election candidates and urge supporters to 'lend' votes to Conservatives". Eastern Daily Press.
^"Election Data 2015". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 17 October 2015. Retrieved 17 October 2015.
^"Norwich_North_Statement_Notice_of_Poll.pdf" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 16 April 2015. Retrieved 11 April 2015.
^"Election Data 2010". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 26 July 2013. Retrieved 17 October 2015.
^Sparrow, Andrew (24 July 2009). "Norwich North byelection results – live". The Guardian. London.
^"Election Data 2005". 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 1997". 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.
^"UK General Election results April 1992". Richard Kimber's Political Science Resources. Politics Resources. 9 April 1992. Archived from the original on 8 May 2015. Retrieved 6 December 2010.
^"Election Data 1987". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.