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Southampton Test

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Southampton Test
Borough constituency
for the House of Commons
Map
Boundaries since 2010
Map of constituency
Boundary of Southampton Test in South East England
CountyHampshire
Electorate69,960 (2023)[1]
Major settlementsSouthampton
Current constituency
Created1950
Member of ParliamentSatvir Kaur (Labour)
SeatsOne
Created fromSouthampton

Southampton Test is a constituency[n 1] represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament by Satvir Kaur, a member of the Labour Party, since 2024.[n 2]

Constituency profile

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Port of Southampton

Southampton Test is a constituency in Hampshire in South East England. It covers the northern and western suburbs of the city of Southampton, including Northam, Nicholstown, Bevois Valley, Portswood, St Denys, Highfield, Shirley, Freemantle, Regents Park, Millbrook, Redbridge, Maybush, Lordshill and Lordswood. The constituency is named after the River Test which forms part of its western boundary.

Southampton is a port city on England's south coast and is a major commercial centre for freight and cruise shipping; the RMS Titanic departed from the city on its final journey. This constituency contains the Port of Southampton, the UK's second-busiest container terminal.[2] Southampton Test contains a variety of neighbourhood types; Northam and Nicholstown are highly-deprived, inner-city areas where most residents live in dense flats or terraces, Shirley and Highfield are affluent and suburban in character, and Redbridge and Maybush contain high quantities of low-income council housing where many properties are socially rented.[3][4] House prices across the constituency are generally lower than the UK average and considerably lower than the rest of South East England.[5]

Southampton Test has a low proportion of retirees and a large student population;[6] the University of Southampton, which has around 26,000 students,[7] and its affiliated Southampton General Hospital are located here. Residents have average rates of income, low levels of homeownership,[5] and above-average rates of child poverty.[8] They have average levels of education and a high proportion work in the health, education and transport sectors.[5][9] The percentage of residents claiming unemployment benefits is high.[8] White people made up 77% of the population at the 2021 census, around one-fifth of whom were of non-British origin including a large Polish community. Asians were the largest ethnic minority group at 13%.[10]

At the local city council, most of the constituency is represented by the Labour Party, with some Green Party councillors elected close to the university and Reform UK representatives elected in the more deprived western suburbs. An estimated 51% of voters in Southampton Test supported leaving the European Union in the 2016 referendum, similar to the UK-wide figure of 52%.[5]

History

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The constituency was created for the 1950 general election, when the previous two-member Southampton constituency was abolished. The boundaries of the seat have changed at most of the Boundary Commissions' periodic reviews.

Horace King, the MP between 1950 and 1955, before switching to the neighbouring seat of Southampton Itchen, would later become the first Speaker of the House of Commons from the Labour Party. The seat was contested unsuccessfully in 1955 and 1959 respectively by Anthony Crosland and Shirley Williams, who would both later be elected for other seats and become prominent ministers in the Labour governments of the 1960s and 1970s.

Southampton Test proved to be a bellwether (mirroring the national result) from 1966 until 2010, with the exception of the minority government of Harold Wilson from February to October 1974 (see third Wilson ministry).

In the 2010 general election, Alan Whitehead for Labour performed better here than John Denham in Southampton Itchen, the other Southampton seat, which the party also held more narrowly that year. The area from 2010 to 2015 was one of four Labour seats in South East England and from 2017 to 2019 among two of eighteen in Hampshire won by Labour candidates.[11] Whitehead was re-elected in 2017 with a majority of over 10,000 votes, and in 2019 over 6,000, making Southampton Test a relatively comfortable Labour seat. Whitehead did not stand at the 2024 general election;[12] he was succeeded by fellow Labour Party member, Satvir Kaur, with a majority of over 9,000.

Boundaries

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Historic

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1950–1955: The County Borough of Southampton wards of All Saints, Banister, Freemantle, Millbrook, St Nicholas, Shirley, and Town; and the (civil) Parish of Millbrook (which was then in the Romsey and Stockbridge Rural District).[13]

1955–1983: The County Borough of Southampton wards of Banister, Bargate, Bassett, Coxford, Freemantle, Millbrook, Portswood, Redbridge, and Shirley.

1983–1997: The City of Southampton wards of Bassett, Coxford, Freemantle, Millbrook, Portswood, Redbridge, and Shirley.

1997–2010: The City of Southampton wards of Coxford, Freemantle, Millbrook, Portswood, Redbridge, St Luke's, and Shirley.[14]

2010–2023 The City of Southampton wards of Bevois, Coxford, Freemantle, Millbrook, Portswood, Redbridge, and Shirley.

Current

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Following a review of local authority ward boundaries, which became effective in May 2023,[15][16] the constituency now comprises the following:

  • The City of Southampton wards of: Banister & Polygon (majority); Bevois; Coxford; Freemantle; Millbrook; Portswood; Redbridge; Shirley; Swaythling (small part).[17]

The 2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies, which was based on the ward structure in place at 1 December 2020, left the boundaries unchanged.[18]

The constituency is bounded to the east by Southampton Itchen, to the north by Romsey and Southampton North and to the west by New Forest East.

Members of Parliament

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Southampton prior to 1950

ElectionMember[19] Party
1950 Horace King Labour
1955 John Howard Conservative
1964 John Fletcher-Cooke Conservative
1966 Bob Mitchell Labour
1970 James Hill Conservative
October 1974 Bryan Gould Labour
1979 James Hill Conservative
1997 Alan Whitehead Labour
2024 Satvir Kaur Labour

Elections

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Election results 1950-2024

Elections in the 2020s

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General election 2024: Southampton Test[20]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Satvir Kaur 15,945 44.5 −5.0
Conservative Ben Burcombe-Filer 6,612 18.5 −17.2
Reform John Edwards 5,261 14.7 +11.2
Green Katherine Barbour 3,594 10.0 +6.8
Liberal Democrats Thomas Gravatt 3,252 9.1 +1.4
Workers Party Wajahat Shaukat 775 2.2 N/A
TUSC Maggie Fricker 366 1.0 N/A
Majority 9,333 26.0 +12.2
Turnout 35,805 54.7 –9.6
Registered electors 65,520
Labour hold Swing Increase6.1

Elections in the 2010s

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General election 2019: Southampton Test[21]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Alan Whitehead 22,256 49.5 −9.2
Conservative Steven Galton 16,043 35.7 +1.6
Liberal Democrats Joe Richards 3,449 7.7 +3.7
Brexit Party Philip Crook 1,591 3.5 N/A
Green Katherine Barbour 1,433 3.2 N/A
Independent Kev Barry 222 0.5 N/A
Majority 6,213 13.8 −10.8
Turnout 44,994 64.2 −2.6
Labour hold Swing -5.4
General election 2017: Southampton Test
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Alan Whitehead 27,509 58.7 +17.4
Conservative Paul Holmes 16,006 34.1 +1.6
Liberal Democrats Thomas Gravatt 1,892 4.0 −0.9
Southampton Independents Andrew Pope 816 1.7 N/A
Independent Keith Morrell 680 1.4 N/A
Majority 11,508 24.6 +15.8
Turnout 46,908 66.8 +4.7
Labour hold Swing +7.9
General election 2015: Southampton Test[22][23]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Alan Whitehead 18,017 41.3 +2.8
Conservative Jeremy Moulton 14,207 32.5 −0.5
UKIP Pearline Hingston 5,566 12.8 +8.9
Green Angela Mawle 2,568 5.9 +3.9
Liberal Democrats Adrian Ford 2,121 4.9 −17.4
Independent Chris Davis 770 1.8 N/A
TUSC Nick Chaffey 403 0.9 N/A
Majority 3,810 8.8 +3.3
Turnout 43,652 62.1 +0.7
Labour hold Swing +1.7
General election 2010: Southampton Test[24][25]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Alan Whitehead 17,001 38.5 −5.7
Conservative Jeremy Moulton 14,588 33.0 +8.0
Liberal Democrats Dave Callaghan 9,865 22.3 −1.8
UKIP Pearline Hingston 1,726 3.9 +0.9
Green Chris Bluemel 881 2.0 −1.6
Majority 2,413 5.5 −11.3
Turnout 44,187 61.4 +5.4
Labour hold Swing −6.9

Elections in the 2000s

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General election 2005: Southampton Test[26]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Alan Whitehead 17,845 42.7 −9.8
Conservative Stephen MacLoughlin 10,827 25.9 +0.4
Liberal Democrats Steve Sollitt 10,368 24.8 +6.7
Green John Spottiswoode 1,482 3.5 N/A
UKIP Peter Day 1,261 3.0 +1.1
Majority 7,018 16.8 −10.2
Turnout 41,783 53.7 −2.6
Labour hold Swing −5.1
General election 2001: Southampton Test[27]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Alan Whitehead 21,824 52.5 −1.6
Conservative Richard Gueterbock 10,617 25.5 −2.6
Liberal Democrats John Shaw 7,522 18.1 +4.4
UKIP Garry Rankin-Moore 792 1.9 +1.5
Socialist Alliance Mark Abel 442 1.1 N/A
Socialist Labour Paramjit Bahia 378 0.9 N/A
Majority 11,207 27.0 +1.0
Turnout 41,575 56.3 −15.6
Labour hold Swing

Elections in the 1990s

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General election 1997: Southampton Test[28]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Alan Whitehead 28,396 54.1 +11.7
Conservative James Hill 14,712 28.1 −15.3
Liberal Democrats Alan Dowden 7,171 13.7 +0.6
Referendum Peter Day 1,397 2.7 N/A
Legalise Cannabis Howard Marks 388 0.7 N/A
UKIP Anthony McCabe 219 0.4 N/A
Independent Paul Taylor 81 0.2 N/A
Natural Law John Sinel 77 0.1 N/A
Majority 13,684 26.0 N/A
Turnout 52,441 71.9 −5.5
Labour gain from Conservative Swing +13.5
General election 1992: Southampton Test[29][30]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative James Hill 24,504 43.4 −2.2
Labour Alan Whitehead 23,919 42.4 +9.1
Liberal Democrats Diana Maddock 7,391 13.1 −8.1
Green Jonathan M. Michaelis 535 0.9 N/A
Natural Law David Plummer 101 0.2 N/A
Majority 585 1.0 −11.3
Turnout 56,450 77.4 +1.0
Conservative hold Swing −5.6

Elections in the 1980s

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General election 1987: Southampton Test[31]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative James Hill 25,722 45.6 +0.4
Labour Alan Whitehead 18,768 33.3 +5.2
Liberal Vivienne Rayner 11,950 21.2 −5.5
Majority 6,954 12.3 −4.8
Turnout 56,440 76.4 +3.3
Conservative hold Swing -2.4
General election 1983: Southampton Test[32]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative James Hill 24,657 45.2
Labour Alan Whitehead 15,311 28.1
SDP Adrian Vinson 14,592 26.7
Majority 9,346 17.1
Turnout 54,560 73.1 −3.2
Conservative hold Swing

Elections in the 1970s

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General election 1979: Southampton Test
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative James Hill 27,198 46.36
Labour Bryan Gould 25,075 42.74
Liberal D. Hughes 6,393 10.90
Majority 2,123 3.62 N/A
Turnout 58,666 76.30
Conservative gain from Labour Swing
General election October 1974: Southampton Test
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Bryan Gould 22,780 42.17
Conservative James Hill 22,250 41.19
Liberal J.R. Wallis 8,994 16.65
Majority 530 0.98 N/A
Turnout 54,024 73.11
Labour gain from Conservative Swing
General election February 1974: Southampton Test
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative James Hill 23,742 40.88
Labour Bryan Gould 22,339 38.46
Liberal J.R. Wallis 12,000 20.66
Majority 1,403 2.42
Turnout 58,081 79.21
Conservative hold Swing
General election 1970: Southampton Test[33]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative James Hill 24,660 47.54
Labour Bob Mitchell 22,858 44.07
Liberal Jack Wallis 4,349 8.38
Majority 1,802 3.47 N/A
Turnout 51,867 73.33
Conservative gain from Labour Swing

Elections in the 1960s

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General election 1966: Southampton Test[34]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Bob Mitchell 24,628 48.37
Conservative John Fletcher-Cooke 22,188 43.58
Liberal Graham Cleverley 4,102 8.06 N/A
Majority 2,440 4.79 N/A
Turnout 51,918 78.13
Labour gain from Conservative Swing
General election 1964: Southampton Test[35]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative John Fletcher-Cooke 25,700 50.34
Labour Bob Mitchell 25,352 49.66
Majority 348 0.68
Turnout 51,052 76.69
Conservative hold Swing

Elections in the 1950s

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General election 1959: Southampton Test[36]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative John Howard 30,176 56.31
Labour Shirley Williams 23,410 43.69
Majority 6,766 12.62
Turnout 53,586 79.88
Conservative hold Swing
General election 1955: Southampton Test[37]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative John Howard 26,707 51.21
Labour Anthony Crosland 22,865 43.84
Liberal Stanley Little 2,583 4.95 N/A
Majority 3,842 7.37 N/A
Turnout 52,155 78.72
Conservative gain from Labour Swing
General election 1951: Southampton Test[38]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Horace King 26,430 50.44
National Liberal John Paul 25,965 49.56
Majority 465 0.88
Turnout 52,395 83.52
Labour hold Swing
General election 1950: Southampton Test[39]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Horace King 25,052 47.08
National Liberal P. Brembridge 23,663 45.15
Liberal Stephen Fry 3,697 7.05
Majority 1,389 1.93
Turnout 52,412 84.39
Labour win (new seat)

See also

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Notes

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  1. ↑ A borough constituency (for the purposes of election expenses and type of returning officer)
  2. ↑ 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.

References

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  1. ↑ "The 2023 Review of Parliamentary Constituency Boundaries in England – Volume two: Constituency names, designations and composition – South East". Boundary Commission for England. Retrieved 13 June 2024.
  2. ↑ "DP World acquires Southampton port operator". Middle East Economic Digest. 11 March 2015. Retrieved 13 August 2023.
  3. ↑ "Constituency data: Deprivation in England". commonslibrary.parliament.uk. Retrieved 1 July 2026.
  4. ↑ "Accommodation type - Census Maps, ONS". ons.gov.uk. Retrieved 1 August 2026.
  5. 1 2 3 4 "Seat Details - Southampton Test". electoralcalculus.co.uk. Retrieved 1 July 2026.
  6. ↑ "Constituency data: Population, by age". commonslibrary.parliament.uk. Retrieved 1 July 2026.
  7. ↑ "Where do HE students study?". Higher Education Statistics Agency. Students by HE provider: HE student enrolments by HE provider. Retrieved 27 January 2026.
  8. 1 2 "Constituency dashboard". House of Commons Library. Retrieved 1 July 2026.
  9. ↑ "Constituency data: businesses and industries". commonslibrary.parliament.uk. Retrieved 1 July 2026.
  10. ↑ "2021 census results: Ethnic groups in your constituency". commonslibrary.parliament.uk. 4 July 2024. Retrieved 1 July 2026.
  11. ↑ "South East Results after 84 of 84". BBC News.
  12. ↑ "Southampton Test Labour MP Alan Whitehead to step down". BBC News. 14 January 2022. Retrieved 5 July 2023.
  13. ↑ Representation of the People Act 1948, Sch. 1.
  14. ↑ The Parliamentary Constituencies (England) Order 1995, SI 1995 No 1626
  15. ↑ LGBCE. "Southampton | LGBCE". lgbce.org.uk. Retrieved 1 April 2024.
  16. ↑ "The Southampton (Electoral Changes) Order 2023".
  17. ↑ "New Seat Details – Southampton Test". electoralcalculus.co.uk. Retrieved 1 April 2024.
  18. ↑ "The Parliamentary Constituencies Order 2023". Schedule 1 Part 6 South East region.
  19. ↑ Leigh Rayment's Historical List of MPs – Constituencies beginning with "T" (part 1)
  20. ↑ Southampton Test
  21. ↑ "Southampton Test Parliamentary constituency". BBC News. Retrieved 27 November 2019.
  22. ↑ "Election Data 2015". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 17 October 2015. Retrieved 17 October 2015.
  23. ↑ "BBC NEWS – Election 2015 – Southampton Test". BBC News.
  24. ↑ "Election Data 2010". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 26 July 2013. Retrieved 17 October 2015.
  25. ↑ "BBC NEWS – Election 2010 – Southampton Test". BBC News.
  26. ↑ "Election Data 2005". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
  27. ↑ "Election Data 2001". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
  28. ↑ "Election Data 1997". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
  29. ↑ "Election Data 1992". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
  30. ↑ "Politics Resources". Election 1992. Politics Resources. 9 April 1992. Retrieved 6 December 2010.
  31. ↑ "Election Data 1987". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
  32. ↑ "Election Data 1983". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
  33. ↑ The Times' Guide to the House of Commons. 1970.
  34. ↑ The Times' Guide to the House of Commons. 1966.
  35. ↑ The Times' Guide to the House of Commons. 1964.
  36. ↑ The Times' Guide to the House of Commons. 1959.
  37. ↑ The Times' Guide to the House of Commons. 1955.
  38. ↑ The Times' Guide to the House of Commons. 1951.
  39. ↑ The Times' Guide to the House of Commons. 1950.
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50°56′N 1°25′W / 50.933°N 1.417°W / 50.933; -1.417

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