Bermondsey and Old Southwark (UK Parliament constituency)

Not to be confused with Southwark and Bermondsey (UK Parliament constituency).

Bermondsey and Old Southwark
Borough constituency
for the House of Commons
Outline map
Boundary of Bermondsey and Old Southwark in Greater London for the 2024 general election
CountyGreater London
Population126,522 (2011 census)[1]
Electorate70,602 (2023)[2]
Current constituency
Created2010
Member of ParliamentNeil Coyle (Labour)
SeatsOne
Created fromNorth Southwark and Bermondsey

Bermondsey and Old Southwark is a constituency[n 1] in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament. Since 2015, it has been represented by Neil Coyle, who was elected as a Labour MP but was suspended from the party from 2022 to 2023 following an accusation of racism.[3][4][n 2]

History and boundaries

Map
Map of boundaries from 2024

The seat was created for the 2010 general election, almost identical to North Southwark and Bermondsey seat previously held by Simon Hughes from the 1997 general election, on a review of parliamentary representation in London by the Boundary Commission for England facing very minor boundary changes.

The constituency lies within the London Borough of Southwark, which contains the Old Southwark area of the former Metropolitan Borough of Southwark and the neighbourhoods of Borough, London Bridge and Bankside. Within the constituency are Elephant and Castle, Walworth and Newington which were part of the old Metropolitan Borough. The eastern half of the seat includes Bermondsey and Rotherhithe which were part of the Metropolitan Borough of Bermondsey, and which had been a separate constituency also.

This seat is based on the 1997–2010 North Southwark and Bermondsey constituency. Following the 2002 redrawing of ward boundaries, parts of Faraday and Livesey wards that were part of North Southwark and Bermondsey transferred to Camberwell and Peckham.

2010-2024: The successor seat is made from the following electoral wards within the London Borough of Southwark: Cathedrals, Chaucer, East Walworth, Grange, Newington, Riverside, Rotherhithe, South Bermondsey, Surrey Docks.

2024-present: Following the 2023 periodic review of Westminster constituencies, enacted by the Parliamentary Constituencies Order 2023, from the 2024 general election, the constituency is composed of the following wards of the London Borough of Southwark (as they existed on 1 December 2020):

  • Borough & Bankside; Chaucer; London Bridge & West Bermondsey; North Bermondsey; Rotherhithe; St. George's; South Bermondsey; Surrey Docks.[5]

The contents reflect the new ward structure which became effective in May 2018. To bring the electorate within the permitted range, Newington was transferred to Vauxhall and Camberwell Green, and North Walworth was transferred to Peckham.

Constituency profile

Comprising the northern part of the London Borough of Southwark, the seat lies immediately to the south of the City of London.

The southern halves of the Thames crossings London Bridge and Tower Bridge are in the seat, as is the historic Southwark area, with its cathedral, the Globe Theatre and Borough Market. There is also extensive commercial development that has spilled over the river from the city, notably the Shard London Bridge.

To the east, the seat also includes the Rotherhithe peninsula, where contemporary housing now replaces former industrial areas, particularly around Canada Water and the neighbourhood of Bermondsey.

At its southern end, the seat includes parts of Walworth. Here the seat adjoins Camberwell and Peckham, one of the safest Labour seats in London.

The seat had remained a rare example of an inner London Liberal Democrat seat since Simon Hughes first won it in 1983, until he lost it at the 2015 general election to Labour.

Members of Parliament

Note: the first MP was elected for predecessor Bermondsey seats continuously from a by-election in 1983 until the seat was created in 2010: see the former constituency of North Southwark and Bermondsey.

Election Member Party
2010 Sir Simon Hughes Liberal Democrat
2015 Neil Coyle Labour
February 2022 Independent
May 2023 Labour

Elections

Bermondsey historical election results

Elections in the 2020s

General election 2024: Bermondsey and Old Southwark[6]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Neil Coyle 16,857 44.8 –4.8
Liberal Democrats Rachel Bentley 9,070 24.1 –7.0
Green Susan Hunter 4,477 11.9 N/A
Reform UK Tony Sharp 3,397 9.0 +6.6
Conservative Jonathan Iliff 2,879 7.7 –9.1
Independent Piers Corbyn 403 1.1 N/A
Independent Niko Omilana 273 0.7 N/A
Independent Barry Duckett 247 0.7 N/A
Majority 7,787 20.7 +2.2
Turnout 37,603 54.1 –10.9
Registered electors 69,473
Labour hold Swing Increase5.9%

Elections in the 2010s

2019 notional result[7]
Party Vote %
Labour 22,776 49.6
Liberal Democrats 14,261 31.1
Conservative 7,710 16.8
Brexit Party 1,113 2.4
Green 25 0.1
Turnout 45,885 65.0
Electorate 70,602
General election 2019: Bermondsey and Old Southwark[8]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Neil Coyle 31,723 54.1 +0.9
Liberal Democrats Humaira Ali 15,597 26.6 –4.5
Conservative Andrew Baker 9,678 16.5 +3.5
Brexit Party Alex Matthews 1,617 2.8 N/A
Majority 16,126 27.5 +5.3
Turnout 58,615 62.9 –4.2
Labour hold Swing +2.7
General election 2017: Bermondsey and Old Southwark[9][10]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Neil Coyle 31,161 53.2 +10.2
Liberal Democrats Simon Hughes 18,189 31.1 –3.3
Conservative Siobhan Baillie 7,581 13.0 +1.2
UKIP Elizabeth Jones 838 1.4 –4.9
Green John Tyson 639 1.1 –2.8
Independent James Clarke 113 0.2 N/A
Majority 12,972 22.2 +13.4
Turnout 58,521 67.0 +5.3
Labour hold Swing +6.7
General election 2015: Bermondsey and Old Southwark[11][12]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Neil Coyle 22,146 43.1 +13.8
Liberal Democrats Simon Hughes 17,657 34.3 –14.0
Conservative Jean-Paul Floru 6,051 11.8 –5.3
UKIP Andy Beadle 3,254 6.3 +6.0
Green Liam Lavin 2,023 3.9 +2.3
Left Unity Kingsley Abrams 142 0.3 N/A
Independent Lucy Hall 72 0.1 N/A
All People's Party Donald Cole 59 0.1 N/A
Republican Socialist Party Steve Freeman 20 0.0 N/A
Majority 4,489 8.7 N/A
Turnout 51,424 61.7 +4.2
Labour gain from Liberal Democrats Swing +13.9
See also: Opinion polling in United Kingdom constituencies, 2010–15 § Bermondsey and Old Southwark
General election 2010: Bermondsey and Old Southwark[13]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Liberal Democrats Simon Hughes 21,590 48.4 +0.8
Labour Co-op Val Shawcross 13,060 29.2 −2.4
Conservative Loanna Morrison 7,638 17.1 +4.1
BNP Stephen Tyler 1,370 3.1 N/A
Green Tom Chance 718 1.6 N/A
UKIP Alan Kirkby 155 0.3 N/A
Independent Steve Freeman 120 0.3 N/A
Majority 8,530 19.1 N/A
Turnout 44,651 57.5 N/A
Liberal Democrats win (new seat)

See also

Notes

  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

  1. ^ "Bermondsey and Old Southwark: Usual Resident Population, 2011". Neighbourhood Statistics. Office for National Statistics. Retrieved 28 January 2015.
  2. ^ "The 2023 Review of Parliamentary Constituency Boundaries in England – Volume two: Constituency names, designations and composition – London". Boundary Commission for England. Retrieved 19 June 2024.
  3. ^ "Neil Coyle: Labour readmits MP suspended over 'drunken abuse'". BBC News. 24 May 2023. Retrieved 24 May 2023.
  4. ^ Neilan, Catherine (11 February 2022). "Labour suspends Neil Coyle after racist comments to Insider reporter". Business Insider. Retrieved 11 February 2022.
  5. ^ "The Parliamentary Constituencies Order 2023". Schedule 1 Part 3 London region.
  6. ^ "Statement of Person Nominated and Notice of Poll: Bermondsey and Old Southwark Constituency" (PDF). Southwark Council. 7 June 2024.
  7. ^ "Notional results for a UK general election on 12 December 2019". Rallings & Thrasher, Professor David Denver (Scotland), Nicholas Whyte (NI) for Sky News, PA, BBC News and ITV News. UK Parliament. Retrieved 11 July 2024.
  8. ^ "UK Parliamentary General Election 2019". Southwark Council. Retrieved 19 November 2019.
  9. ^ "Bermondsey & Old Southwark parliamentary constituency". BBC News.
  10. ^ "General Election 2017: results and analysis" (PDF). House of Commons Library.
  11. ^ "Election Data 2015". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 17 October 2015. Retrieved 17 October 2015.
  12. ^ "Southwark Council download - General election - Bermondsey and Old Southwark - Council and democracy - Voting and elections". southwark.gov.uk. Southwark Council. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 18 August 2015.
  13. ^ "BBC News Election 2010 Constituency Bermondsey & Old Southwark". BBC News. 7 May 2010. Retrieved 7 May 2010.

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