Stepney
Former Borough constituency
for the House of Commons
1885–1918
Seatsone
Created fromTower Hamlets
1950–1974 (1974)
Seatsone
Created fromLimehouse, Mile End and Whitechapel and St George's
Replaced byStepney and Poplar

Stepney was a parliamentary constituency centred on the Stepney district of the East End of London. It returned one Member of Parliament (MP) to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, elected by the first past the post system.

History

The constituency existed for two separate periods:

Boundaries

Stepney in the Metropolitan area, boundaries 1885–1918
Stepney in the County of London, boundaries 1950–74

The constituency was first created in 1885, as a division of the parliamentary borough of Tower Hamlets, centred on the Stepney neighbourhood in the East End of London. The area was administered as part of the Tower division of the county of Middlesex.

In 1889 there were administrative changes. The territory of the constituency was severed from Middlesex and included in the new County of London. The lower tier of local government in the area continued to be administered by parish vestries and local boards of works.

In 1900 local government in London was rationalised. The Stepney Board of Works was abolished and the civil parish of Stepney became part of a larger Metropolitan Borough of Stepney.

In the redistribution of parliamentary seats in 1918, the Metropolitan Borough was divided between three constituencies - Limehouse, Mile End and Whitechapel and St George's. The previous Stepney constituency was abolished and largely replaced by Whitechapel and St George's.

In the next major redistribution of parliamentary seats, which took effect for the 1950 United Kingdom general election, the Stepney constituency was re-created. The 1950 version of the seat comprised the whole of the Metropolitan Borough of Stepney.

In 1965 Stepney became part of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets and Greater London. When parliamentary constituencies were next redistributed, for the February 1974 general election, the area was included in the Stepney and Poplar seat.

Members of Parliament

MPs 1885–1918

Election Member Party
1885 John Charles Durant Liberal
1886 Frederick Wootton Isaacson Conservative
1898 W. C. Steadman Liberal
1900 William Evans-Gordon Conservative
1907 Frederick Leverton Harris Conservative
1910 Dec. William Glyn-Jones Liberal
1918 constituency abolished

MPs 1950–1974

Constituency re-established 1950

Election Member Party
1950 Walter Edwards Labour
1964 Peter Shore Labour
Feb 1974 constituency abolished

Elections

Elections in the 1970s

General election 1970: Stepney
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Peter Shore 18,993 74.8 -1.3
Conservative Harry Greenway 4,922 19.4 +2.8
Communist Solly Kaye 1,468 5.8 -1.5
Majority 14,071 55.4 -4.1
Turnout 25,383 44.9 -5.8
Labour hold Swing

Elections in the 1960s

General election 1966: Stepney
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Peter Shore 23,098 76.1 +4.7
Conservative Beryl Phyllis Cooper 5,049 16.6 -4.1
Communist Solly Kaye 2,209 7.3 -0.6
Majority 18,049 59.5 +8.8
Turnout 30,356 50.7 -0.6
Labour hold Swing
General election 1964: Stepney
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Peter Shore 22,184 71.4 +0.7
Conservative Ian F Hay Davison 6,466 20.7 -1.9
Communist Solly Kaye 2,454 7.9 +1.2
Majority 15,818 50.7 +2.5
Turnout 31,104 51.3 -7.9
Labour hold Swing

Elections in the 1950s

General election 1959: Stepney
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Walter Edwards 26,875 70.7 -2.3
Conservative P Brian Calwell 8,566 22.6 +7.5
Communist Solly Kaye 2,548 6.7 -0.9
Majority 18,309 48.2 -9.7
Turnout 37,989 59.4 +1.6
Labour hold Swing
General election 1955: Stepney
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Walter Edwards 27,677 73.0 -3.5
Conservative Lillian F Sutton 5,733 15.1 -1.1
Communist Solly Kaye 2,888 7.6 +0.3
Liberal Fred Winckless 1,615 4.3 New
Majority 21,944 57.9 -2.4
Turnout 37,913 57.8 -13.1
Labour hold Swing
General election 1951: Stepney
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Walter Edwards 35,849 76.5 +6.5
Conservative Martin Herbert Bernhard Solomon 7,586 16.2 +3.1
Communist Ted Bramley 3,436 7.3 -5.2
Majority 28,263 60.3 +3.4
Turnout 46,871 70.9 -1.6
Labour hold Swing
General election 1950: Stepney
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Walter Edwards 33,475 70.0
Conservative Martin Herbert Bernhard Solomon 6,238 13.1
Communist Phil Piratin 5,991 12.5
Liberal John Henry Maynard 2,105 4.4
Majority 27,237 56.9
Turnout 47,809 72.5
Labour win (new seat)

Elections in the 1910s

WS Glyn-Jones
General election December 1910: Tower Hamlets, Stepney[1]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Liberal William Glyn-Jones 1,926 51.5 +4.5
Conservative Walter Preston 1,812 48.5 −4.5
Majority 114 3.0 N/A
Turnout 3,738 80.3 −4.9
Registered electors 4,653
Liberal gain from Conservative Swing +4.5
General election January 1910: Tower Hamlets, Stepney[1]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Frederick Leverton Harris 2,102 53.0 −4.3
Liberal William Glyn-Jones 1,861 47.0 +4.3
Majority 241 6.0 −8.6
Turnout 3,963 85.2 +1.3
Registered electors 4,653
Conservative hold Swing −4.3

Elections in the 1900s

1907 Stepney by-election[1]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Frederick Leverton Harris 2,299 63.0 +5.7
Lib-Lab Ben Cooper 1,350 37.0 −5.7
Majority 949 26.0 +11.4
Turnout 3,649 64.9 −19.0
Registered electors 5,621
Conservative hold Swing +5.7
General election 1906: Tower Hamlets, Stepney[1]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative William Evans-Gordon 2,490 57.3 −4.5
Liberal Durham Stokes 1,853 42.7 +4.5
Majority 637 14.6 −9.0
Turnout 4,343 83.9 +7.3
Registered electors 5,176
Conservative hold Swing -4.5
General election 1900: Tower Hamlets, Stepney[1]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative William Evans-Gordon 2,783 61.8 +6.2
Lib-Lab W. C. Steadman 1,718 38.2 −6.2
Majority 1,065 23.6 +12.4
Turnout 4,501 76.6 +6.8
Registered electors 5,878
Conservative hold Swing +6.2

Elections in the 1890s

Steadman
By-election, 9 Mar 1898: Tower Hamlets, Stepney[1]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Lib-Lab W. C. Steadman 2,492 50.2 +5.8
Conservative William Evans-Gordon 2,472 49.8 −5.8
Majority 20 0.4 N/A
Turnout 4,964 77.7 +7.9
Registered electors 6,387
Lib-Lab gain from Conservative Swing +5.8
Dickinson
General election 1895: Tower Hamlets, Stepney[1]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Frederick Isaacson 2,346 55.6 +4.6
Liberal Willoughby Dickinson 1,876 44.4 −4.6
Majority 470 11.2 +9.2
Turnout 4,222 69.8 −4.3
Registered electors 6,048
Conservative hold Swing +4.6
Isaacson
General election 1892: Tower Hamlets, Stepney[1]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Frederick Isaacson 2,292 51.0 −5.3
Liberal Benjamin Thomas Lindsay Thomson 2,203 49.0 +5.3
Majority 89 2.0 −10.6
Turnout 4,495 74.1 +16.7
Registered electors 6,069
Conservative hold Swing -5.3

Elections in the 1880s

General election 1886: Tower Hamlets, Stepney[1]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Frederick Isaacson 2,237 56.3 +6.4
Liberal Robert Samuel Wright[2] 1,735 43.7 −6.4
Majority 502 12.6 N/A
Turnout 3,972 57.4 −1.5
Registered electors 6,925
Conservative gain from Liberal Swing +6.6
General election 1885: Tower Hamlets, Stepney[1]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Liberal John Durant 2,045 50.1
Conservative Frederick Isaacson 2,035 49.9
Majority 10 0.2
Turnout 4,080 58.9
Registered electors 6,925
Liberal win (new seat)

The initial count for this election had Durant on 2,141 votes and Isaacson on 2,119 votes; a re-count then led to Durant on 2,052 votes and Isaacson on 2,051 votes. Further scrutiny then led to the above results.[1]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Craig, FWS, ed. (1974). British Parliamentary Election Results: 1885-1918. London: Macmillan Press. ISBN 9781349022984.
  2. ^ "Stepney Division". East London Observer. 14 August 1886. p. 4. Retrieved 11 December 2017 – via British Newspaper Archive.
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