# Newham South (UK Parliament constituency)

Newham South was a parliamentary constituency in the London Borough of Newham, in east London. It returned one Member of Parliament (MP) to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom.

## History

The constituency was created for the February 1974 general election, and abolished for the 1997 general election.
The constituency shared boundaries with the Newham South electoral division for election of councillors to the Greater London Council at elections in 1973, 1977 and 1981.

## Boundaries

The constituency consisted of the southern portion of the London Borough of Newham, the wards of Beckton, Bemersyde, Canning Town and Grange, Custom House and Silvertown, Hudsons, Ordnance, Plaistow, and South. It included North Woolwich, which had previously been included in seats with the rest of Woolwich on the other side of the River Thames.

## Members of Parliament

| Election | Member | Party |
| Feb 1974 | Elwyn Jones | Labour |
| 1974 by-election | Nigel Spearing | Labour |
| 1997 | constituency abolished | constituency abolished |

## Election results
### Elections in the 1970s

General election February 1974: Newham South :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Elwyn Jones | 23,952 | 66.1 | |
| | Liberal | Ivor Shipley | 5,369 | 14.8 | |
| | Conservative | Frank Fox | 4,422 | 12.2 | |
| | National Front | Michael Lobb | 2,511 | 6.9 | |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 18,583 | 51.3 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 36,254 | 63.2 | |
| | Labour win (new seat) | Labour win (new seat) | Labour win (new seat) | Labour win (new seat) | Labour win (new seat) |
By-election 1974: Newham South :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Nigel Spearing | 9,321 | 62.6 | −3.5 |
| | Liberal | Ivor Shipley | 1,862 | 12.5 | −2.3 |
| | National Front | Michael Lobb | 1,713 | 11.5 | +3.6 |
| | Conservative | Frank Fox | 1,651 | 11.1 | −1.2 |
| | Independent Labour | Sydney South | 332 | 2.2 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 7,459 | 50.1 | −1.2 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 14,879 | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |
General election October 1974: Newham South :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Nigel Spearing | 21,332 | 69.3 | +3.2 |
| | Liberal | Ivor Shipley | 3,611 | 11.7 | −3.1 |
| | Conservative | A.D.C. Gemmill | 3,440 | 11.2 | −1.0 |
| | National Front | Oliver Bayly | 2,412 | 7.8 | +0.9 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 17,721 | 57.6 | +6.3 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 30,795 | 53.4 | −9.8 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | +3.2 | |
General election 1979: Newham South :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Nigel Spearing | 19,636 | 64.4 | −4.9 |
| | Conservative | Mary-Jo Elphicke | 6,863 | 22.5 | +11.3 |
| | Liberal | John Ozimek | 2,085 | 6.8 | −4.9 |
| | National Front | Ian Anderson | 1,899 | 6.2 | −1.6 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 12,773 | 41.9 | −15.7 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 30,483 | 57.1 | +3.7 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | −8.1 | |

### Elections in the 1980s

General election 1983: Newham South :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Nigel Spearing | 13,561 | 50.2 | −14.2 |
| | SDP | Andrew Reilly | 6,250 | 23.1 | +16.3 |
| | Conservative | Nicholas Thompson | 6,212 | 23.0 | +0.5 |
| | National Front | Ian Anderson | 993 | 3.7 | −2.5 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 7,311 | 27.1 | −13.2 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 27,016 | 53.6 | −3.5 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | −7.4 | |
General election 1987: Newham South :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Nigel Spearing | 12,935 | 43.5 | −6.7 |
| | Conservative | James Farrie | 10,169 | 34.2 | +11.2 |
| | SDP | Alex Kellaway | 6,607 | 22.2 | −0.9 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,766 | 9.3 | −17.8 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 29,711 | 59.1 | +5.5 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | −8.0 | |

### Elections in the 1990s

General election 1992: Newham South :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Nigel Spearing | 14,358 | 46.6 | +3.1 |
| | Conservative | Jacqueline Foster | 11,856 | 38.5 | +4.3 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Alec Kellaway | 4,527 | 14.9 | −7.3 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,502 | 8.1 | −1.2 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 30,786 | 60.2 | +1.1 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | −0.6 | |