# Middlesbrough (UK Parliament constituency)

Middlesbrough was a parliamentary constituency in the United Kingdom, recreated in 1974, and represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament from 2012 until its abolition for the 2024 general election by Andy McDonald of the Labour Party. An earlier version of the seat existed between 1868 and 1918.
Under the 2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies, the seat was abolished. Subject to expansion to include the Borough of Stockton wards of Mandale & Victoria, and Stainsby Hill, it was replaced by the new Middlesbrough and Thornaby East constituency.

## History
### First creation

Parliament created this seat under the Representation of the People Act 1867 for the general election the next year, however the population expanded so was split into east/west areas in 1918. From 1950 until 1974, given intervening expansion of suburbs across the country, the Metropolitan Borough of Thornaby closer to Stockton on Tees was included in the Middlesbrough West constituency. Thornaby was enveloped into Teesside County Borough from 1974 and has not been part of the associated seats otherwise.

### Second creation – current

The seat was recreated on similar boundaries to those which existed immediately before 1918.

### Results of the winning party

The 2015 result made the seat the 36-safest of Labour's 232 seats by percentage of majority.
Since the constituency's re-creation in 1974, Middlesbrough has elected the Labour Party's candidate as its MP. In areas formerly part of Middlesbrough East, the MPs elected have been Labour since 1935.
Middlesbrough West took in rural and semi-rural areas outside the borough to the west, and was a marginal seat passing three times between the two largest parties after the Second World War, but a Liberal stronghold from 1918 until 1945; former soldier and iron and steel merchant Trevelyan Thomson ran unopposed at the polls for re-election in 1924.

### Opposition parties

The 2012 by-election and 2015 general election saw UKIP finish second. The Liberal Democrats fielded second-placed candidates in 2005 and 2010. The Conservatives did in all elections between the seat's revival and 2001, and returned to second place in 2017. The Green Party outpolled the Liberal Democrats in 2015 in a field of five parties' candidates standing — the two parties failed to achieve 5% of votes cast leading them to forfeit their deposits.

### Turnout

Turnout has ranged between 70.1% in 1987 and 48.8% in 2005.

## Boundaries

1868–1885: The township of Linthorpe, and so much of the townships of Middlesbrough, Ormesby, and Eston as lie to the north of the road leading from Eston towards Yarm.
1885–1918: The existing parliamentary borough, and so much of the municipal borough of Middlesbrough as was not already included in the parliamentary borough.
1974–1983: The County Borough of Teesside wards of Berwick Hills, Marton, North Ormesby, St Hilda's, Thorntree, and Tollesby.
1983–1997: The Borough of Middlesbrough wards of Acklam, Beckfield, Beechwood, Berwick Hills, Gresham, Grove Hill, Kirby, Linthorpe, North Ormesby, Pallister, Park, St Hilda's, Southfield, Thorntree, and Westbourne.
1997–2010: The Borough of Middlesbrough wards of Acklam, Ayresome, Beckfield, Beechwood, Berwick Hills, Brookfield, Gresham, Grove Hill, Kader, Kirby, Linthorpe, North Ormesby, Pallister, Park, St Hilda's, Southfield, Thorntree, and Westbourne.
2010–2024: The Borough of Middlesbrough wards of Acklam, Ayresome, Beckfield, Beechwood, Brookfield, Clairville, Gresham, Kader, Grove Hill, Linthorpe, Middlehaven, North Ormesby and Brambles Farm, Pallister Park, Thorntree, and University.
The boundaries of the constituency were loosely based on the pre-1968 County Borough of Middlesbrough boundaries; the exclusions are its Easterside and Park End Wards, instead in Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland.
2024: Constituency was abolished as a result of 2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies.

## Constituency profile

The constituency was mostly the urban city itself, largely in the sunset of its once world-leading steelmaking output. It suffers high unemployment and its adult population has mostly a low income; however, with modern advanced engineering, design and tourism, the city forms with nearby Redcar a bellwether for the North East region's economy firmly in the British forefront of a determined return to increasing national output. In November 2012, male and female unemployment (based on the more up-to-date claimant statistics) placed Middlesbrough topmost of 29 constituencies in the region, well ahead for example the City of Durham at the bottom of the list, with just 3.4% claimants whereas this area had 9.4% claimants.
In terms of housing stock, the authority is one of few authorities to see the proportion of detached and semi-detached homes increase (to 13.6% and 39.9%), in this instance this was coupled with a similar rise in flats to 11.9%, all at a loss to the share of terraced properties, down 4.7%.

## Members of Parliament
### MPs 1868–1918

| Year | Member | Party |
| 1868 | Henry Bolckow | Liberal |
| 1878 | Isaac Wilson | Liberal |
| 1892 | Havelock Wilson | Ind. Labour |
| 1893 | Havelock Wilson | Lib-Lab |
| 1900 | Samuel Sadler | Conservative |
| 1906 | Havelock Wilson | Liberal |
| 1910 | Penry Williams | Liberal |
| 1918 | Constituency abolished | Constituency abolished |

### MPs 1974–2024

| Election | Member | Party |
| Feb 1974 | Arthur Bottomley | Labour |
| 1983 | Stuart Bell | Labour |
| 2012 by-election | Andy McDonald | Labour |
| 2024 | Constituency abolished | Constituency abolished |

## Election results 1974–2024
### Elections in the 1970s

General election February 1974: Middlesbrough :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Arthur Bottomley | 27,324 | 66.3 | |
| | Conservative | Geoffrey Dickens | 13,915 | 33.7 | |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 13,409 | 32.6 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 41,239 | 69.4 | |
| | Labour win (new seat) | Labour win (new seat) | Labour win (new seat) | Labour win (new seat) | Labour win (new seat) |
General election October 1974: Middlesbrough :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Arthur Bottomley | 22,791 | 61.8 | −4.5 |
| | Conservative | Edward Leigh | 8,984 | 24.4 | −9.3 |
| | Liberal | Chris Foote Wood | 5,080 | 13.8 | N/A |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 13,807 | 37.4 | +4.8 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 36,855 | 61.2 | −8.2 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |
General election 1979: Middlesbrough :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Arthur Bottomley | 24,872 | 56.2 | −5.6 |
| | Conservative | C Fenwick | 13,463 | 30.4 | +6.0 |
| | Liberal | Peter Freitag | 4,023 | 9.1 | −4.7 |
| | Workers Revolutionary | M Simpson | 1,018 | 2.3 | N/A |
| | Independent Labour | J Wilcox | 861 | 2.0 | N/A |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 11,409 | 25.8 | −11.6 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 44,237 | 67.9 | +6.7 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |

### Elections in the 1980s

General election 1983: Middlesbrough :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Stuart Bell | 21,220 | 50.7 | |
| | Conservative | Lucille Campey | 11,551 | 27.6 | |
| | Liberal | David Sanders | 8,871 | 21.2 | |
| | Workers Revolutionary | M.A. Simpson | 207 | 0.5 | |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 9,669 | 23.1 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 41,849 | 66.4 | |
| | Labour win (new boundaries) | Labour win (new boundaries) | Labour win (new boundaries) | Labour win (new boundaries) | Labour win (new boundaries) |
General election 1987: Middlesbrough :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Stuart Bell | 25,747 | 59.7 | +9.0 |
| | Conservative | Robert Orr-Ewing | 10,789 | 25.0 | −2.6 |
| | Liberal | Philip Hawley | 6,594 | 15.3 | −5.9 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 14,958 | 34.7 | +11.6 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 43,130 | 71.0 | +4.6 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |

### Elections in the 1990s

General election 1992: Middlesbrough :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Stuart Bell | 26,343 | 64.1 | +4.4 |
| | Conservative | Paul R. Rayner | 10,559 | 25.7 | +0.7 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Rosamund Jordan | 4,201 | 10.2 | −5.1 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 15,784 | 38.4 | +3.7 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 41,103 | 69.8 | −1.2 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | +1.9 | |
General election 1997: Middlesbrough :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Stuart Bell | 32,925 | 71.4 | |
| | Conservative | Liam Benham | 7,907 | 17.2 | |
| | Liberal Democrats | Alison Charlesworth | 3,934 | 8.5 | |
| | Referendum | Robert Edwards | 1,331 | 2.9 | |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 25,018 | 54.2 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 46,097 | 65.0 | |
| | Labour win (new boundaries) | Labour win (new boundaries) | Labour win (new boundaries) | Labour win (new boundaries) | Labour win (new boundaries) |

### Elections in the 2000s

General election 2001: Middlesbrough :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Stuart Bell | 22,783 | 67.6 | −3.8 |
| | Conservative | Alex Finn | 6,453 | 19.1 | +1.9 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Keith Miller | 3,512 | 10.4 | +1.9 |
| | Socialist Alliance | Geoffrey Kerr-Morgan | 577 | 1.7 | N/A |
| | Socialist Labour | Kai Andersen | 392 | 1.2 | N/A |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 16,330 | 48.5 | −5.7 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 33,717 | 49.8 | −15.2 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |
General election 2005: Middlesbrough :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Stuart Bell | 18,562 | 57.8 | −9.8 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Joe Michna | 5,995 | 18.7 | +8.3 |
| | Conservative | Caroline Flynn-Macleod | 5,263 | 16.4 | −2.7 |
| | BNP | Ron Armes | 819 | 2.5 | N/A |
| | UKIP | Michael Landers | 768 | 2.4 | N/A |
| | Independent | Jackie Elder | 503 | 1.6 | N/A |
| | Independent | Derrick Arnott | 230 | 0.7 | N/A |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 12,567 | 39.1 | −9.4 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 32,140 | 48.8 | −1.0 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | −9.0 | |

### Elections in the 2010s

General election 2010: Middlesbrough :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Stuart Bell | 15,351 | 45.9 | |
| | Liberal Democrats | Chris Foote-Wood | 6,662 | 19.9 | |
| | Conservative | John Walsh | 6,283 | 18.8 | |
| | Independent | Joan McTigue | 1,969 | 5.9 | |
| | BNP | Michael Ferguson | 1,954 | 5.8 | |
| | UKIP | Robert Parker | 1,236 | 3.7 | |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 8,689 | 26.0 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 33,455 | 51.4 | |
| | Labour win (new boundaries) | Labour win (new boundaries) | Labour win (new boundaries) | Labour win (new boundaries) | Labour win (new boundaries) |
2012 Middlesbrough by-election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Andy McDonald | 10,201 | 60.5 | +14.6 |
| | UKIP | Richard Elvin | 1,990 | 11.8 | +8.1 |
| | Liberal Democrats | George Selmer | 1,672 | 9.9 | −10.0 |
| | Conservative | Ben Houchen | 1,063 | 6.3 | −12.5 |
| | Peace | Imdad Hussain | 1,060 | 6.3 | N/A |
| | BNP | Peter Foreman | 328 | 1.9 | −3.9 |
| | TUSC | John Malcolm | 277 | 1.6 | N/A |
| | Independent | Mark Heslehurst | 275 | 1.6 | N/A |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 8,211 | 48.7 | +22.7 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 16,866 | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |
General election 2015: Middlesbrough :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Andy McDonald | 18,584 | 56.8 | +10.9 |
| | UKIP | Nigel Baker | 6,107 | 18.7 | +15.0 |
| | Conservative | Simon Clarke | 5,388 | 16.5 | −2.3 |
| | Green | Hannah Graham | 1,407 | 4.3 | N/A |
| | Liberal Democrats | Richard Kilpatrick | 1,220 | 3.7 | −16.2 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 12,477 | 38.1 | +12.1 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 32,706 | 52.9 | +1.5 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | −2.0 | |
General election 2017: Middlesbrough :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Andy McDonald | 23,404 | 65.7 | +8.9 |
| | Conservative | Jacob Young | 9,531 | 26.7 | +10.2 |
| | UKIP | David Hodgson | 1,452 | 4.1 | −14.6 |
| | Independent | Terry Lawton | 632 | 1.8 | N/A |
| | Liberal Democrats | Dawud Islam | 368 | 1.0 | −2.7 |
| | Green | Carl Martinez | 250 | 0.7 | −3.6 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 13,873 | 39.0 | +0.9 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 35,637 | 58.3 | +5.4 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | −0.7 | |
General election 2019: Middlesbrough :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Andy McDonald | 17,207 | 50.5 | −15.2 |
| | Conservative | Ruth Betson | 8,812 | 25.8 | −0.9 |
| | Independent | Antony High | 4,548 | 13.3 | N/A |
| | Brexit Party | Faye Clements | 2,168 | 6.4 | N/A |
| | Liberal Democrats | Thomas Crawford | 816 | 2.4 | +1.4 |
| | Green | Hugh Alberti | 546 | 1.6 | +0.9 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 8,395 | 24.7 | −14.3 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 34,097 | 56.1 | −2.2 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | −7.2 | |

## Election results 1868–1918
### Elections in the 1860s

General election 1868: Middlesbrough :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal | Henry Bolckow | Unopposed | Unopposed | Unopposed |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 5,196 | | |
| | Liberal win (new seat) | Liberal win (new seat) | Liberal win (new seat) | Liberal win (new seat) | Liberal win (new seat) |

### Elections in the 1870s

General election 1874: Middlesbrough :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Liberal | Henry Bolckow | 3,719 | 59.4 |
| | Lib-Lab | John Kane | 1,541 | 24.6 |
| | Conservative | William Randolph Innes Hopkins | 996 | 15.9 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,178 | 34.8 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 6,256 | 70.6 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 8,862 | |
| | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Swing | |
By-election 5 July 1878: Middlesbrough :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal | Isaac Wilson | 5,307 | 68.7 | +9.3 |
| | Conservative | Samuel Sadler | 2,415 | 31.3 | +15.4 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,892 | 37.4 | +2.6 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 7,722 | 65.3 | −5.3 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 11,824 | | |
| | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Swing | +1.4 | |
* Caused by Bolckow's death.

### Elections in the 1880s

General election 1880: Middlesbrough :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal | Isaac Wilson | 4,515 | 61.7 | +2.3 |
| | Conservative | Samuel Sadler | 1,626 | 22.2 | +6.3 |
| | Lib-Lab | Edward Dillon Lewis | 1,171 | 16.0 | −8.6 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,889 | 39.5 | +4.7 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 7,312 | 68.7 | −1.9 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 10,641 | | |
| | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Swing | +2.4 | |
General election 1885: Middlesbrough :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal | Isaac Wilson | 6,961 | 63.3 | +1.6 |
| | Conservative | Raylton Dixon | 4,035 | 36.7 | +14.5 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,926 | 26.6 | −12.9 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 10,996 | 79.3 | +10.6 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 13,864 | | |
| | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Swing | −6.5 | |
General election 1886: Middlesbrough :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal | Isaac Wilson | Unopposed | Unopposed | Unopposed |
| | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Liberal hold |

### Elections in the 1890s

General election 1892: Middlesbrough :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Independent Labour | Havelock Wilson | 4,691 | 38.8 |
| | Liberal | William Robson | 4,062 | 33.6 |
| | Liberal Unionist | Hugh Bell | 3,333 | 27.6 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 629 | 5.2 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 12,086 | 79.6 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 15,192 | |
| | Independent Labour gain from Liberal | Independent Labour gain from Liberal | Swing | |
General election 1895: Middlesbrough :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Lib-Lab | Havelock Wilson | 6,755 | 58.8 | +20.0 |
| | Conservative | Samuel Sadler | 4,735 | 41.2 | +13.6 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,020 | 17.6 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 11,490 | 76.2 | −3.4 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 15,077 | | |
| | Lib-Lab gain from Independent Labour | Lib-Lab gain from Independent Labour | Swing | | |

### Elections in the 1900s

General election 1900: Middlesbrough :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Samuel Sadler | 6,760 | 50.2 | +9.0 |
| | Lib-Lab | Havelock Wilson | 6,705 | 49.8 | −9.0 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 55 | 0.4 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 13,465 | 77.8 | +1.6 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 17,307 | | |
| | Conservative gain from Lib-Lab | Conservative gain from Lib-Lab | Swing | +9.0 | |
General election 1906: Middlesbrough :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Lib-Lab | Havelock Wilson | 9,271 | 52.6 | +2.8 |
| | Conservative | Samuel Sadler | 6,864 | 39.0 | −11.2 |
| | Independent Labour | George Lansbury | 1,484 | 8.4 | N/A |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,407 | 13.6 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 17,619 | 86.7 | +8.9 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 20,322 | | |
| | Lib-Lab gain from Conservative | Lib-Lab gain from Conservative | Swing | +7.0 | |

### Elections in the 1910s

General election January 1910: Middlesbrough :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal | Penry Williams | 9,670 | 50.5 | −2.1 |
| | Conservative | Arthur Charles Dorman | 6,756 | 35.3 | −3.7 |
| | Labour | Patrick Walls | 2,710 | 14.2 | N/A |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,914 | 15.2 | +1.6 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 19,136 | 88.0 | +1.3 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 21,756 | | |
| | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Swing | +0.8 | |
General election December 1910: Middlesbrough :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal | Penry Williams | 10,313 | 61.1 | +10.6 |
| | Conservative | Thomas Gibson Poole | 6,568 | 38.9 | +3.6 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 3,745 | 22.2 | +7.0 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 16,881 | 77.6 | −10.4 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 21,756 | | |
| | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Swing | +3.5 | |
General Election 1914–15:
A General Election was required to take place before the end of 1915. The political parties had been making preparations for an election to take place and by July 1914, the following candidates had been selected;
* Liberal: Penry Williams
* Unionist: None