# Hyndburn (UK Parliament constituency)

Hyndburn is a constituency in Lancashire represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2024 by Sarah Smith of the Labour Party.

## History and profile

A mostly Labour inclined seat, based around the East Lancashire town of Accrington, it also includes Clayton-le-Moors, Great Harwood, Oswaldtwistle, and Rishton in Hyndburn, as well as Haslingden in Rossendale.
The seat was created in 1983, from parts of the former seats of Accrington and Clitheroe. In its ambit is much terraced (freehold) owner occupied housing and surrounding villages, that may have helped to win the constituency for a Conservative in 1983, by 21 votes. The Conservative majority in 1983 was the second smallest achieved by any party in a seat in the United Kingdom at that election, only being beaten by the Conservatives 7 vote majority in Leicester South In 1987, against the national trend, the Conservative vote share increased by 2.1% while Labour's vote share fell by 2.4%. Consequently, the Conservatives increased their majority to 2,220 votes, a higher majority than it achieved in 31 other seats.
Labour won it in 1992, and chose a new candidate for 2010, Graham Jones, who was elected. Part of Labour's Red Wall, the seat was won by the Conservatives in 2019, with the twenty-four year old Tory candidate Sara Britcliffe ousting Jones with a swing of 9.9%. This was reversed in 2024, when Sarah Smith won it back for Labour.
In January 1996, Hyndburn Conservatives deselected Hugh Neil, after a six-week investigation into alleged bogus claims that he made about his background. Neil claimed to have a doctorate from Manchester Business School and Harvard Business School, to have been an adviser to Keith Joseph, and to be a member of the Institute of Directors. He would have been the party's first black MP.

## Boundaries

1983–1997: The Borough of Hyndburn.
1997–2024: The Borough of Hyndburn, and the Borough of Rossendale wards of Greenfield and Worsley.
Following its review of parliamentary representation in Lancashire in the 2000s, the Boundary Commission made minor alterations to the existing Hyndburn constituency. Two Haslingden wards from Rossendale district had been added to the constituency in 1997. The Commission rejected a proposal to rename the constituency "Hyndburn and Haslingden", following the Assistant Commissioner's view that:
       It is obviously right that constituency names should as far as possible reflect the geography and character of the constituency but equally they should be as succinct as reasonably possible
2024–present: The 2023 periodic review of Westminster constituencies, which was based on the ward structure in place on 1 December 2020, left the boundaries unchanged. However, following a local government boundary review in Rossendale which came into effect in May 2024, the constituency now comprises the following from the 2024 general election:
* The Borough of Hyndburn.
* The Borough of Rossendale wards or part wards of: Greenfield & Eden (part); Haslingden; Helmshore (small part).

## Members of Parliament

| Election | Member | Party |
| 1983 | Ken Hargreaves | Conservative |
| 1992 | Greg Pope | Labour |
| 2010 | Graham Jones | Labour |
| 2019 | Sara Britcliffe | Conservative |
| 2024 | Sarah Smith | Labour |

## Elections
### Elections in the 2020s

General election 2024: Hyndburn :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Sarah Smith | 12,186 | 33.5 | −8.0 |
| | Conservative | Sara Britcliffe | 10,499 | 28.9 | −19.6 |
| | Reform UK | Richard Oakley | 7,541 | 20.7 | +15.6 |
| | Green | Shabir Fazal | 4,938 | 13.6 | +11.6 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Beth Waller-Slack | 1,210 | 3.3 | +0.4 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,687 | 4.6 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 36,570 | 54.5 | −5.3 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 67,147 | | |
| | Labour gain from Conservative | Labour gain from Conservative | Swing | +5.8 | |

### Elections in the 2010s

General election 2019: Hyndburn :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Sara Britcliffe | 20,565 | 48.5 | +8.0 |
| | Labour | Graham Jones | 17,614 | 41.5 | ―11.9 |
| | Brexit Party | Gregory Butt | 2,156 | 5.1 | New |
| | Liberal Democrats | Adam Waller-Slack | 1,226 | 2.9 | +1.1 |
| | Green | Katrina Brockbank | 845 | 2.0 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,951 | 7.0 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 42,406 | 59.8 | ―2.0 |
| | Conservative gain from Labour | Conservative gain from Labour | Swing | +9.9 | |
General election 2017: Hyndburn :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Graham Jones | 24,120 | 53.4 | +11.3 |
| | Conservative | Kevin Horkin | 18,305 | 40.5 | +8.6 |
| | UKIP | Janet Brown | 1,953 | 4.3 | ―17.0 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Leslie Jones | 824 | 1.8 | ―0.2 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 5,815 | 12.9 | +2.7 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 45,307 | 61.8 | ―1.0 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | +1.3 | |
General election 2015: Hyndburn :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Graham Jones | 18,076 | 42.1 | +1.0 |
| | Conservative | Kevin Horkin | 13,676 | 31.9 | ―1.9 |
| | UKIP | Janet Brown | 9,154 | 21.3 | +17.8 |
| | Green | Kerry Gormley | 1,122 | 2.6 | +1.5 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Alison Firth | 859 | 2.0 | ―9.8 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 4,400 | 10.2 | +3.0 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 42,887 | 62.8 | ―0.7 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |
General election 2010: Hyndburn :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Graham Jones | 17,531 | 41.1 | ―4.6 |
| | Conservative | Karen Buckley | 14,441 | 33.8 | +1.9 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Andrew Rankine | 5,033 | 11.8 | ―2.6 |
| | BNP | Andrew Eccles | 2,137 | 5.0 | ―1.2 |
| | UKIP | Granville Barker | 1,481 | 3.5 | +1.6 |
| | CPA | Kevin Logan | 795 | 1.9 | New |
| | Green | Kerry Gormley | 463 | 1.1 | New |
| | English Democrat | Chris Reid | 413 | 1.0 | New |
| | Independent | Craig Hall | 378 | 0.9 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 3,090 | 7.2 | ―7.0 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 42,672 | 63.5 | +4.7 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | ―3.3 | |

### Elections in the 2000s

General election 2005: Hyndburn :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Greg Pope | 18,136 | 46.0 | ―8.7 |
| | Conservative | James Mawdsley | 12,549 | 31.8 | ―1.4 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Bill Greene | 5,577 | 14.1 | +4.5 |
| | BNP | Christian Jackson | 2,444 | 6.2 | New |
| | UKIP | John Whittaker | 743 | 1.9 | ―0.7 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 5,587 | 14.2 | ―7.3 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 39,449 | 58.8 | +1.3 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | ―3.7 | |
General election 2001: Hyndburn :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Greg Pope | 20,900 | 54.7 | ―0.9 |
| | Conservative | Peter Britcliffe | 12,681 | 33.2 | +1.3 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Bill Greene | 3,680 | 9.6 | +1.0 |
| | UKIP | John Tomlin | 982 | 2.6 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 8,219 | 21.5 | ―2.2 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 38,243 | 57.5 | ―14.8 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |

### Elections in the 1990s

General election 1997: Hyndburn :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Greg Pope | 26,831 | 55.6 | +8.7 |
| | Conservative | Peter Britcliffe | 15,383 | 31.9 | ―11.0 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Les Jones | 4,141 | 8.6 | ―1.3 |
| | Referendum | Philip Congdon | 1,627 | 3.4 | New |
| | Independent Anti-Corruption in Government (IAC) | James Brown | 290 | 0.4 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 11,548 | 23.7 | +19.7 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 48,272 | 72.3 | ―11.6 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | +9.9 | |
General election 1992: Hyndburn :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Greg Pope | 23,042 | 46.9 | +7.1 |
| | Conservative | Ken Hargreaves | 21,082 | 42.9 | ―1.5 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Yvonne Stars | 4,886 | 9.9 | ―5.3 |
| | Natural Law | Stephen Whittle | 150 | 0.3 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,960 | 4.0 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 49,160 | 83.9 | +3.4 |
| | Labour gain from Conservative | Labour gain from Conservative | Swing | +4.3 | |

### Elections in the 1980s

General election 1987: Hyndburn :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Ken Hargreaves | 21,606 | 44.4 | +2.2 |
| | Labour | Keva Christopher Coombes | 19,386 | 39.8 | ―2.4 |
| | SDP | John Stark | 7,423 | 15.2 | +0.6 |
| | Green | Frank Smith | 297 | 0.6 | 0.0 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,220 | 4.6 | +4.6 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 48,712 | 80.5 | +3.1 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | +2.3 | |
General election 1983: Hyndburn :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Ken Hargreaves | 19,405 | 42.2 | |
| | Labour | Arthur Davidson | 19,384 | 42.2 | |
| | SDP | John Bridgen | 6,716 | 14.6 | |
| | Ecology | Frank Smith | 266 | 0.6 | |
| | Independent | Paul Gateson | 169 | 0.4 | |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 21 | 0.0 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 45,940 | 77.4 | |
| | Conservative win (new seat) | Conservative win (new seat) | Conservative win (new seat) | Conservative win (new seat) | Conservative win (new seat) |