Dudley East (UK Parliament constituency)

Dudley East
Former borough constituency for the House of Commons
County	West Midlands
February 1974–1997
Seats	One
Created from	Brierley Hill Dudley
Replaced by	Dudley North Dudley South Stourbridge

Dudley East was a parliamentary constituency, centred on the town of Dudley in the West Midlands. It returned one Member of Parliament (MP) to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom by the first past the post system.

The constituency was created for the February 1974 general election, and abolished for the 1997 general election.

History

Throughout its history, it was served by one member: John Gilbert of the Labour Party.

Boundaries

1974–1983: The County Borough of Dudley wards of Castle, Coseley East, Coseley West, Netherton and Woodside, Priory, St Andrew's, St James's, and St Thomas's.

1983–1997: The Metropolitan Borough of Dudley wards of Castle and Priory, Coseley East, Coseley West, Netherton and Woodside, Quarry Bank and Cradley, St Andrew's, St James's, and St Thomas's.

Dudley East was one of three constituencies in the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley, covering as its name suggested the eastern part of the town of Dudley, including the town centre, along with Coseley and parts of Sedgley. At abolition in 1997, both Dudley East and Dudley West were replaced by two new constituencies: Dudley North and Dudley South, with some constituents being transferred to the re-created Stourbridge constituency.

Members of Parliament

Election		Member	Party
	Feb 1974	John Gilbert	Labour
	1997	constituency abolished: see Dudley North, Dudley South and Stourbridge

Elections

Elections in the 1990s

General election 1992: Dudley East

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	John Gilbert	29,806	52.8	+6.9
	Conservative	CJ Holland	20,606	36.5	−3.0
	Liberal Democrats	IC Jenkins	5,400	9.6	−5.0
	National Front	GE Cartwright	675	1.2	New
Majority			9,200	16.3	+9.9
Turnout			56,487	75.0	+2.7
	Labour hold		Swing	+4.9

Elections in the 1980s

General election 1987: Dudley East

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	John Gilbert	24,942	45.87	+0.05
	Conservative	Elisabeth Jones	21,469	39.48	+4.56
	SDP	Kevin Monks	7,965	14.65	−4.61
Majority			3,473	6.39
Turnout			54,376	72.3
	Labour hold		Swing

General election 1983: Dudley East

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	John Gilbert	24,441	45.82	−7.86
	Conservative	Susan Gillies	18,625	34.92	−0.18
	SDP	Dominic Simon	10,272	19.26	+9.8
Majority			5,816	10.90
Turnout			53,338	71.34
	Labour hold		Swing

Elections in the 1970s

General election 1979: Dudley East

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	John Gilbert	22,521	53.83	−3.47
	Conservative	Donald Williams	14,834	35.46	+7.73
	Liberal	Gerald Patrick Thomas Lewis	3,639	8.70	−3.44
	National Front	Albert James Baker	844	2.02	−0.82
Majority			7,687	18.37
Turnout			41,838	70.13
	Labour hold		Swing	-5.60

General election October 1974: Dudley East

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	John Gilbert	23,621	57.30	−6.15
	Conservative	John Taylor	11,430	27.73	−8.83
	Liberal	Owen Glyn Hopkins	5,003	12.14	New
	National Front	Charles Rex Knott	1,171	2.84	New
Majority			12,191	29.57
Turnout			41,225	68.29
	Labour hold		Swing	+1.34

General election February 1974: Dudley East

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	John Gilbert	27,417	63.45
	Conservative	John Taylor	15,795	36.55
Majority			11,622	26.90
Turnout			43,212	72.12
	Labour win (new seat)

See also

• List of parliamentary constituencies in Dudley