St Albans (UK Parliament constituency)


St Albans is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2019 by Daisy Cooper, a Liberal Democrat.
This article also describes the parliamentary borough of the same name, consisting only of the city of St Albans, which elected two MPs by the bloc vote system.

History

The Parliamentary Borough of St Albans was represented by two MPs for over 300 years, until it was disenfranchised as a result of electoral corruption in 1852.
The constituency was re-established in an enlarged form by the Redistribution of Seats Act 1885 as one of four Divisions of the abolished three-member Parliamentary County of Hertfordshire, and was formally named as the Mid or St Albans Division of Hertfordshire.

1885 to date

; Political history
The seat was until 1997 held by a Conservative with the exception of five years of the Attlee ministry and early 20th century opposition of Henry Campbell-Bannerman and the first part of his premiership which was when he was in a minority.
Following boundary changes in 1997, and the founding of the New Labour movement which sought public sector reform and investment with expansion based on economic growth, the seat stood the possibility of, on the expected national swing led by Tony Blair, a win by a Labour politician, which took place when it was won for the party for the first time since the 1945 election.
Despite the former Labour MP for the seat, Kerry Pollard, standing there in 2005, 2015 and 2017, he has not come close to regaining it. This is in no small part due to the seat showing an unusually high level of support for the Liberal Democrats and their predecessor parties; they twice failed to win at least 20% of the vote in St Albans since 1974, and in 2010 and 2017 came a strong second behind the Conservatives. In 2019 the Liberal Democrat Daisy Cooper won the seat from the Conservatives.

Prominent members

The noble and local landowning Grimston family have produced nine members throughout the seat's history. The three first heirs to the Earldom of Verulam have won election in the seat - the latest MP from the family was John Grimston who later became the 6th Earl.
Sir Hildred Carlile was a textiles entrepreneur and generous benefactor of Bedford College, University of London.
Francis Fremantle was chairman of the Parliamentary Medical Committee from 1923 to 1943.
Peter Lilley was a frontbench minister in government from 1992 until 1997, the Secretary of State for Social Security, after two years as Secretary of State for Trade and Industry.

Constituency profile

Workless claimants were in November 2012 significantly lower than the national average of 3.8%, at 1.9% of the population based on a statistical compilation by The Guardian.

Boundary changes

1885–1918: The Municipal Borough of St Albans, the Sessional Divisions of Barnet and St Albans and parts of the Sessional Divisions of Watford, Hertford and Dacorum.
As well from the Borough of St Albans, the seat included the towns of Harpenden, Hatfield and Chipping Barnet.
1918–1945: The Municipal Borough of St Albans, the Urban Districts of Barnet and East Barnet Valley, the Rural Districts of Barnet and Hatfield, and the Rural District of St Albans civil parishes of Sandridge Rural, St Michael Rural, St Peter Rural, and St Stephen.
North-western parts, including Harpenden, transferred to the new Hemel Hempstead Division. South-western corner transferred to Watford.
1945–1950: The Municipal Borough of St Albans, the Urban District of Welwyn Garden City, the Rural District of Hatfield, and the Rural District of St Albans civil parishes of Sandridge Rural, St Michael Rural, St Peter Rural, and St Stephen.
The Urban Districts of Barnet and East Barnet and the Rural District of Elstree formed the new Barnet Division. The Urban District of Welwyn Garden City had been formed as a separate local authority which had previously been partly in the Hitchin Division.  Other marginal changes as a result of changes to local authority boundaries.
1950–1955: The Municipal Borough of St Albans, the Urban District of Welwyn Garden City, the Rural District of Welwyn, and the Rural District of St Albans civil parishes of Sandridge Rural, St Michael Rural, St Peter Rural, St Stephen, and Wheathampstead.
The Rural District of Welwyn was transferred from Hitchin and the parish of Wheathampstead from Hemel Hempstead.  The Rural District of Hatfield was transferred to Barnet.
1955–1974: The Municipal Borough of St Albans, and in the Rural District of St Albans the civil parishes of Colney Heath, London Colney, Sandridge Rural, St Michael Rural, St Stephen, and Wheathampstead.
The Urban District of Welwyn Garden City and the Rural District of Welwyn transferred to Hertford. .
1974–1983: The Municipal Borough of St Albans, the Urban District of Harpenden, and in the Rural District of St Albans the civil parishes of Harpenden Rural, Redbourn, St Michael Rural, Sandridge, and Wheathampstead.
The limits moved northwards: to take in Harpenden U.D. and parishes Harpenden Rural and Redbourn, from Hemel Hempstead.  The parishes of Colney Heath, London Colney and St Stephen were removed to help constitute South Hertfordshire.
1983–1997: The District of St Albans wards of Ashley, Batchwood, Clarence, Colney Heath, Cunningham, Harpenden East, Harpenden North, Harpenden South, Harpenden West, Marshalswick North, Marshalswick South, Redbourn, St Peter's, Sandridge, Sopwell, and Verulam.
Minor changes.  Colney Heath transferred from abolished South Hertfordshire.  Wheathampstead transferred to Welwyn Hatfield.
1997–2010: The District of St Albans wards of Ashley, Batchwood, Clarence, Colney Heath, Cunningham, London Colney, Marshalswick North, Marshalswick South, Park Street, St Peter's, St Stephen's, Sopwell, and Verulam, and the District of Three Rivers ward of Bedmond.
Moved southwards again, gaining London Colney from Hertsmere, Park Street and St Stephen's from Watford and the Three Rivers District ward of Bedmond from South West Hertfordshire.  Northern parts, including Harpenden, formed part of the new County Constituency of Hitchin and Harpenden.
2010–present: The City of St Albans wards of Ashley, Batchwood, Clarence, Colney Heath, Cunningham, London Colney, Marshalswick North, Marshalswick South, Park Street, St Peter's, St Stephen, Sopwell, and Verulam, and the Three Rivers District ward of Bedmond and Primrose Hill.
Marginal adjustments to bring the parliamentary boundaries in line with those of local government wards, which had changed since the 1995 review.
The seat is in Hertfordshire, England. Specifically, it comprises the cathedral city of St Albans and some of the surrounding countryside, mainly to the south of the city.
Neighbouring seats, clockwise from north, are: Hitchin and Harpenden, Welwyn Hatfield, Hertsmere, Watford, and Hemel Hempstead.

Members of Parliament

MPs 1553–1640

MPs 1640–1852

MPs since 1885

Election results

Elections in the 2010s

Elections in the 2000s

Elections in the 1990s

Elections in the 1980s

Elections in the 1970s

Elections in the 1960s

Elections in the 1950s

Elections in the 1940s

Elections in the 1930s

Elections in the 1920s

Elections in the 1910s

Elections in the 1900s

Elections in the 1890s

Elections in the 1880s

Elections in the 1850s

On 3 May 1852, the borough was disenfranchised after a Royal Commission found proof of extensive bribery. The electorate was incorporated into Hertfordshire.