Dagenham and Rainham (UK Parliament constituency)

Not to be confused with Gillingham and Rainham (UK Parliament constituency).

Dagenham and Rainham is a parliamentary constituency^{[n 1]} in Greater London that was created in 2010. It has been represented in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom since 2024 by Margaret Mullane and was previously represented from 2010 by Jon Cruddas, both members of the Labour Party.

Dagenham and Rainham
Borough constituency for the House of Commons
Interactive map of boundaries from 2024
Location within Greater London
County	Greater London
Electorate	73,627 (2023)[1]
Current constituency
Created	2010
Member of Parliament	Margaret Mullane (Labour Party)
Seats	One
Created from	Dagenham, Hornchurch, Barking

Constituency profile

The constituency may retain significant pockets of poverty indicated by a high ranking in the Index of Multiple Deprivation compiled in the year 2000 however average incomes were in four large wards close to the national average.^[2] The London Borough of Barking and Dagenham saw the most rapid decrease in people of White British ethnicity in the 10 years to the 2011 census, of 31.4 percentage points. However the same dataset shows that 58.3% of people are white in the seat, which is similar to the Greater London average. An established area of settlement for British people of Asian ethnicity with 15.9% of this background, the neighbouring London Borough of Newham has a much higher proportion of residents with Asian heritage, 43.5%.^[3]

History

Before 1945 the Dagenham area was part of the Romford constituency. The MP for the latter seat since 1935, Labour's John Parker, continued to represent Dagenham until 1983. Parker was the last serving MP to have been elected before the Second World War, and with 48 years in Parliament, was the longest-serving Labour MP in history, a record he held until December 2017. The seat was first contested in the 2010 general election which resulted from the Boundary Commission's report that recommended merging the majority of the former constituencies of Dagenham and Hornchurch and added to existing electoral wards a small part of River ward was also transferred from Barking.

In 2010 Labour's Jon Cruddas took the seat gaining a marginal 5.9% win, facing a strong nominal (ward-by-ward) Lab–Con swing measured against the previous forerunner seats and candidates. BNP candidate Michael Barnbrook came third with 11.2% of the vote, his party's second-best showing in the election. In 2015, Cruddas, incumbent won an 11.6% majority; the runner-up party changed to being UKIP closely followed by the Conservative candidate.

In 2019, Cruddas' majority was cut to just 293 votes, the lowest Labour majority in Dagenham ever, which has been represented by Labour MPs since 1945.

The electoral wards in both boroughs were redrawn in 2022 and subsequently the constituency no longer aligns with ward boundaries.

Boundaries

Map of boundaries 2010–2024

2010–2024: The London Borough of Barking and Dagenham wards of Alibon, Beam, Chadwell Heath, Eastbrook and Rush Green, Goresbrook, Heath, Parsloes, Valence, Village, and Whalebone, and the London Borough of Havering wards of Beam Park, Elm Park, Hacton (part), Rainham & Wennington, and South Hornchurch.

2024–present: The London Borough of Barking and Dagenham wards of Alibon (part), Beam, Chadwell Heath (part), Eastbrook & Rush Green, Goresbrook (part), Heath, Parsloes (part), Valence (part), Village, and Whalebone, and the London Borough of Havering wards of Beam Park, Elm Park, Hacton (part), Rainham and Wennington, and South Hornchurch.^[4]

Chadwell Heath ward was moved to Ilford South. To compensate, the Barking and Dagenham ward of Valence and parts of the Havering wards of St Andrew's and Hacton (mainly to the west of Abbs Cross Lane and South End Road) were transferred in from the Barking and Hornchurch and Upminster constituencies respectively.^[5]

Members of Parliament

Election	Member [6]	Party
2010	Jon Cruddas		Labour
2024	Margaret Mullane		Labour

Election results

Election results 2010–2024

Elections in the 2020s

General election 2024: Dagenham and Rainham^[7]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Margaret Mullane	16,571	42.6	−2.1
	Reform UK	Kevin Godfrey	9,398	24.2	+17.6
	Conservative	Sam Holland	6,926	17.8	−25.3
	Green	Kim Arrowsmith	4,184	10.8	+9.2
	Liberal Democrats	Francesca Flack	1,033	2.7	−0.4
	Independent	Terence London	755	1.9	+1.4
Majority			7,173	18.5	+16.9
Turnout			38,867	50.8	−8.9
Registered electors			76,478
	Labour hold		Swing	−9.8

Elections in the 2010s

2019 notional result[8]
Party		Vote	%
	Labour	19,676	44.7
	Conservative	18,970	43.1
	Brexit Party	2,913	6.6
	Liberal Democrats	1,338	3.0
	Green	674	1.5
	Others	421	1.0
Turnout		43,992	59.7
Electorate		73,627

General election 2019: Dagenham and Rainham^[9][10]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Jon Cruddas	19,468	44.5	−5.6
	Conservative	Damian White	19,175	43.8	+3.9
	Brexit Party	Tom Bewick	2,887	6.6	N/A
	Liberal Democrats	Sam Fisk	1,182	2.7	+1.7
	Green	Azzees Minott	602	1.4	+0.2
	Independent	Ron Emin	212	0.5	N/A
	Independent	Terry London	209	0.5	+0.3
Majority			293	0.7	−9.5
Turnout			43,735	61.6	−3.4
Registered electors			71,045
	Labour hold		Swing	−4.7

General election 2017: Dagenham and Rainham^[11]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Jon Cruddas	22,958	50.1	+8.7
	Conservative	Julie Marson	18,306	39.9	+15.6
	UKIP	Peter Harris	3,246	7.1	−22.8
	Green	Denis Breading	544	1.2	−0.7
	Liberal Democrats	Jonathan Fryer	465	1.0	−0.7
	BNP	Paul Sturdy	239	0.5	+0.2
	Concordia	Terence London	85	0.2	N/A
Majority			4,652	10.1	−1.4
Turnout			45,843	64.9	+2.6
Registered electors			70,616
	Labour hold		Swing	−3.4

General election 2015: Dagenham and Rainham^[12][13]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Jon Cruddas	17,830	41.4	+1.1
	UKIP	Peter Harris	12,850	29.8	+26.3
	Conservative	Julie Marson	10,492	24.4	−10.0
	Green	Kate Simpson[14]	806	1.9	+1.2
	Liberal Democrats	Denise Capstick[15][16]	717	1.7	−6.9
	BNP	Tess Culnane	151	0.4	−10.8
	Independent	Terry London	133	0.3	N/A
	English Democrat	Kim Gandy	71	0.2	N/A
Majority			4,980	11.6	+5.6
Turnout			43,050	62.3	−1.1
Registered electors			69,128
	Labour hold		Swing	−12.6

General election 2010: Dagenham and Rainham^[17]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Jon Cruddas*	17,813	40.3	−9.3
	Conservative	Simon Jones	15,183	34.3	−0.3
	BNP	Michael Barnbrook	4,952	11.2	+6.0
	Liberal Democrats	Joseph Bourke	3,806	8.6	+1.0
	UKIP	Craig Litwin	1,569	3.5	+0.7
	Independent	Gordon Kennedy[18]	308	0.7	N/A
	Christian	Paula Watson[19]	305	0.7	N/A
	Green	Debbie Rosaman	296	0.7	N/A
Majority			2,630	5.9	−9.0
Turnout			44,232	63.4	+7.1
Registered electors			69,764
	Labour hold		Swing	−4.5

* Served as MP for Dagenham in the 2005–2010 Parliament

2005 notional result
Party		Vote	%
	Labour	19,756	49.6
	Conservative	13,802	34.7
	Liberal Democrats	3,036	7.6
	Others	3,226	8.1
Turnout		39,820	56.3
Electorate		70,745

See also

• List of parliamentary constituencies in London

Notes

1. A borough constituency (for the purposes of election expenses and type of returning officer)