Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard (UK Parliament constituency)

Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard is a constituency of the House of Commons in the UK Parliament.^[2] It was first contested at the 2024 general election. The current MP is Alex Mayer of the Labour Party.

Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard
County constituency for the House of Commons
Boundaries since 2024
Boundary of Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard in the East of England
County	Bedfordshire
Electorate	74,069 (2023)[1]
Major settlements	Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard
Current constituency
Created	2024
Member of Parliament	Alex Mayer (Labour)
Seats	One
Created from	South West Bedfordshire

History

The seat is a successor to South West Bedfordshire which was a Conservative seat during its existence, often with large majorities, though Labour came very close to winning the seat on two occasions in 1997 and 2001, reducing the Conservative Party's majorities to 132 and 776 respectively, with Labour winning the seat narrowly on a three-figure majority for the first time since a previous incarnation of the constituency (South Bedfordshire), in 1966.

Constituency profile

Wealth and deprivation in this seat are around average for the UK.^[3]

Boundaries

Further to the 2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies, the composition of the constituency was defined as follows (as they existed on 1 December 2020):

• Dunstable–Central; Dunstable–Icknield; Dunstable–Manshead; Dunstable–Northfields; Dunstable–Watling; Heath and Reach; Houghton Hall; Leighton Buzzard North; Leighton Buzzard South; Linslade; Parkside; Tithe Farm.^[4]

It comprises the communities of Dunstable, Leighton Buzzard, Linslade and Houghton Regis and is the successor to South West Bedfordshire - excluding Eaton Bray, which was transferred to the new constituency of Luton South and South Bedfordshire.

Following a local government boundary review which came into effect in May 2023,^[5][6] the constituency comprises the following wards of Central Bedfordshire from the 2024 general election:

• Dunstable Central; Dunstable East; Dunstable North; Dunstable South; Dunstable West; Heath & Reach; Houghton Regis East; Houghton Regis West; Leighton-Linslade North; Leighton-Linslade South; Leighton-Linslade West^[7]

Members of Parliament

South West Bedfordshire prior to 2024

Election		Member	Party
	2024	Alex Mayer	Labour

Elections

Elections in the 2020s

2024 general election: Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard^[8]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Alex Mayer	14,976	32.5	+5.7
	Conservative	Andrew Selous	14,309	31.1	−27.6
	Reform UK	Harry Palmer	8,071	17.5	New
	Liberal Democrats	Emma Holland-Lindsay	6,497	14.1	+3.3
	Green	Sukhinder Hundal	2,115	4.6	+0.9
	English Democrat	Antonio Vitiello	77	0.2	New
Majority			667	1.4
Turnout			46,045	60.0	−5.2
Registered electors			76,742
	Labour gain from Conservative		Swing	+16.7

Elections in the 2010s

2019 notional result[9]
Party		Vote	%
	Conservative	28,341	58.7
	Labour	12,955	26.8
	Liberal Democrats	5,210	10.8
	Green	1,764	3.7
Turnout		48,270	65.2
Electorate		74,069

See also

• List of parliamentary constituencies in Bedfordshire