Poplar and Limehouse (UK Parliament constituency)

Poplar and Limehouse is a constituency^{[n 1]} which was first created in 2010. It has been represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2019 by Apsana Begum, from the Labour Party MP.^{[n 2]} Begum was suspended from the Parliamentary Labour Party on 23 July 2024 for voting to scrap the two child benefit cap. She now sits as an Independent.

Poplar and Limehouse
Borough constituency for the House of Commons
Boundary of Poplar and Limehouse in Greater London
County	Greater London
Electorate	75,814 (2023)[1]
Major settlements	Canary Wharf, Limehouse, Poplar, Wapping
Current constituency
Created	2010
Member of Parliament	Apsana Begum (Independent)
Seats	One
Created from	Poplar & Canning Town, Bethnal Green & Bow

History

Political history

The predecessors to this constituency (area electing MPs to the House of Commons) (see history of boundaries) since 1992 have elected Labour Party representatives. In 2010, Jim Fitzpatrick had a majority of 12.9% over the runner-up Conservative Party candidate.

The 2015 re-election of Fitzpatrick made the seat the 66th safest of Labour's 232 seats by percentage of majority.^[2]

In 2019, Apsana Begum, selected to succeed the retiring Fitzpatrick as Labour's candidate, beat the runner-up Conservative Party candidate by 28,904 votes.^[3] This was more than Jim Fitzpatrick’s 27,712 vote majority^[4] at the 2017 general election, though the majority size in terms of vote share remained stable at 47.2%, and Labour's vote share declined.

Boundaries

2010-2024

Map of boundaries 2010-2024

Parliament accepted the Boundary Commission's Fifth Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies which proposed the seat's creation for the 2010 general election, since when it has consisted of the following electoral wards:

• Blackwall and Cubitt Town, Bromley-by-Bow, East India and Lansbury, Limehouse, Mile End East, Millwall, St Katharine’s and Wapping, and Shadwell within the London Borough of Tower Hamlets

History of boundaries

• Before 2010, this constituency would map into all but the north-east of the old Poplar and Canning Town constituency, plus the western end of Shadwell Ward and in the west the whole of St Katharine's & Wapping Ward, formerly parts of Bethnal Green and Bow.
  • The areas of the old constituency that were in the London Borough of Newham were removed and transferred to East Ham (5.1% of Poplar and Canning Town) and West Ham (24.9%).^[5]

Nomenclature

Alternative names, including "Tower Hamlets South" and "Poplar and Millwall" were rejected following public consultation.^{[citation needed]}

Local authority boundary review

Following a review of ward boundaries in Tower Hamlets which became effective in May 2014,^[6] the contents (but not the boundaries) of the constituency were changed to:

• The London Borough of Tower Hamlets wards of Blackwall and Cubitt Town, Bromley North, Bromley South, Canary Wharf, Island Gardens, Lansbury, Limehouse, Mile End, Poplar, St Katharine's and Wapping, and Shadwell; and a small part of Whitechapel ward.

Current

Poplar and Limehouse from 2024

Further to the 2023 periodic review of Westminster constituencies, which came into effect for the 2024 general election, the composition of the constituency was reduced to bring the electorate within the permitted range. Shadwell and part of the Whitechapel wards were transferred to the re-established seat of Bethnal Green and Stepney, and the Bromley North ward was moved to the newly created constituency of Stratford and Bow.^[7]

Constituency profile

The constituency and its predecessor seats covering the Isle of Dogs have consistently been won by the Labour Party since the 1920s. The district has changed vastly over this time, and great wealth and considerable poverty now co-exist side by side as an example of income inequality.

Once home to shipping and heavy industry, the Docklands area was derelict for many years, before redevelopment began in the late-1980s. Now the area around Canary Wharf is one of the country's largest financial districts and has several landmark skyscrapers, such as One Canada Square.

The redevelopment of the Docklands has led to the construction of luxury housing in the constituency, which has somewhat altered the demographics. However, in parts of the Isle of Dogs and in the areas north, east and west of Poplar, there are still areas of high deprivation.

At the end of 2012, 6% of the population of the constituency were unemployment benefit claimants, ranking sixth among London seats (the highest percentage was Tottenham at 7.9%), and above the London-wide average of 3.9%.^[8]

In the 2016 EU referendum, like the majority of London; the constituency voted 65.79% for Remain.^[9]

The constituency is religiously diverse: 38.8% of residents are Muslim, 24.2% Christian, 2.8% Hindu, and 1.0% Buddhist. 24.8% claimed no religious affiliation.^[10]

Members of Parliament

Election		Member[11]	Party
	2010	Jim Fitzpatrick	Labour
	2019	Apsana Begum	Labour
	2024		Independent

Elections

Election results 2010-2024

Elections in the 2020s

General election 2024: Poplar and Limehouse^[12]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Apsana Begum	18,535	43.1	–17.2
	Green	Nathalie Bienfait	5,975	13.9	+10.5
	Conservative	Freddie Downing	4,738	11.0	–6.7
	Independent	Ehtashamul Haque	4,554	10.6	N/A
	Liberal Democrats	Richard Flowers	4,189	9.7	–5.8
	Reform UK	Tony Glover	3,403	7.9	+5.5
	Workers Party	Kamran Khan	1,463	3.4	N/A
	SDP	Manny Lawal	194	0.5	N/A
Majority			12,560	29.2	–13.5
Turnout			43,051	51.2	–17.1
Registered electors			84,116
	Labour hold		Swing	–13.9

Elections in the 2010s

2019 notional result[13]
Party		Vote	%
	Labour	31,176	60.3
	Conservative	9,129	17.7
	Liberal Democrats	8,009	15.5
	Green	1,756	3.4
	Brexit Party	1,219	2.4
	Others	376	0.7
Turnout		51,665	68.1
Electorate		75,814

General election 2019: Poplar and Limehouse^[14][15][16]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Apsana Begum	38,660	63.1	−4.2
	Conservative	Sheun Oke	9,756	15.9	−4.2
	Liberal Democrats	Andrew Cregan	8,832	14.4	+7.7
	Green	Neil Jameson	2,159	3.5	+1.8
	Brexit Party	Catherine Cui	1,493	2.4	N/A
	Independent	Andy Erlam	376	0.6	N/A
Majority			28,904	47.2
Turnout			61,276	66.7	−0.6
Registered electors			91,836
	Labour hold		Swing	0.0

General election 2017: Poplar and Limehouse^[17][18]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Jim Fitzpatrick	39,558	67.3	+8.7
	Conservative	Chris Wilford	11,846	20.1	−5.3
	Liberal Democrats	Elaine Bagshaw	3,959	6.7	+2.5
	Independent	Oliur Rahman	1,477	2.5	N/A
	Green	Bethan Lant	989	1.7	−3.1
	UKIP	Nicholas McQueen	849	1.4	−4.7
	Independent	David Barker	136	0.2	N/A
Majority			27,712	47.2	+14.0
Turnout			58,814	67.3	+5.2
Registered electors			87,331
	Labour hold		Swing	+7.0

General election 2015: Poplar and Limehouse^[19][20]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Jim Fitzpatrick	29,886	58.5	+18.6
	Conservative	Chris Wilford	12,962	25.4	−1.7
	UKIP	Nicholas McQueen	3,128	6.1	+4.9
	Green	Maureen Childs	2,463	4.8	+3.9
	Liberal Democrats	Elaine Bagshaw	2,149	4.2	−6.9
	TUSC	Hugo Pierre	367	0.7	N/A
	Red Flag Anti-Corruption	Rene Claudel Mugenzi	89	0.2	N/A
Majority			16,924	33.2	+20.2
Turnout			51,044	62.2	−0.1
Registered electors			82,081
	Labour hold		Swing	+10.1

General election 2010: Poplar and Limehouse^{[21][22][23][24]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Jim Fitzpatrick*	18,679	40.0
	Conservative	Tim Archer	12,649	27.1
	Respect	George Galloway*	8,160	17.5
	Liberal Democrats	Jonathan Fryer	5,209	11.2
	UKIP	Wayne Lochner	565	1.2
	English Democrat	Andrew Osborne	470	1.0
	Green	Chris Smith	449	1.0
	Independent	Kabir Mahmud	293	0.6
	Independent	Mohammed Hoque	167	0.4
	Independent	Jim Thornton	59	0.1
Majority			6,030	12.9
Turnout			46,700	62.3
Registered electors			74,955
	Labour win (new seat)

* Served as an MP in the 2005–2010 Parliament

See also

• List of parliamentary constituencies in London

Notes

1. A borough constituency (for the purposes of election expenses and type of returning officer)
2. As with all constituencies, the constituency elects one Member of Parliament (MP) by the first past the post system of election at least every five years.