Stoke-on-Trent North (UK Parliament constituency)

Stoke-on-Trent North is a constituency^{[n 1]} represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament by David Williams, a member of the Labour Party.^{[n 2]}

Stoke-on-Trent North
Borough constituency for the House of Commons
Boundaries since 2024
Boundary of Stoke-on-Trent North in West Midlands region
County	Staffordshire
Electorate	72,225 (December 2010)[1]
Major settlements	Burslem, Tunstall
Current constituency
Created	1950
Member of Parliament	David Williams (Labour)
Seats	One
Created from	Burslem, Hanley Leek

Boundaries

Historic

1950–1955: The County Borough of Stoke-on-Trent wards numbers 1 to 9 and 27.

1955–1983: The County Borough of Stoke-on-Trent wards numbers 1 to 8.

1983–1997: The City of Stoke-on-Trent wards of Burslem Central, Burslem Green, Chell, East Valley, Norton and Bradeley, and Tunstall North, and the Borough of Newcastle-under-Lyme wards of Butt Lane, Kidsgrove, Newchapel, and Talke.

1997–2010: The City of Stoke-on-Trent wards of Burslem Central, Burslem Grange, Chell, East Valley, Norton and Bradeley, and Tunstall North, and the District of Staffordshire Moorlands wards of Brown Edge and Endon, and Stanley.

2010–2024: The City of Stoke-on-Trent wards of Burslem North, Burslem South, Chell and Packmoor, East Valley, Norton and Bradeley, and Tunstall, and the Borough of Newcastle-under-Lyme wards of Butt Lane, Kidsgrove, Ravenscliffe, and Talke.

Current

Under the 2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies which came into effect for the 2024 general election, the constituency was defined as composing the following as they existed on 1 December 2020:

• The Borough of Newcastle-under-Lyme wards of: Kidsgrove & Ravenscliffe; Newchapel & Mow Cop; Talke & Butt Lane.
• The City of Stoke-on-Trent wards of: Baddeley, Milton and Norton; Bradeley and Chell Heath; Burslem Central; Burslem Park; Ford Green and Smallthorne; Goldenhill and Sandyford; Great Chell and Packmoor; Little Chell and Stanfield; Moorcroft; Tunstall.^[2]

In order to bring the electorate within the permitted range, the Kidsgrove district of Newchapel was transferred from Staffordshire Moorlands. The boundary with Stoke-on-Trent Central was re-aligned to take account of revised ward boundaries.

Following a further local government boundary review in the City of Stoke-on-Trent which came into effect in May 2023,^[3][4] the constituency now comprises the following from the 2024 general election:

• The Borough of Newcastle-under-Lyme wards of: Kidsgrove & Ravenscliffe; Newchapel & Mow Cop; Talke & Butt Lane.
• The City of Stoke-on-Trent wards of: Baddeley, Milton & Norton; Bradeley and Chell Heath; Burslem; Burslem Park; Ford Green & Smallthorne; Goldenhill & Sandyford; Great Chell & Packmoor; Little Chell & Stanfield; Moorcroft & Sneyd Green (majority); Tunstall; and a very small part of Etruria & Hanley.^[5]

Constituency profile

Each of the three constituencies of Stoke-on-Trent contain two of the historic "six towns" of the Potteries. Burslem and Tunstall are Stoke-on-Trent North's long-established ceramics and porcelain settlements; see Staffordshire Potteries.

The area has relatively fast connections compared to other seats in the county, equally to Greater Manchester and the West Midlands. However, the area's traditional pottery industry has shed many jobs. Workless claimants, registered jobseekers, were in November 2012 higher than the national average of 3.8%, at 5.2% of the population based on a statistical compilation by The Guardian, the middle figure of the three rates for the city's seats.^[6]

History

The constituency was created for the 1950 general election as the successor to the Burslem Division of Stoke-on-Trent. It also included parts of the Leek constituency which had been absorbed into the County Borough of Stoke-on-Trent.

Political history

This seat and its predecessor had elected Labour MPs at every election since 1935, until Jonathan Gullis won the seat for the Conservatives from incumbent Ruth Smeeth in 2019. Labour's David Williams recaptured the seat from Gullis at the 2024 general election.

Prominent members

As a frontbench member in government, John Forrester became in 1970 a Health Minister, before the election of that year.

Members of Parliament

Election		Member[7]	Party
	1950	Albert Davies	Labour
	1953 by-election	Harriet Slater	Labour Co-op
	1966	John Forrester	Labour
	1987	Joan Walley	Labour
	2015	Ruth Smeeth	Labour
	2019	Jonathan Gullis	Conservative
	2024	David Williams	Labour

Elections

Elections in the 2020s

General election 2024: Stoke-on-Trent North^[8]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	David Williams	14,579	40.3	+5.5
	Conservative	Jonathan Gullis	9,497	26.3	−27.8
	Reform UK	Karl Beresford	8,824	24.4	+18.8
	Green	Josh Harris	1,236	3.4	+2.0
	Independent	Jag Boyapti	1,103	3.1	N/A
	Liberal Democrats	Lucy Hurds	911	2.5	−0.8
Majority			5,082	14.1	N/A
Turnout			36,150	51.8	−8.1
	Labour gain from Conservative		Swing	+16.6

Elections in the 2010s

General election 2019: Stoke-on-Trent North^[9]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Jonathan Gullis	20,974	52.3	7.0
	Labour	Ruth Smeeth	14,688	36.6	14.3
	Brexit Party	Richard Watkin	2,374	5.9	New
	Liberal Democrats	Peter Andras	1,268	3.2	1.0
	Green	Alan Borgars	508	1.3	0.3
	Independent	Matthew Dilworth	322	0.8	New
Majority			6,286	15.7	N/A
Turnout			40,134	57.5	1.1
	Conservative gain from Labour		Swing	10.7

General election 2017: Stoke-on-Trent North^[10]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Ruth Smeeth	21,272	50.9	11.0
	Conservative	Benedict Adams	18,913	45.3	17.9
	Liberal Democrats	Richard Whelan	916	2.2	0.7
	Green	Doug Rouxel	685	1.6	1.2
Majority			2,359	5.6	6.9
Turnout			41,786	58.6	5.4
	Labour hold		Swing	3.4

General election 2015: Stoke-on-Trent North^[11]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Ruth Smeeth	15,429	39.9	4.4
	Conservative	Benedict Adams	10,593	27.4	3.6
	UKIP	Geoff Locke	9,542	24.7	18.5
	Liberal Democrats	Paul Roberts	1,137	2.9	14.8
	Green	Sean Adam	1,091	2.8	New
	Independent	John Millward	508	1.3	New
	Independent	Craig Pond[12][13]	354	0.9	New
Majority			4,836	12.5	8.0
Turnout			38,654	53.2	2.6
	Labour hold		Swing	4.0

General election 2010: Stoke-on-Trent North^[14]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Joan Walley	17,815	44.3	11.5
	Conservative	Andy Large	9,580	23.8	6.0
	Liberal Democrats	John Fisher	7,120	17.7	4.2
	BNP	Melanie Baddeley	3,196	8.0	2.0
	UKIP	Geoff Locke	2,485	6.2	2.1
Majority			8,235	20.5	11.9
Turnout			40,196	55.8	4.9
	Labour hold		Swing	8.8

Elections of the 2000s

General election 2005: Stoke-on-Trent North^[15][16]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Joan Walley	16,191	52.6	−5.4
	Conservative	Benjamin Browning	6,155	20.0	+1.2
	Liberal Democrats	Henry Jebb	4,561	14.8	+2.9
	BNP	Spencer Cartlidge	2,132	6.9	New
	UKIP	Eileen Braithwaite	696	2.3	New
	Veritas	Ian Taylor	689	2.2	New
	Independent	Harry Chesters	336	1.1	New
Majority			10,036	32.6	−6.6
Turnout			30,760	52.7	+0.8
	Labour hold		Swing	-3.3

General election 2001: Stoke-on-Trent North^[17][18]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Joan Walley	17,460	58.0	−7.2
	Conservative	Benjamin Browning	5,676	18.8	−1.4
	Liberal Democrats	Henry Jebb	3,580	11.9	+1.2
	Independent	Charles Wanger	3,399	11.3	New
Majority			11,784	39.2	−5.8
Turnout			30,115	51.9	−13.4
	Labour hold		Swing	-2.9

Elections of the 1990s

General election 1997: Stoke-on-Trent North^[19][20]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Joan Walley	25,190	65.2	+8.5
	Conservative	Christopher Day	7,798	20.2	−9.0
	Liberal Democrats	Henry Jebb	4,141	10.7	−2.6
	Referendum	Jennefer Tobin	1,537	4.0	New
Majority			17,392	45.0	+17.5
Turnout			38,664	65.3	−8.1
	Labour hold		Swing	+11.9

General election 1992: Stoke-on-Trent North^[21][22]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Joan Walley	30,464	56.7	+9.6
	Conservative	Laurence Harris	15,687	29.2	−2.1
	Liberal Democrats	John Redfern	7,167	13.3	−8.3
	Natural Law	Alan Morrison	387	0.7	New
Majority			14,777	27.5	+11.7
Turnout			53,705	73.4	+0.5
	Labour hold		Swing	+5.9

Elections of the 1980s

General election 1987: Stoke-on-Trent North^[23]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Joan Walley	25,459	47.1	+0.8
	Conservative	Reginald Davies	16,946	31.3	+0.4
	SDP	Stephen Simmonds	11,665	21.6	−1.2
Majority			8,513	15.8	+0.4
Turnout			54, 070	72.9	+1.9
	Labour hold		Swing	+0.2

General election 1983: Stoke-on-Trent North^[24]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	John Forrester	24,721	46.3	−13.1
	Conservative	Roger Ibbs	16,518	30.9	+0.3
	SDP	Trevor Beswick	12,186	22.8	+13.6
Majority			8,203	15.4	−13.3
Turnout			53,425	71.0	−1.7
	Labour hold		Swing

Elections of the 1970s

General election 1979: Stoke-on-Trent North

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	John Forrester	25,652	59.36
	Conservative	Roger Ibbs	13,228	30.61
	Liberal	Clive Smedley	3,994	9.24
	National Front	C Baugh	341	0.79	New
Majority			12,424	28.75
Turnout			43,215	72.75
	Labour hold		Swing

General election October 1974: Stoke-on-Trent North

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	John Forrester	25,264	60.59
	Conservative	JWD Davies	10,192	24.44
	Liberal	M Smith	6,239	14.96	New
Majority			15,072	36.15
Turnout			41,695	69.61
	Labour hold		Swing

General election February 1974: Stoke-on-Trent North

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	John Forrester	28,177	64.19
	Conservative	J Davies	15,718	35.81
Majority			12,459	28.38
Turnout			43,895	73.95
	Labour hold		Swing

General election 1970: Stoke-on-Trent North

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	John Forrester	20,642	66.19
	Conservative	JS Heath	10,542	33.81
Majority			10,100	32.38
Turnout			31,184	52.95
	Labour win (new seat)

Elections of the 1960s

General election 1966: Stoke-on-Trent North

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	John Forrester	28,491	71.54
	Conservative	LCN Bury	11,335	28.46
Majority			17,156	43.08
Turnout			39,826	72.44
	Labour hold		Swing

General election 1964: Stoke-on-Trent North

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour Co-op	Harriet Slater	27,584	64.74
	Conservative	B David Barton	15,025	35.26
Majority			12,559	29.48
Turnout			42,609	76.24
	Labour Co-op hold		Swing

Elections of the 1950s

General election 1959: Stoke-on-Trent North

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour Co-op	Harriet Slater	29,336	63.97
	Conservative	Samuel Middup	16,522	36.03
Majority			12,814	27.94
Turnout			45,858	78.61
	Labour Co-op hold		Swing

General election 1955: Stoke-on-Trent North

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour Co-op	Harriet Slater	29,473	66.87
	Conservative	Samuel Middup	14,599	33.13
Majority			14,874	33.74
Turnout			44,072	75.31
	Labour Co-op hold		Swing

By Election 1953: Stoke-on-Trent North

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour Co-op	Harriet Slater	23,103	75.49	+4.05
	Conservative	Samuel Middup	7,502	24.51	−4.05
Majority			15,601	50.98	+8.10
Turnout			30,605
	Labour hold		Swing

General election 1951: Stoke-on-Trent North

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Albert Davies	36,692	71.44
	National Liberal	James Coventry	14,668	28.56
Majority			22,024	42.88
Turnout			51,360	83.81
	Labour hold		Swing

General election 1950: Stoke-on-Trent North

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Albert Davies	36,896	71.58
	Conservative	PW Hodgens	14,647	28.42
Majority			22,249	43.16
Turnout			51,543	85.01
	Labour win (new seat)

See also

• List of parliamentary constituencies in Staffordshire
• List of parliamentary constituencies in West Midlands (region)
• Edward Kenealy

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.