Brent East

The Brent East constituency is located within the Borough of Brent in North London. It is almost entirely urban in nature and contains the neighbourhoods of Willesden, Dollis Hill and Kingsbury. The area experienced deprivation and overcrowding in the late 20th century but has recently seen increasing gentrification.^[3][4] Brent is extremely ethnically diverse. People born outside the United Kingdom make up 56% of residents, the highest rate of any local authority in the country.^[5] Brent has the highest proportion of Irish people in Great Britain and the country's largest Brazilian community.^[6][7] Brent East constituency contains BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir London, once the largest Hindu temple outside India.^[8][9][10]

On average, residents of the constituency have lower household income and lower levels of education, professional employment and home ownership compared to the rest of London.^[11] Much of the constituency is in the 10% most deprived areas in the country, although the Brondesbury area is generally wealthier and more suburban in character.^[12] White British people make up 17% of the population, 17% are White of other backgrounds, 22% are Asian, 22% are Black and 7% are Arabs. The constituency is ethnically divided; the White population is concentrated in Brondesbury, the Asian population in Kingsbury and the Black population in the west of Willesden.^[13]

At the most recent borough council election in 2022, all seats in the constituency were won by the Labour Party. An estimated 60% of voters in Brent East favoured remaining in the European Union in the 2016 referendum, in line with the rest of London and higher than the country as a whole.^[11]

The constituency was created in 1974 and was first contested at the February general election of that year. It was held by Reg Freeson from 1974 to 1987, then by Ken Livingstone (following the abolition of the Greater London Council, of which he was leader, in 1986).

An ethnically diverse area, it was previously one of the Labour Party's safest seats in London. In 1971, 19.3% were non-White.^[14] In 1981, 30% of the constituency were non-White.^[15] The constituency had the highest concentration (10.5% of the population) of Irish born people in 1981.^[16]

After Livingstone was expelled from the Labour Party for standing as an independent candidate for Mayor of London in 2000, he represented the constituency as an independent until standing down as an MP in 2001 to concentrate on his position as Mayor. Labour regained the seat at the 2001 general election, with Paul Daisley holding the seat until his death two years later.

The resulting Brent East by-election was held on 18 September 2003, with the 2003 Invasion of Iraq as a background. Labour lost the seat to Sarah Teather of the Liberal Democrats, with a considerable 29% swing, having come from a distant third place in 2001.^[17] Teather retained the seat at the 2005 general election, with a majority of 2,712 votes and a swing of 30.7% from Labour to the Liberal Democrats compared to the previous general election.

• Parliamentary constituencies in London