Isle of Wight West
UK Parliament constituency (since 2024)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Isle of Wight West is a constituency of the House of Commons in the UK Parliament.[1] Further to the completion of the 2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies, it was first contested at the 2024 general election, since when it has been represented by Richard Quigley for the Labour Party.
| Isle of Wight West | |
|---|---|
| County constituency for the House of Commons | |
 Interactive map of boundaries since 2024 | |
Boundary within South East England | |
| County | Isle of Wight |
| Electorate | 55,406 (2024) |
| Current constituency | |
| Created | 2024 |
| Member of Parliament | Richard Quigley (Labour) |
| Seats | One |
| Created from | Isle of Wight |
The Isle of Wight is granted two Members of Parliament under the Parliamentary Constituencies Act 1986, as amended by the Parliamentary Voting System and Constituencies Act 2011.[2] The constituency has been created alongside Isle of Wight East from the divided former Isle of Wight constituency.[3]
Quigley became the first ever Labour MP to represent the Isle of Wight, defeating Bob Seely, who had been MP for the whole island from 2017 to 2024.
Constituency profile
The Isle of Wight West constituency covers the western two-thirds of the Isle of Wight, an island off the south coast of Hampshire. The island's two constituencies each have electorates that are around 25% smaller than the United Kingdom average—more than the usually-permitted discrepancy of 5%—due to the island's protected status under the 2023 periodic review.[4][5] This constituency includes the towns of Newport (the island's administrative centre), Cowes, East Cowes and Yarmouth and the villages of Freshwater and Totland.
Newport is the location of the annual Isle of Wight Festival, one of the country's largest music festivals,[6] and HMP Isle of Wight, one of the country's largest prisons. Cowes and East Cowes have a maritime history and are known for Cowes Week, a popular annual sailing regatta. East Cowes is the site of Osborne House, which was built for Queen Victoria as a summer home and popularised the island as a tourist destination. The constituency has average levels of wealth; there is some deprivation in Newport whilst Cowes is more affluent.[7] House prices across the constituency are below the national average and considerably lower than the rest of South East England.[8]
Compared to the rest of the country, residents of the constituency are older and have low levels of education and household income.[8] Few residents work in professional occupations and a high proportion work in healthcare and accommodation.[9] White people made up 97% of the population at the 2021 census.[8] At the local council, the towns and villages of the constituency are mostly represented by independent councillors whilst the rural areas elected Conservatives and Greens. Voters in the constituency showed strong support for leaving the European Union in the 2016 referendum; an estimated 61% voted for Brexit compared to the nationwide figure of 52%.[8]
Boundaries
The constituency comprises western and central areas of the Isle of Wight, including the communities of Newport, East Cowes, Cowes and Freshwater. It is composed of the following electoral divisions of the Isle of Wight:
- Brighstone, Calbourne & Shalfleet, Carisbrooke & Gunville, Central Rural, Chale, Niton & Shorwell, Cowes Medina, Cowes North, Cowes South & Northwood, Cowes West & Gurnard, East Cowes, Fairlee & Whippingham, Freshwater North & Yarmouth, Freshwater South, Mountjoy & Shide, Newport Central, Newport West, Osborne, Pan & Barton, Parkhurst & Hunnyhill, and Totland & Colwell.[10]
Members of Parliament
Isle of Wight prior to 2024
| Election | Member | Party | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Richard Quigley | Labour Party | |
Elections
Elections in the 2020s
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Richard Quigley | 13,240 | 38.6 |  14.1 | |
| Conservative | Bob Seely | 10,063 | 29.3 |  25.7 | |
| Reform | Ian Pickering | 5,834 | 17.0 | N/A | |
| Liberal Democrats | Nick Stuart | 2,726 | 7.9 | N/A | |
| Green | Cameron Palin | 2,310 | 6.7 | 9.7 | |
| ADF | Rachel Thacker | 117 | 0.3 | N/A | |
| Majority | 3,177 | 9.3 | N/A | ||
| Registered electors | 55,406 | ||||
| Turnout | 34,290 | 61.9 | 7.5 | ||
| Labour gain from Conservative | Swing | 19.8 |
|||
| 2019 notional result[13] | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Vote | % | |
| Conservative | 20,949 | 55.0 | |
| Labour | 9,331 | 24.5 | |
| Green | 6,245 | 16.4 | |
| Independent Network | 757 | 2.0 | |
| Others | 430 | 1.1 | |
| Others | 391 | 1.0 | |
| Turnout | 38,103 | 69.4 | |
| Electorate | 54,911 | ||