| Aldridge-Brownhills | |
| Parliament: | uk |
| Year: | 1974 |
| Type: | Borough |
| Seats: | One |
| Electorate: | 73,122 (2023)[1] |
| Population: | 76,974 (2011 census)[2] |
| Region: | England |
| Party: | Conservative |
Aldridge-Brownhills is a constituency in the West Midlands, represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament. It has been represented since 2015 by Wendy Morton, a Conservative.[3]
The constituency covers Aldridge and Brownhills as well as a patchwork of smaller towns and villages within Walsall, West Midlands. The seat is described as a safe seat for the Conservative party.[4] Residents are around average in terms of wealth for the UK.[5]
Aldridge-Brownhills constituency was created in 1974 from parts of the former seats of Walsall North and Walsall South. It is one of four constituencies covering the Metropolitan Borough of Walsall.[6] It covers the north-east and east of the borough. When held by the Labour Party, the constituency included most of Pheasey, a ward of the same name, then a stronger area for Labour than much of the rest, which was moved into Walsall South to account for population expansion in the seat.
1974–1983: The Urban District of Aldridge-Brownhills.
1983–2010: The Metropolitan Borough of Walsall wards of Aldridge Central and South, Aldridge North and Walsall Wood, Brownhills, Hatherton Rushall, Pelsall, and Streetly.
2010–2024: The Metropolitan Borough of Walsall wards of Aldridge Central and South, Aldridge North and Walsall Wood, Brownhills, Pelsall, Rushall-Shelfield, and Streetly.
2024-present:From the 2024 general election, the constituency is composed of the following wards (as they existed on 1 December 2020):
To bring the electorate within the permitted range, the seat was expanded to the south by transferring in the Pheasey Park Farm ward and part of the Paddock ward from the former constituency of Walsall South which was abolished in 2024.
The constituency has had just three different MPs since its formation in February 1974. Geoff Edge of the Labour Party served the constituency from February 1974 until 1979, when it was gained by Richard Shepherd of the Conservative Party; who was to represent the constituency for thirty-six years, even withstanding the 1997 Labour landslide on a below average Conservative-to-Labour swing. In 2014 Sir Richard Shepherd announced he would not stand for re-election at the 2015 general election. Wendy Morton, was selected to replace him as the Conservative candidate, and secured the seat with a safe majority of 11,723 votes.
| Election | Member | Party | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 1974 | Geoff Edge | Labour | |
| 1979 | Richard Shepherd | Conservative | |
| 2015 | Wendy Morton | ||