| Wycombe | |
| Parliament: | uk |
| Year: | 1885 |
| Type: | County |
| Electorate: | 71,769 (2023)[1] |
| Region: | England |
| Year2: | 1295 |
| Abolished2: | 1885 |
| Type2: | County |
| Elects Howmany: | One |
| Elects Howmany2: | Two until 1868, then one |
| Towns: | High Wycombe, Loudwater |
Wycombe is a constituency in Buckinghamshire represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2024 by Labour's Emma Reynolds.
The constituency shares similar borders with Wycombe local government district, although it covers a slightly smaller area. The main town within the constituency, High Wycombe contains many working/middle class voters and a sizeable ethnic minority population that totals around one quarter of the town's population, with some census output areas of town home to over 50% ethnic minorities, and a number of wards harbouring a considerable Labour vote. The surrounding villages, which account for just under half of the electorate, are some of the most wealthy areas in the country, with extremely low unemployment, high incomes and favour the Conservatives. Workless claimants totalled 3.0% of the population in November 2012, lower than the national average of 3.8%.[2]
The Parliamentary Borough of Chipping Wycombe had continuously returned two MPs to the House of Commons of England since the Model Parliament of 1295 until 1707, then to the House of Commons of Great Britain from 1707 to 1800 and finally to the House of Commons of the United Kingdom from 1801. This was reduced to one MP by the Representation of the People Act 1867 and the Borough was abolished altogether by the Redistribution of Seats Act 1885. It was transformed into a large county division, formally named the Southern or Wycombe Division of Buckinghamshire. It was one of three divisions formed from the undivided three-member Parliamentary County of Buckinghamshire, the other two being the Mid or Aylesbury Division and the Northern or Buckingham Division. As well as the abolished Borough, it absorbed the abolished Parliamentary Borough of Great Marlow and included the towns of Beaconsfield and Slough.
Since 1885, the seat has been held by the Conservative Party except for brief intervals for the Liberals (1906-1910 and 1923-1924) and Labour (1945–1951).
The seat bucked the trend in 2019 with a swing of 2.3% to the Labour Party in spite of their heavy general election defeat, and was looked on as a key blue wall marginal constituency in the 2024 general election, which Labour won for the first time since 1951.
1885–1918
1918–1945
Beaconsfield was transferred to Aylesbury. Gained Eton which had been part of the abolished Parliamentary Borough of New Windsor in Berkshire.
1945–1950
The House of Commons (Redistribution of Seats) Act 1944 set up Boundaries Commissions to carry out periodic reviews of the distribution of parliamentary constituencies. It also authorised an initial review to subdivide abnormally large constituencies in time for the 1945 election.[5] This was implemented by the Redistribution of Seats Order 1945 under which Buckinghamshire was allocated an additional seat. As a consequence, the new constituency of Eton and Slough was formed from the Wycombe constituency, comprising the Municipal Borough of Slough and the Urban and Rural Districts of Eton. In compensation, the parts of the (revised) Rural District of Wycombe in the Aylesbury Division, including Hughenden and Princes Risborough, were transferred to Wycombe.
The revised composition of the constituency, after taking account of changes to local authorities, was:
1950–1974
No changes to boundaries.
1974–1983
Northern parts of the Rural District of Wycombe, including Princes Risborough, but excluding Hughenden, were transferred back to Aylesbury. Wooburn was included in the new constituency of Beaconsfield.
1983–1997
Areas to the east of High Wycombe (former parish of Chepping Wycombe) transferred to Beaconsfield. Hazlemere transferred to Chesham and Amersham.
1997–2010
Minor changes.2010–2024
Hazlemere transferred back from Chesham and Amersham. Marlow transferred to Beaconsfield and Hughenden to Aylesbury.
In April 2020, the District of Wycombe, together with those of Aylesbury, Chiltern and South Bucks were merged into the new unitary authority of Buckinghamshire Council. Accordingly, the current contents of the constituency are:
2024–present
Further to the 2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies which came into effect for the 2024 United Kingdom general election, the constituency is composed of the following (as they existed on 1 December 2020):
The electorate was reduced to bring it within the permitted range by transferring Hazlemere back to Chesham and Amersham once again.
| Year | First member | Second member | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1295 | Stephen Ayott | Thomas le Tayleur | |
| 1298 | Adam de Guldeford | Roger Allitarius | |
| 1300 | John le Pistor | ||
| 1306 | Peter le Cotiler | John le Bake | |
| 1307 | Andrew Batyn | ||
| 1307 | Roger de Sandwell | ||
| 1308 | Edmond de Haveringdoun | ||
| 1312 | Thomas Gerveys | Matthew le Fuller | |
| 1312 | Robert Paer | William le Cassiere | |
| 1318 | Robert Smith | William le Fote | |
| 1322 | Richard le Haslere | Bennet le Cassiere | |
| 1325 | John le Tayleur | John de Sandwell | |
| 1326 | Roger Sandwell | Matthew le Fuller | |
| 1327 | Richard atte Walle | John atte Donne | |
| 1328 | John atte Donne | Henry de Mussenden | |
| 1330 | John le Harriere | Richard Perre | |
| 1332 | Matthew le Fuller | Richard Tottering | |
| 1333 | Jordan de Wycombe | Richard Bennet | |
| 1335 | John Ayot | Richard Perkyn | |
| 1336 | John le Harriere | Thomas Gerveys | |
| 1336 | John Ayot | Richard Abyndon | |
| 1337 | John le Clerk | John Pool | |
| 1338 | Stephen Ayot | John le Taverner | |
| 1338 | Thomas Gerveys | Jordan de Preston | |
| 1341 | Robert Stenstoole | Robert Harleyford | |
| 1346 | Ralph Barber | ||
| 1347 | John Martyn | Robert Cattingham | |
| 1348 | Walter atte Leech | William Cassiere | |
| 1355 | Thomas Gerveys | Ralph Harleyford | |
| 1357 | Robert Harleyford | ||
| 1357 | John Mepertshale | ||
| 1360 | Robert le Weeler | ||
| 1360 | Richard Spigurnell | ||
| 1362 | William Frere | ||
| 1365 | Thomas Cornwaile | Richard Barbour | |
| 1368 | William atte Dene | ||
| 1369 | Thomas Gerveys | ||
| 1371 | No other? | ||
| 1372 | John Bledlowe | ||
| 1373 | Thomas Ballard | ||
| 1377 | Richard Sandwell | ||
| 1378 | Richard Jordaine | ||
| 1379 | Richard Sandwell | ||
| 1381 | Thomas Ravell | Walter Frere | |
| 1382 | William Kele | William atte Dene | |
| 1383 | Stephen Watford | John Petymin | |
| 1384 | William atte Dene | Richard Kele | |
| 1385 | Stephen Watford | ||
| 1386 | Walter Frere | Richard Holiman | |
| 1388 | Stephen Watford | William atte Dene | |
| 1391 | William Depham | ||
| 1392 | Walter Waltham | ||
| 1394 | Walter atte Dene | William Depham | |
| 1396 | Richard Sandwell | Walter Waltham | |
| 1399 | John Cotyngham | William Clerk | |
| 1401 | Nicholas Sperling | John Sandwell | |
| 1406 | John Cotyngham | William Marchaunt[11] | |
| 1413 | Henry Sperling | Roger More | |
| 1414 | William Hall | John Coventre II | |
| 1415 | William Clerk | Andrew Sperling | |
| 1417 | Roger More | ||
| 1419 | William Merchant | John Cotyngham | |
| 1420 | Roger More | Thomas Merston | |
| 1421 | John Horewode | Thomas Pusey | |
| 1421 | Roger More | Richard Merston | |
| 1422 | Nicholas Stepton | John Coventry | |
| 1423 | Roger More | ||
| 1424 | William Whaplode | John Cotyngham | |
| 1425 | Thomas Muston | William Stocton | |
| 1427 | John Coventry | John Justice | |
| 1429 | John Wellesbourn | John Bishop | |
| 1430 | Roger More | William Fowler | |
| 1432 | John Martyn | John Blackpoll | |
| 1434 | John Durein | John Cotyngham | |
| 1436 | John Hill | Bartholomew Halling | |
| 1441 | John Radeshill | John Martyn | |
| 1446 | John Wellesbourn | ||
| 1448 | John Haynes | ||
| 1449 | William Stocton | Nicholas Fayrewell | |
| 1450 | Thomas More | ||
| 1452 | William Collard | David Thomasyn | |
| 1461 | Thomas Mansell | Thomas Catsbury | |
| 1469 | Thomas Fowler | Thomas Fayrewell | |
| 1478 | Thomas Gate | Thomas Wellesbourn | |
| 1529 | William Windsor | ||
| 1542 | John Gates | William Dormer | |
| 1547 | Thomas Fisher | Armigyll Wade | |
| Mar 1553 | Henry Peckham | John Cheyne | |
| Oct 1553 | Robert Drury | ||
| Apr 1554 | Thomas Pymme alias Fryer | ||
| Nov 1554 | John Cheyne | William Drury | |
| 1555 | Henry Peckham | Robert Drury | |
| 1558 | Thomas Pymme | Robert Woodleafe | |
| 1558 | Paul Wentworth | Roland Bracebridge | |
| 1562 | Thomas Fermore alias Draper | Thomas Keele | |
| 1570 | John Russell | Robert Christmas | |
| 1571 | Thomas Nale | Rowland Goules | |
| 1584 | George Cawfield | ||
| 1585 | Thomas Ridley | George Fleetwood | |
| 1589 | Owen Oglethorp | Francis Goodwin | |
| 1592 | Thomas Tasburgh | Thomas Fortescue | |
| 1596 | John Tasburgh | ||
| 1601 | Henry Fleetwood | ||
| 1604 | Sir John Townsend | ||
| 1614 | Sir Henry Neville | ||
| 1621 | Arthur Goodwin | ||
| 1624 | Henry Coke | ||
| 1625 | Thomas Lane | ||
| 1626 | Edmund Waller | ||
| 1628 | Thomas Lane | ||
| 1629–1640 | No Parliament summoned | ||
| Year | First member | First party | Second member | Second party | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| April 1640 | Sir Edmund Verney | Royalist | Thomas Lane | Parliamentarian | ||
| November 1640 | ||||||
| October 1642 | Verney killed in battle – seat left vacant | |||||
| 1645 | Richard Browne | |||||
| December 1648 | Browne and Lane excluded in Pride's Purge – seats vacant | |||||
| 1653 | Wycombe was unrepresented in the Barebones Parliament | |||||
| 1654 | Thomas Scot | Wycombe had only one seat in the First and Second Parliaments of the Protectorate | ||||
| 1656 | Tobias Bridge | < | -- party --> | |||
| January 1659 | Thomas Scot | |||||
| May 1659 | Not represented in the restored Rump | |||||
| April 1660 | ||||||
| 1661 | ||||||
| February 1673 | ||||||
| November 1673 | ||||||
| 1679 | ||||||
| 1685 | ||||||
| 1689 | ||||||
| 1691 | ||||||
| 1696 | ||||||
| 1698 | John Archdale[12] | |||||
| 1699 | ||||||
| 1701 | ||||||
| 1710 | ||||||
| 1713 | ||||||
| February 1722 | ||||||
| March 1722 | ||||||
| February 1726 | Charles Colyear[13] | |||||
| March 1726 | ||||||
| 1727 | ||||||
| 1730 | ||||||
| 1734 | Edmund Waller[14] | |||||
| 1734 | ||||||
| 1741 | Edmund Waller | |||||
| 1747 | ||||||
| 1754 | Opposition Whig | |||||
| 1757 | ||||||
| 1760 | Whig | |||||
| March 1761 | ||||||
| December 1761 | Whig | |||||
| 1774 | ||||||
| 1780 | Whig | |||||
| 1786 | ||||||
| 1790 | Rear-Admiral Sir John Jervis[15] | Whig | ||||
| 1794 | ||||||
| 1796 | Non Partisan[16] | |||||
| 1802 | ||||||
| 1806 | Whig | |||||
| 1831 | Whig[17] | |||||
| 1832 | Whig | |||||
| 1837 | Whig[18] | |||||
| 1838 | Whig | |||||
| 1841 | Radical[19] [20] [21] [22] [23] | |||||
| 1847 | Whig | |||||
| 1859 | Liberal | Liberal | ||||
| 1862 | Liberal | |||||
| 1865 | Hon. Charles Carrington | Liberal | ||||
| Year | Member | Party | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1868 | Liberal | |||
| 1883 | Liberal | |||
| 1885 | Conservative | |||
| 1900 | Conservative | |||
| 1906 | Liberal | |||
| January 1910 | Conservative | |||
| 1914 | Conservative | |||
| 1923 | Liberal | |||
| 1924 | Unionist | |||
| 1945 | Labour | |||
| 1951 | Conservative | |||
| 1952 | Conservative | |||
| 1978 | Conservative | |||
| 2001 | Conservative | |||
| 2010 | Conservative | |||
| 2024 | Labour | |||
| 2019 notional result[24] | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Vote | % | |
| 20,213 | 43.1 | ||
| 18,719 | 39.9 | ||
| 5,310 | 11.3 | ||
| Others | 1,441 | 3.1 | |
| 1,209 | 2.6 | ||
| Turnout | 46,892 | 65.3 | |
| Electorate | 71,769 | ||
A general election was expected 1939–40 and by 1939 the following had been adopted as candidates;
In 1938, the local Labour and Liberal parties had set up a formal organisation, 'The South Bucks Unity Committee' in support of a Popular Front and may well have agreed to support a joint candidate against the sitting Conservative.[25]