| Sutton Coldfield | |
| Parliament: | uk |
| Year: | 1945 |
| Type: | Borough |
| Elects Howmany: | One |
| Electorate: | 75,031 (December 2010)[1] |
| Region: | England |
| Party: | Conservative Party (UK) |
Sutton Coldfield is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2001 by Andrew Mitchell, a Conservative.
1945–1955: The Municipal Borough of Sutton Coldfield, and the Rural Districts of Meriden and Tamworth.
1955–1974: The Municipal Borough of Sutton Coldfield, and the County Borough of Birmingham ward of Erdington.[2]
1974–1983: The Municipal Borough of Sutton Coldfield.
1983–2010: The City of Birmingham wards of Sutton Four Oaks, Sutton New Hall, and Sutton Vesey.
2010–present: The City of Birmingham wards of Sutton Four Oaks, Sutton New Hall, Sutton Trinity, and Sutton Vesey. (Following a revision to the local authority ward structure in Birmingham which came into effect from May 2018,[3] and changed internal ward structure in the same constituency boundaries: the City of Birmingham wards of Sutton Four Oaks; Sutton Mere Green; Sutton Reddicap; Sutton Roughley; Sutton Trinity; Sutton Vesey; Sutton Walmley & Minworth; Sutton Wylde Green).
The constituency covers the northern part of the City of Birmingham. It corresponds to the former borough of Sutton Coldfield.
Workless claimants, registered jobseekers, were in November 2012 significantly lower than the national average of 3.8%, at 2.6% of the population based on a statistical compilation by The Guardian. At that date the regional average stood at 4.7%[4]
Within Birmingham, the Conservatives have 11 councillors in this seat, with Labour's one councillor in the Sutton Vesey ward.
This area contributed to the old seat of North Warwickshire or the 'Tamworth' division of Warwickshire, which remains in a much narrower form as the largely suburban town to the north has developed.[5] [6]
Former Cabinet minister Sir Norman Fowler served the seat from 1974 until retiring as an MP in 2001. Departments he led during the Thatcher ministry were transport, social services and then employment. Now Lord Fowler, he was Lord Speaker from September 2016 until April 2021. Andrew Mitchell, MP here since 2001 and previously MP for Gedling from 1987 to 1997, was Secretary of State for International Development then briefly Conservative Chief Whip while in Coalition Government 2010-2015, until standing down after swearing at police while attempting to take his bicycle through the main gates of Downing Street in 2012.
| Election | Member | Party | Notes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1945 | Sir John Mellor | Conservative | |||
| 1955 | Geoffrey Lloyd | Conservative | Minister of Fuel and Power 1951–1955 Minister of Education 1957–1959 | ||
| Feb 1974 | Norman Fowler | Conservative | Minister of Transport 1979–1981 Secretary of State for Transport 1981–1981 Secretary of State for Social Services 1981–1987 Secretary of State for Employment 1987–1990 Chairman of the Conservative Party 1992–1994 | ||
| 2001 | Andrew Mitchell | Conservative | Secretary of State for International Development 2010–2012 Parliamentary Secretary to the Treasury and Government Chief Whip 2012 Minister of State for Development and Africa 2022–2024 | ||