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In the United Kingdom (UK), each of the electoral areas or divisions called constituencies elects one or more members to a parliament or assembly.

Within the United Kingdom there are now five bodies with members elected by constituencies and one that was abolished:

Electoral areas called constituencies are also used in elections to the European Parliament. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located A constituency is any cohesive corporate unit or body bound by shared structures goals or loyalty The House of Commons' is the Lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which also comprises the Sovereign and the House of Lords This is a list of the 646 constituencies currently represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, as at the 2005 general election The Parliament of Northern Ireland was the home rule Legislature of Northern Ireland, created under the Government of Ireland Act 1920, The Northern Ireland House of Commons existed from 1921 to 1973 as the lower House of the devolved legislature of the part of the United Kingdom called Northern Ireland The Scottish Parliament ( Scottish Gaelic: Pàrlamaid na h-Alba; Scots: Scottish Pairlament) is the devlolved national unicameral The Scottish Parliament ( Holyrood) has 73 constituencies, each electing one Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP by the Plurality ( First The Northern Ireland Assembly ( Irish: Tionól Thuaisceart Éireann, Ulster Scots: Norlin Airlann Semmlie) is the devolved Northern Ireland is divided into 18 Parliamentary constituencies - 4 Borough constituencies in Belfast and 14 County constituencies elsewhere The National Assembly for Wales (Cynulliad Cenedlaethol Cymru is a devolved assembly with power to make legislation in Wales. National Assembly for Wales constituencies and electoral regions were first used for the Welsh Assembly election 1999. The London Assembly is an elected body part of the Greater London Authority, that scrutinises the activities of the Mayor of London and has the power with a two-thirds Greater London is divided into fourteen territorial constituencies for London Assembly elections each returning one member The European Parliament ( Europarl or EP) is the only directly elected parliamentary institution of the European Union (EU (See European Parliament constituencies. In six European Union Member States ( Belgium, France, Ireland, Italy, Poland and the United Kingdom) the national )

In local government elections, electoral areas are called wards or electoral divisions. Local government in the United Kingdom is arranged into four different systems with one each for England Northern Ireland Scotland and Wales A ward in the United Kingdom is an electoral district at subnational level represented by one or more councillors A ward in the United Kingdom is an electoral district at subnational level represented by one or more councillors

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County constituencies and borough constituencies

House of Commons, Northern Ireland Assembly, Scottish Parliament and Welsh Assembly constituencies are designated as either county or borough constituencies, except that in Scotland the term burgh is used instead of borough. Borough constituencies are predominantly urban. They are the successors of the historic parliamentary boroughs and parliamentary burghs. Parliamentary boroughs are a type of administrative division usually covering urban areas that are entitled to representation in a Parliament. The Act of Union 1707 and Pre-Union Scottish legislation provided for 14 Members of Parliament (MPs from Scotland to be elected from districts of (Each of the burghs, except for one, was a component in a district of burghs constituency. The Act of Union 1707 and Pre-Union Scottish legislation provided for 14 Members of Parliament (MPs from Scotland to be elected from districts of The exception was the burgh of Edinburgh, which was also, in its own right, the Edinburgh constituency. Edinburgh ( ˈɛdɪnb(ərə Dùn Èideann) is the Capital of Scotland and is its second largest city after Glasgow. Edinburgh was a Constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of Great Britain from 1708 to 1801 and of the Parliament of the United )

County constituencies are the successors to the historic parliamentary divisions of counties, and are predominantly rural in nature. Rural areas can be large and isolated (also referred to as "the country" and/or "the countryside over the course of time Sometimes a town can be covered by more than one constituency, with one a borough and another a county. Reading and Milton Keynes are both examples of this. Reading (ˈrɛdɪŋ as Redding) is a town in England, located at the confluence of the River Thames and River Kennet, midway between Milton Keynes ( ˌmɪltənˈkiːnz often abbreviated to MK, is a large town

The spending limits for election campaigns are different in the two, the reasoning being that candidates in county constituencies tend to need to travel further.

Elected bodyConstituency type
borough/burghcounty
House of Commons£7,150 + 5p per elector£7,150 + 7p per elector
Northern Ireland Assembly£5,483 + 4. 6p per elector£5,483 + 6. 2p per elector
Scottish Parliament
Welsh Assembly		£5,761 + 4. 8p per elector£5,761 + 6. 5p per elector

For by-elections to any of these bodies, the limit in all constituencies is £100,000. A by-election or bye-election (called special election in the United States) is an Election held to fill a political office that has become vacant

House of Commons constituencies

As of the 2005 United Kingdom general election, the House of Commons has 646 constituencies covering the whole of the United Kingdom. Results Overview For events leading up to the date of the election see article Pre-election day events of the United Kingdom general This is a list of the 646 constituencies currently represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, as at the 2005 general election Each constituency elects one Member of Parliament (MP) by the "first past the post" system of election. A Member of Parliament, or MP, is a representative elected by the voters to a Parliament. The plurality voting system is a Single-winner voting system often used to elect executive officers or to elect members of a legislative assembly which is based on single-member

The House of Commons is one of the two legislative bodies of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, the other being the House of Lords. Legislation (or " Statutory law " is law which has been promulgated (or " Enacted quot by a Legislature or other Governing The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom and British overseas territories The House of Lords is the second house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom and is also commonly referred to as "the Lords"

See also

London Assembly constituencies

There are fourteen London Assembly constituencies covering the Greater London area, and each constituency elects one member of the assembly by the first past the post system of election. This is a list of the 646 constituencies currently represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, as at the 2005 general election This is a list of former Parliamentary constituencies in the United Kingdom, organised by date of abolition This is a list of the constituencies which are expected to be established at the time of the next United Kingdom general election. A university constituency is a Constituency, used in elections to a Legislature, that represents a University rather than a geographical area Greater London is divided into fourteen territorial constituencies for London Assembly elections each returning one member Greater London is the top-level administrative subdivision covering London, England. The plurality voting system is a Single-winner voting system often used to elect executive officers or to elect members of a legislative assembly which is based on single-member Also, eleven additional members are elected from Greater London as a whole to produce a form or degree of mixed member proportional representation. The Additional Member System (AMS is a branch of Voting systems in which some representatives are elected from geographic constituencies and others are elected under Mixed member proportional representation, also termed mixed-member proportional voting and commonly abbreviated to MMP, is an ' additional member '

Constituency names and boundaries remain now as they were for the first general election of the assembly, in 2000. The first elections for members of the London Assembly were held on 4 May 2000, alongside the first mayoral election.

The assembly is part of the Greater London Authority and general elections of the assembly are held at the same time as election of the Mayor of London. The Greater London Authority ( GLA) is the city-wide governing body for London, England. The Mayor of London is an elected politician who along with the London Assembly of 25 members is accountable for the strategic government of Greater London (see

Northern Ireland Assembly constituencies


Scottish Parliament constituencies

Scottish Parliament constituencies are sometimes called Holyrood constituencies, to distinguish them from Westminster (House of Commons) constituencies. The Scottish Parliament ( Holyrood) has 73 constituencies, each electing one Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP by the Plurality ( First The Scottish Parliament Building is in the Holyrood area of Edinburgh, while the main meeting place of the Parliament of the United Kingdom is the Palace of Westminster, in the City of Westminster. The Scottish Parliament Building (Pàrlamaid na h-Alba is the home of the Scottish Parliament at Holyrood, within the UNESCO World Heritage Site Holyrood is an area in Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland. Located immediately to the east of the city centre at the end of the Royal Mile, Holyrood was Edinburgh ( ˈɛdɪnb(ərə Dùn Èideann) is the Capital of Scotland and is its second largest city after Glasgow. The City of Westminster ( is a borough of London with city status.

There are 73 Holyrood constituencies covering Scotland, and each elects one Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) by the first past the post system of election. Scotland ( Gaelic: Alba) is a Country in northwest Europethat occupies the northern third of the island of Great Britain. Member of the Scottish Parliament ( MSP) ( Ball Pàrlamaid na h-Alba ( BPA) in Gaelic) is the title given to any one of the 129 individuals elected The plurality voting system is a Single-winner voting system often used to elect executive officers or to elect members of a legislative assembly which is based on single-member Also, the constituencies are grouped into eight electoral regions, and each of these regions elects seven additional members, to produce a form or degree of mixed member proportional representation. The Additional Member System (AMS is a branch of Voting systems in which some representatives are elected from geographic constituencies and others are elected under Mixed member proportional representation, also termed mixed-member proportional voting and commonly abbreviated to MMP, is an ' additional member '

The existing constituencies were created, effectively, for the first general election of the Scottish Parliament, in 1999. The Scottish Parliament election 1999 was the first General election of the Scottish Parliament, with voting taking place on May 6, 1999. When created, all but two had the names and boundaries of Westminster constituencies. The two exceptions were the Orkney Holyrood constituency, covering the Orkney Islands council area, and the Shetland Holyrood constituency, covering the Shetland Islands council area. Orkney is a constituency of the Scottish Parliament ( Holyrood) Orkney (also known as the Orkney Islands or incorrectly the Orkneys) is an Archipelago in northern Scotland, situated 10 miles (16 km north Shetland is a constituency of the Scottish Parliament ( Holyrood) Shetland (formerly spelled Zetland, from etland; Old Norse non Hjaltland; Sealtainn is an Archipelago off the northeast coast of For Westminster elections, these council areas were covered (and still are covered) by the Orkney and Shetland Westminster constituency. For local government purposes Scotland is divided into 32 areas designated as "council areas" which are all governed by unitary authorities designated as Orkney and Shetland is a constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom.

In 1999, under the Scotland Act 1998,[1] the expectation was that there would be a permanent link between the boundaries of Holyrood constituencies and those of Westminster constituencies. The Scotland Act 1998 (1998 c 46 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. This link was broken, however, by the Scottish Parliament (Constituencies) Act 2004,[2] which enabled the creation of a new set of Westminster constituencies without change to Holyrood constituencies. The Scottish Parliament (Constituencies Act 2004 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that amends the Scotland Act 1998 which established The new Westminster boundaries became effective for the United Kingdom general election, 2005. Results Overview For events leading up to the date of the election see article Pre-election day events of the United Kingdom general

Welsh Assembly constituencies

There are 40 Welsh Assembly constituencies covering Wales, and each elects one Assembly Member (AM) by the first past the post system of election. National Assembly for Wales constituencies and electoral regions were first used for the Welsh Assembly election 1999. The National Assembly for Wales is composed of 60 members known as AMs or Assembly Members (in Welsh: ACau or Aelodau'r Cynulliad The plurality voting system is a Single-winner voting system often used to elect executive officers or to elect members of a legislative assembly which is based on single-member Also, the constituencies are grouped into five electoral regions, and each of these regions elects four additional members, to produce a form or degree of mixed member proportional representation. The Additional Member System (AMS is a branch of Voting systems in which some representatives are elected from geographic constituencies and others are elected under Mixed member proportional representation, also termed mixed-member proportional voting and commonly abbreviated to MMP, is an ' additional member '

The Assembly constituencies have, normally, the names and boundaries of House of Commons constituencies but, as of this year, 2007, we are into a period when they are different. This is because a new set of constituencies[3] was used in the Welsh Assembly election, 2007 but their boundaries will not become effective for House of Commons elections until the next United Kingdom general election. The 2007 National Assembly election was held on Thursday 3 May 2007 to elect members to the National Assembly for Wales. Leadership of the main parties David Cameron became Conservative leader in December 2005 replacing Michael Howard.

The current set of Assembly constituencies is the second to be created. The first was created for the first general election of the Assembly, in 1999. The first National Assembly for Wales election was held in 1999

European Parliament constituencies

There are twelve European Parliament constituencies covering the United Kingdom. In six European Union Member States ( Belgium, France, Ireland, Italy, Poland and the United Kingdom) the national All except one are entirely within the UK. The exception is the South West England constituency, which includes Gibraltar. South West England is a Constituency of the European Parliament. Gibraltar (dʒɨˈbrɒltər is a British overseas territory located near the southernmost tip of the Iberian Peninsula overlooking the Strait of Gibraltar [4] Each constituency elects a number of Members of the European Parliament (MSPs) the d'Hondt method of party-list proportional representation. A Member of the European Parliament ( English abbreviation MEP) is a member of the European Union 's legislative body the European Parliament. The D'Hondt method (mathematically but not operationally equivalent to Jefferson's method, and Bader-Ofer method) is a Highest averages method for Party-list proportional representation systems are a family of Voting systems used in multiple-winner Elections (e

The current set of UK European Parliament constituencies was first used in the 1999 European Parliament election. The 1999 European Parliamentary Election was a European election for all 626 members of the European Parliament held across the 15 European Union

Notes and references

  1. ^ Scotland Act 1998, Office of Public Sector Information website
  2. ^ Scottish Parliament (Constituencies) Act 2004, Office of Public Sector Information website
  3. ^ The Parliamentary Constituencies and Assembly Electoral Regions (Wales) Order 2006, Office of Public Sector Information website
  4. ^ Gibraltar should join South West for elections to European Parliament, Electoral Commission new release, 28 Aug 2003
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