Election of Members of Parliament to the House of Commons
General Elections elect Members of Parliament (MPs) to represent their constituency in the House of Commons, the elected house of the UK Parliament. The current Knowsley parliamentary constituency does not cover all of the same area as Knowsley Metropolitan Borough Council, but instead covers Kirkby, Knowsley Village, Huyton-with-Roby and part of Prescot.
A General Election must take place no later than 5 years since the last General Election, however the Fixed Term Parliament Act 2011 was repealed in 2022, returning the decision on when to call an election to the Prime Minister. This means the Prime Minister can call an election anytime during these 5 years. The next General Election can take place no later than 15th August 2029.
The current Member of Parliament (MP) for the Knowsley Constituency is The Rt Hon Anneliese Midgley MP who was elected for the first time at the last General Election on Thursday 4th July 2024. The Labour party formed a new government having secured an outright majority of MPs in the House of Commons.
You can view the Knowsley current constituency boundary and the location of the Houses of Parliament here:
History of constituencies and MPs
The current Knowsley constituency boundary was set in 2023. Prior to this Kirkby was part of:
- Knowsley (2010-2023) – see also Wikipedia
- Knowsley North and Sefton East (1997-2010) – see also Wikipedia
- Knowsley North (1983-1997) – see also Wikipedia
- Ormskirk (1885-1983) – see also Wikipedia
- South West Lancashire (1868-1885) – see Wikipedia
- South Lancashire (1832-1868) – see Wikipedia
- Lancashire (1290-1832) – see Wikipedia
Previous MPs whose constituencies covered Kirkby have included:
| MP | Term of office | Political party | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sir George Howarth | 1986 to 2024 | Labour | Successfully elected 10 times. Sir George died in 2026. See also Wikipedia. |
| Robert Kilroy-Silk | 1974 to 1986 | Labour | Later a UKIP MEP. See also Wikipedia. |
| Harold Soref | 1970 to 1974 | Conservative | Served in the British Army during WWII. See Wikipedia |
| Sir Douglas Glover | 1953 to 1970 | Conservative | Served in the British Army during WWII See Wikipedia |
| Sir Arthur Salter | 1951 to 1953 | Conservative | Proponent of a ‘United States of Europe’. See Wikipedia |
| Sir Ronald Cross | 1950 to 1951 | Conservative | Left office in 1951 to become Governor of Tasmania. See Wikipedia |
| Harold Wilson | 1945 to 1950 | Labour | Prime Minister from 1964 to 1970 and 1974 to 1976. See Wikipedia |
| Stephen King-Hall | 1939 to 1945 | National Labour/ Independent | Served in the Royal Navy during WWI. See Wikipedia |
| Sir Samuel Rosbotham | 1929 to 1939 | Labour/ National Labour | See Wikipedia |
| Francis Blundell | 1922 to 1929 | Conservative | See Wikipedia |
| James Bell | 1918 to 1922 | Labour | See Wikipedia |
| Sir Arthur Stanley | 1898 to 1918 | Conservative | See Wikipedia |
| Sir Arthur Forwood | 1885 to 1898 | Conservative | Died in office in 1898. See Wikipedia |
Results of the 2024 General Election for the Knowsley Parliamentary Constituency:
There was a 50.1% voter turnout at the 2024 General Election for the Knowsley Constituency, with the following results (source: UK Parliament):
| Candidate | Party | Number of votes | % of electorate |
| Anneliese Midgley | Labour Party | 24,243 | 33.7 |
| Alexander Hitchmough | Reform UK | 5,924 | 8.2 |
| Graham Wickens | Green Party | 2,772 | 3.9 |
| Sherrie McDaid | Conservative Party | 1,496 | 2.1 |
| Kate Tipton | Liberal Democrats | 1,232 | 1.7 |
| Graham Padden | Workers Party of Britain | 245 | 0.3 |
| Patricia Jameson | Social Democratic Party | 135 | 0.2 |
| Invalid ballots | 88 | 0.0 | |
| No vote cast | 35,829 | 49.8 | |
Results of the 2019 General Election for the Knowsley Parliamentary Constituency:
There was a 65.3% voter turnout at the 2019 General Election for the Knowsley Constituency, with the following results (source: UK Parliament):
| Candidate | Party | Number of votes | % of electorate |
| George Howarth | Labour Party | 44,374 | 52.8 |
| Rushi Millns | Conservative Party | 4,432 | 5.3 |
| Tim McCullough | UKIP | 3,348 | 4.0 |
| Paul Woodruff | Green Party | 1,262 | 1.5 |
| Joe Slumpsky | Liberal Democrats | 1,117 | 1.3 |
| Ray Catesby | Liberal Party | 405 | 0.5 |
| No vote cast | 29,144 | 34.7 | |
Results of the 2017 General Election for the Knowsley Parliamentary Constituency:
There was a 67.9% voter turnout at the 2017 General Election for the Knowsley Constituency, with the following results (source: UK Parliament):
| Candidate | Party | Number of votes | % of electorate |
| George Howarth | Labour Party | 47,351 | 57.9 |
| James Spencer | Conservative Party | 5,137 | 6.3 |
| Neil Miney | UKIP | 1,285 | 1.6 |
| Carl Cashman | Liberal Democrats | 1,189 | 1.5 |
| Steve Baines | Green Party | 521 | 0.6 |
| No vote cast | 26,245 | 32.1 | |
Results of the 2015 General Election for the Knowsley Parliamentary Constituency:
There was a 64.1% voter turnout at the 2015 General Election for the Knowsley Constituency, with the following results (source: UK Parliament):
| Candidate | Party | Number of votes | % of electorate |
| George Howarth | Labour Party | 39,628 | 50.1 |
| Louise Bours | UKIP | 4,973 | 6.3 |
| Alice Bramall | Conservative Party | 3,367 | 4.3 |
| Carl Cashman | Liberal Democrats | 1,490 | 1.9 |
| Vikki Gregorich | Green | 1,270 | 1.6 |
| No vote cast | 27,994 | 35.9 | |
Results of the 2010 General Election for the Knowsley Parliamentary Constituency:
There was a 56.1% voter turnout at the 2010 General Election for the Knowsley Constituency, with the following results (source: UK Parliament):
| Candidate | Party | Number of votes | % of electorate |
| George Howarth | Labour Party | 31,650 | 39.8 |
| Flo Lucas | Liberal Democrats | 5,964 | 7.5 |
| David Dunne | Conservative Party | 4,004 | 5.0 |
| Steven Greenhalgh | BNP | 1,895 | 2.4 |
| Anthony Rundle | UKIP | 1,145 | 1.4 |
| No vote cast | 44,635 | 43.9 | |
Results of the 2005 General Election for the Knowsley North and Sefton East Parliamentary Constituency:
There was a 52.6% voter turnout at the 2005 General Election for the Knowsley North and Sefton East Constituency, with the following results (source: Wikipedia):
| Candidate | Party | Number of votes | % of electorate |
| George Howarth | Labour Party | 23,461 | 33.3 |
| Flo Lucas | Liberal Democrats | 7,192 | 10.2 |
| Naman Purewal | Conservative Party | 5,064 | 7.2 |
| Michael McDermott | BNP | 872 | 1.2 |
| Stephen Whatham | Socialist Labour | 464 | 0.7 |
| No vote cast | 33,390 | 47.4 | |