Newport West (UK Parliament constituency)
# Newport West (UK Parliament constituency)

Newport West (Welsh: Gorllewin Casnewydd) is one of two parliamentary constituencies for the city of Newport, South Wales, in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament (MP) using the first-past-the-post voting system. Paul Flynn, of the Labour Party, was the MP from the 1987 general election until his death on 17 February 2019. Consequently, a by-election was held in the constituency on Thursday 4 April 2019. It is currently represented by Ruth Jones.

The constituency is set to be abolished, as part of the 2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies and under the June 2023 final recommendations of the Boundary Commission for Wales for the next United Kingdom general election. Its wards is to be split between Newport East, and Newport West and Islwyn.

## Boundaries

The constituency comprises the electoral divisions of Allt-yr-yn, Bettws, Caerleon, Gaer, Graig, Malpas, Marshfield, Pillgwenlly, Rogerstone, Shaftesbury, Stow Hill and Tredegar Park in the city of Newport. The western and northern boundaries are formed by the city boundary, the eastern boundary by the River Usk, and the southern boundary by the Bristol Channel.

## History

Newport West was created when the former Newport constituency was split into two seats in 1983. The seat was won on a narrow three-figure majority by the Conservatives. However, Labour's Paul Flynn gained the seat in 1987 and held it until his death in 2019.

## Members of Parliament

| Election | Member | Party |
| - | - | - |
| 1983 | Mark Robinson | Conservative |
| 1987 | Paul Flynn | Labour |
| 2019 by-election | Ruth Jones | Labour |

## Elections

### Elections in the 1980s

General election 1983: Newport West :

| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| - | - | - | - | - | - |
| | Conservative | Mark Robinson | 15,948 | 38.0 | N/A |
| | Labour | Bryan Davies | 15,367 | 36.6 | N/A |
| | Liberal | Whitney Jones | 10,163 | 24.2 | N/A |
| | Plaid Cymru | Denis Watkins | 477 | 1.2 | N/A |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 581 | 1.4 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 41,955 | 77.5 | N/A |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 54,125 | | |
| | Conservative win (new seat) | Conservative win (new seat) | Conservative win (new seat) | Conservative win (new seat) | Conservative win (new seat) |

General election 1987: Newport West :

| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| - | - | - | - | - | - |
| | Labour | Paul Flynn | 20,887 | 46.1 | +9.5 |
| | Conservative | Mark Robinson | 18,179 | 40.1 | +2.1 |
| | Liberal | Winston Roddick | 5,903 | 13.0 | −11.2 |
| | Plaid Cymru | Digby Bevan | 377 | 0.8 | −0.4 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,708 | 6.0 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 45,346 | 81.8 | +4.3 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 55,455 | | |
| | Labour gain from Conservative | Labour gain from Conservative | Swing | +3.7 | |

### Elections in the 1990s

General election 1992: Newport West :

| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| - | - | - | - | - | - |
| | Labour | Paul Flynn | 24,139 | 53.1 | +7.0 |
| | Conservative | Andrew Taylor | 16,360 | 36.0 | -4.1 |
| | Liberal Democrats | John Toye | 4,296 | 9.5 | -3.5 |
| | Plaid Cymru (Green) | Peter Keelan | 653 | 1.4 | +0.6 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 7,770 | 17.1 | +11.1 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 45,059 | 82.8 | +1.0 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 54,871 | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | +5.6 | |

General election 1997: Newport West :

| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| - | - | - | - | - | - |
| | Labour | Paul Flynn | 24,331 | 60.5 | +7.4 |
| | Conservative | Peter Clarke | 9,794 | 24.4 | -11.6 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Stanley Wilson | 3,907 | 9.7 | +0.2 |
| | Referendum | Andrew Thompsett | 1,199 | 3.0 | N/A |
| | Plaid Cymru | Huw Jackson | 648 | 1.6 | +0.2 |
| | UKIP | Hugh Hughes | 323 | 0.8 | N/A |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 14,357 | 36.1 | +19.0 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 40,202 | 74.6 | -8.2 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 53,914 | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | +9.5 | |

### Elections in the 2000s

General election 2001: Newport West :

| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| - | - | - | - | - | - |
| | Labour | Paul Flynn | 18,489 | 52.7 | -7.8 |
| | Conservative | William Morgan | 9,185 | 26.2 | +1.8 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Veronica Watkins | 4,095 | 11.7 | +2.0 |
| | Plaid Cymru | Anthony Salkeld | 2,510 | 7.2 | +5.6 |
| | UKIP | Hugh Hughes | 506 | 1.4 | +0.6 |
| | BNP | Terrance Cavill | 278 | 0.8 | N/A |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 9,304 | 26.5 | -9.6 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 35,063 | 59.1 | -15.5 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 59,345 | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | -4.8 | |

General election 2005: Newport West :

| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| - | - | - | - | - | - |
| | Labour | Paul Flynn | 16,021 | 44.8 | -7.9 |
| | Conservative | William Morgan | 10,563 | 29.6 | +3.4 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Nigel Flanagan | 6,398 | 17.9 | +6.2 |
| | Plaid Cymru | Anthony Salkeld | 1,278 | 3.6 | -3.6 |
| | UKIP | Hugh Hughes | 848 | 2.4 | +1.0 |
| | Green | Peter Varley | 540 | 1.5 | N/A |
| | Independent | Saeid Arjomand | 84 | 0.2 | N/A |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 5,458 | 15.2 | -11.3 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 35,732 | 59.3 | +0.2 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 60,303 | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | -5.6 | |

### Elections in the 2010s

General election 2010: Newport West :

| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| - | - | - | - | - | - |
| | Labour | Paul Flynn | 16,389 | 41.3 | -3.5 |
| | Conservative | Matthew Williams | 12,845 | 32.3 | +2.7 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Veronica German | 6,587 | 16.6 | -1.3 |
| | BNP | Timothy Windsor | 1,183 | 3.0 | N/A |
| | UKIP | Hugh Hughes | 1,144 | 2.9 | +0.5 |
| | Plaid Cymru | Jeff Rees | 1,122 | 2.8 | -0.8 |
| | Green | Pippa Bartolotti | 450 | 1.1 | -0.4 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 3,544 | 9.0 | -6.2 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 39,720 | 64.8 | +5.5 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 62,111 | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | -3.2 | |

General election 2015: Newport West :

| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| - | - | - | - | - | - |
| | Labour | Paul Flynn | 16,633 | 41.2 | −0.1 |
| | Conservative | Nick Webb | 13,123 | 32.5 | +0.2 |
| | UKIP | Gordon Norrie | 6,134 | 15.2 | +12.3 |
| | Plaid Cymru | Simon Coopey | 1,604 | 4.0 | +1.2 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Ed Townsend | 1,581 | 3.9 | −12.7 |
| | Green | Pippa Bartolotti | 1,272 | 3.2 | +2.1 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 3,510 | 8.7 | −0.3 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 40,347 | 64.9 | +0.1 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 62,137 | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | −0.1 | |

General election 2017: Newport West :

| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| - | - | - | - | - | - |
| | Labour | Paul Flynn | 22,723 | 52.3 | +11.1 |
| | Conservative | Angela Jones-Evans | 17,065 | 39.3 | +6.8 |
| | UKIP | Stan Edwards | 1,100 | 2.5 | −12.7 |
| | Plaid Cymru | Morgan Bowler-Brown | 1,077 | 2.5 | −1.5 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Sarah Lockyer | 976 | 2.2 | −1.7 |
| | Green | Pippa Bartolotti | 497 | 1.1 | −2.1 |
| Rejected ballots | Rejected ballots | Rejected ballots | 82 | | |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 5,658 | 13.0 | +4.3 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 43,438 | 67.5 | +2.6 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 64,399 | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | +2.2 | |

Of the 82 rejected ballots:

* 47 were either unmarked or it was uncertain who the vote was for.
* 29 voted for more than one candidate.
* 4 had writing or mark by which the voter could be identified.

2019 Newport West by-election :

| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| - | - | - | - | - | - |
| | Labour | Ruth Jones | 9,308 | 39.6 | −12.7 |
| | Conservative | Matthew Evans | 7,357 | 31.3 | −8.0 |
| | UKIP | Neil Hamilton | 2,023 | 8.6 | +6.1 |
| | Plaid Cymru | Jonathan Clark | 1,185 | 5.0 | +2.5 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Ryan Jones | 1,088 | 4.6 | +2.4 |
| | Green | Amelia Womack | 924 | 3.9 | +2.8 |
| | Renew | June Davies | 879 | 3.7 | N/A |
| | Abolish | Richard Suchorzewski | 205 | 0.9 | N/A |
| | SDP | Ian McLean | 202 | 0.9 | N/A |
| | Democrats and Veterans | Philip Taylor | 185 | 0.8 | N/A |
| | For Britain | Hugh Nicklin | 159 | 0.7 | N/A |
| Rejected ballots | Rejected ballots | Rejected ballots | 100 | | |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,951 | 8.2 | −4.8 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 23,615 | 37.1 | −30.4 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 63,623 | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | −2.4 | |

Of the 100 rejected ballots:

* 69 were either unmarked or it was uncertain who the vote was for.
* 23 voted for more than one candidate.
* 8 had writing or mark by which the voter could be identified.

General election 2019: Newport West :

| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| - | - | - | - | - | - |
| | Labour | Ruth Jones | 18,977 | 43.7 | −8.6 |
| | Conservative | Matthew Evans | 18,075 | 41.6 | +2.3 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Ryan Jones | 2,565 | 5.9 | +3.7 |
| | Brexit Party | Cameron Edwards | 1,727 | 4.0 | N/A |
| | Plaid Cymru | Jonathan Clark | 1,187 | 2.7 | +0.2 |
| | Green | Amelia Womack | 902 | 2.1 | +1.0 |
| Rejected ballots | Rejected ballots | Rejected ballots | 130 | | |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 902 | 2.1 | −10.9 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 43,433 | 65.2 | −2.3 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 66,657 | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | −5.5 | |

Of the 130 rejected ballots:

* 98 were either unmarked or it was uncertain who the vote was for.
* 29 voted for more than one candidate.
* 3 had writing or mark by which the voter could be identified.
