Morley and Leeds South (UK Parliament constituency)
# Morley and Leeds South (UK Parliament constituency)

Morley and Leeds South (often known as Leeds South and Morley) was a borough constituency in West Yorkshire, which returned one Member of Parliament (MP) to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1983 until it was abolished for the 1997 general election.

## History

This was a safe Labour seat during the three parliaments of its existence. The former Home Secretary Merlyn Rees was the MP from 1983 to 1992.

## Boundaries

The City of Leeds wards of Hunslet, Middleton, Morley North, and Morley South.

The constituency was located on the southern outskirts of the City of Leeds and included the town of Morley. The area is now more or less covered by Leeds Central and Morley and Outwood.

## Members of Parliament

| Election | Member | Party |
| - | - | - |
| 1983 | Merlyn Rees | Labour |
| 1992 | John Gunnell | Labour |
| 1997 | constituency abolished: see Morley and Rothwell, Leeds Central | constituency abolished: see Morley and Rothwell, Leeds Central |

## Elections

### Elections in the 1980s

General election 1983: Morley and Leeds South :

| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| - | - | - | - | - | - |
| | Labour | Merlyn Rees | 18,995 | 45.9 | |
| | Conservative | William Hyde | 13,141 | 31.8 | |
| | SDP | Peter Burley | 9,216 | 22.3 | |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 5,854 | 14.1 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 41,352 | 67.9 | |
| | Labour win (new seat) | Labour win (new seat) | Labour win (new seat) | Labour win (new seat) | Labour win (new seat) |

General election 1987: Morley and Leeds South :

| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| - | - | - | - | - | - |
| | Labour | Merlyn Rees | 21,551 | 49.5 | +3.6 |
| | Conservative | Tessa Holdroyd | 14,840 | 34.2 | +2.4 |
| | SDP | Edward Dawson | 7,099 | 16.3 | −6.0 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 6,711 | 15.3 | +1.2 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 43,490 | 71.6 | +3.7 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | +0.6 | |

### Elections in the 1990s

General election 1992: Morley and Leeds South :

| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| - | - | - | - | - | - |
| | Labour | John Gunnell | 23,896 | 52.2 | +2.7 |
| | Conservative | George Booth | 16,524 | 36.1 | +1.9 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Joan Walmsley | 5,062 | 11.1 | −5.2 |
| | Natural Law | Robert Thurston | 327 | 0.7 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 7,372 | 16.1 | +0.8 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 45,809 | 72.5 | +0.9 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | +0.4 | |
