Birmingham Hall Green (UK Parliament constituency)

Birmingham Hall Green is a parliamentary constituency in the city of Birmingham, which has been represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2019 by Tahir Ali of the Labour Party.

Birmingham Hall Green
Borough constituency for the House of Commons
Boundary of Birmingham Hall Green in Birmingham
Location of Birmingham within England
County	West Midlands
Population	115,904 (2011 census)^[1]
Electorate	77,157 (December 2010)^[2]
Current constituency
Created	1950
Member of Parliament	Tahir Ali (Labour)
Seats	One
Created from	Birmingham Acock's Green and Birmingham Moseley

It is a safe seat for Labour, having the twelfth-largest majority in the UK (by percentage) with a vote share for Labour of 77.6% and majority of 62.5%, as of 2017. This is compared to only a 32.9% share of the vote and 7.8% majority that Labour achieved in 2010.^[3]

Under the 2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies, the constituency will only be subject to minor boundary changes, but is to be renamed Birmingham Hall Green and Moseley when contested at the next general election.^[4]

Members of Parliament

Election		Member^[5]	Party	Notes
	1950	Aubrey Jones	Conservative	Resigned 1965
	1965 by-election	Reginald Eyre	Conservative
	1987	Andrew Hargreaves	Conservative
	1997	Steve McCabe	Labour
	2010	Roger Godsiff	Labour
	2019	Tahir Ali	Labour

Boundaries

 

Map of present boundaries

1950–1955: The County Borough of Birmingham wards of Hall Green, Sparkhill and Springfield.^[6]

1955–1974: The County Borough of Birmingham wards of Brandwood, Hall Green, and Springfield.^[7]

1974–1983: The County Borough of Birmingham wards of Billesley, Brandwood, and Hall Green.

1983–2010: The City of Birmingham wards of Billesley, Brandwood, and Hall Green.

2010–present: The City of Birmingham wards of Hall Green, Moseley and King's Heath, Sparkbrook, and Springfield.

Following the Fifth Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies, the Boundary Commission for England created a modified version of the Hall Green seat which contains a third of the constituency which existed for the 1997 general election and new additions – the retained former ward is Hall Green itself – and additional wards include two from the Birmingham, Sparkbrook and Small Heath which was abolished at the 2010 general election.

Constituency profile

The constituency is an inner suburban seat on the fringes city centre to its north and bordering Solihull in the east and south. The number of non-whites (64.5%) is high compared to the rest of the city (42%),^[8] as is the proportion of social housing (25.7%), with both figures higher than the national average. The area is home to a high number of public parks, open space and numerous tree-lined streets.^[9][10]

A famous landmark is Sarehole Mill, where J.R.R. Tolkien spent his boyhood, and which provided the inspiration for The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings.

Many constituents were employed in the car industry – notably Rover's nearby factories, which have now closed down.

History

Summary of results

The 2015 result made the seat the 28th safest of Labour's 232 seats by percentage of majority.^[11]

In the 2016 United Kingdom European Union membership referendum, the constituency voted to remain in the European Union with nearly two thirds of the vote, the strongest in Birmingham, despite the then-MP's Roger Godsiff's pro-Brexit stance.^[12] It was thus the most pro-EU constituency outside of Greater London to be represented by a pro-Brexit MP. Despite the Leave side winning the referendum, Godsiff did not vote to trigger Article 50 in the Parliament out of respect for his constituents' wishes.^[13]

The 2017 result made it the 12th safest seat in the UK, with a majority of 62.5% of the vote.^[3]

Hall Green, on various boundaries, elected a Conservative MP throughout the period from 1950 to 1997, and formed, with Birmingham, Edgbaston, the last of the Birmingham seats during the 1979–1997 Conservative Governments lost to Labour in 1997. This was the first time a Labour candidate had won the seat since it was created in 1950.

The 2015 result saw a +26.9% swing to the Labour Party and a correspondingly much greater than national average swing away from the Liberal Democrat candidate. This was in part due to the collapse of Respect's vote.

Turnout

Turnout has ranged from 83.1% in 1950 to 57.5% in 2001.

Elections

 

Elections in the 2010s

General election 2019: Birmingham Hall Green^[14]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Tahir Ali	35,889	67.8	9.8
	Conservative	Penny-Anne O'Donnell	7,381	13.9	1.2
	Independent	Roger Godsiff	4,273	8.1	N/A
	Liberal Democrats	Izzy Knowles	3,673	6.9	1.1
	Brexit Party	Rosie Cuckston	877	1.7	New
	Green	Patrick Cox	818	1.5
Majority			28,508	53.9	8.6
Turnout			52,911	65.9	3.5
	Labour hold		Swing	4.3

General election 2017: Birmingham Hall Green^[15][16]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Roger Godsiff	42,143	77.6	17.8
	Conservative	Reena Ranger	8,199	15.1	2.6
	Liberal Democrats	Jerry Evans	3,137	5.8	5.8
	Green	Patrick Cox	831	1.5	3.2
Majority			33,944	62.5	20.4
Turnout			54,310	69.4	7.8
	Labour hold		Swing	10.2

General election 2015: Birmingham Hall Green^[17]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Roger Godsiff	28,147	59.8	26.9
	Conservative	James Bird	8,329	17.7	2.7
	Liberal Democrats	Jerry Evans	5,459	11.6	13.0
	Green	Elly Stanton	2,200	4.7	New
	UKIP	Rashpal Mondair	2,131	4.5	2.6
	Respect	Shiraz Peer	780	1.7	23.4
Majority			19,818	42.1	34.3
Turnout			47,046	61.6	2.0
	Labour hold		Swing

(Note that the vote-share changes for 2010 are from the notional results on the new boundaries, not the actual 2005 results)

General election 2010: Birmingham Hall Green^[18][19]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Roger Godsiff	16,039	32.9	9.4
	Respect	Salma Yaqoob	12,240	25.1	New
	Liberal Democrats	Jerry Evans	11,988	24.6	1.8
	Conservative	Jo Barker	7,320	15.0	0.1
	UKIP	Alan Blumenthal	950	1.9	1.0
	Independent	Andrew Gardner	190	0.4	New
Majority			3,799	7.8	8.1
Turnout			48,727	63.6	7.7
	Labour hold		Swing

Elections in the 2000s

General election 2005: Birmingham Hall Green^[20]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Steve McCabe	16,304	47.2	7.4
	Conservative	Eddie Hughes	10,590	30.7	3.8
	Liberal Democrats	Roger Harmer	6,682	19.3	10.5
	UKIP	David Melhuish	960	2.8	0.7
Majority			5,714	16.5	3.6
Turnout			34,536	60.4	2.9
	Labour hold		Swing	1.8

General election 2001: Birmingham Hall Green^[21]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Steve McCabe	18,049	54.6	1.1
	Conservative	Chris White	11,401	34.5	1.1
	Liberal Democrats	Punjab Singh	2,926	8.8	0.8
	UKIP	Peter Johnson	708	2.1	New
Majority			6,648	20.1
Turnout			33,084	57.5	13.7
	Labour hold		Swing

Elections in the 1990s

General election 1997: Birmingham Hall Green^[22]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Steve McCabe	22,372	53.5	15.2
	Conservative	Andrew Hargreaves	13,952	33.4	12.7
	Liberal Democrats	Alastair Dow	4,034	9.6	6.0
	Referendum	Paul Bennett	1,461	3.5	New
Majority			8,420	20.1	12.3
Turnout			41,819	71.2	7.0
	Labour gain from Conservative		Swing	14.0

General election 1992: Birmingham Hall Green^[23][24]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Andrew Hargreaves	21,649	46.1	1.2
	Labour	Jane Slowey	17,984	38.3	10.1
	Liberal Democrats	David McGrath	7,342	15.6	11.4
Majority			3,665	7.8	8.9
Turnout			46,975	78.2	3.5
	Conservative hold		Swing	4.4

Elections in the 1980s

General election 1987: Birmingham Hall Green^[25][26]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Andrew Hargreaves	20,478	44.9	4.2
	Labour	Frances Brook	12,857	28.2	0.9
	SDP	Francis Wilkes	12,323	27.0	3.4
Majority			7,621	16.7	8.9
Turnout			45,658	74.7	4.1
	Conservative hold		Swing	2.6

General election 1983: Birmingham Hall Green^[27][28]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Reginald Eyre	21,142	49.1	-5.4
	Labour	Martin Willis	11,769	27.3	-8.0
	Liberal	John Hemming	10,175	23.6	+14.6
Majority			9,373	21.8	+2.6
Turnout			43,086	70.6	-2.7
	Conservative hold		Swing	+1.3

Elections in the 1970s

General election 1979: Birmingham Hall Green^[29]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Reginald Eyre	27,072	54.5	+10.8
	Labour	Theresa Stewart	17,508	35.3	-2.8
	Liberal	P.M. Lockyer	4,440	9.0	-9.1
	National Front	R Maylin	615	1.2	New
Majority			9,564	19.2	+13.6
Turnout			49,635	73.3	+3.1
	Conservative hold		Swing	+6.8

General election October 1974: Birmingham, Hall Green^[30]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Reginald Eyre	20,569	43.7	-12.8
	Labour	Theresa Stewart	17,945	38.1	-5.4
	Liberal	I. Powney	8,532	18.1	New
Majority			2,624	5.6	-7.3
Turnout			47,046	70.2	-2.4
	Conservative hold		Swing	-3.7

General election February 1974: Birmingham, Hall Green^[31]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Reginald Eyre	27,280	56.5	-3.9
	Labour	David Jamieson	21,036	43.5	+3.9
Majority			6,244	13.0	-7.8
Turnout			48,316	72.6	+4.9
	Conservative hold		Swing	-3.9

General election 1970: Birmingham, Hall Green^[32]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Reginald Eyre	27,319	60.4	+13.0
	Labour	T.L. Keene	17,930	39.6	-0.1
Majority			9,389	20.8	+13.1
Turnout			45,249	67.7	-5.9
	Conservative hold		Swing	+6.6

Elections in the 1960s

General election 1966: Birmingham, Hall Green^[33]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Reginald Eyre	20,628	47.4	-5.1
	Labour	George S Jonas	17,295	39.7	+7.9
	Liberal	John Green	5,617	12.9	-2.7
Majority			3,333	7.7	-13.0
Turnout			43,540	73.6	-2.2
	Conservative hold		Swing	-6.5

By-election 1965: Birmingham Hall Green

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Reginald Eyre	17,130	54.8	2.3
	Labour	David Mumford	8,980	28.8	3.0
	Liberal	Penelope Jessel	5,122	16.4	0.8
Majority			8,150	26.0	5.3
Turnout			31,232
	Conservative hold		Swing

General election 1964: Birmingham, Hall Green^[34]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Aubrey Jones	23,879	52.5	-10.1
	Labour	Graham S Rea	14,477	31.8	-1.4
	Liberal	Penelope Jessel	7,113	15.6	New
Majority			9,402	20.7	-8.7
Turnout			45,469	75.8	-0.4
	Conservative hold		Swing	-4.4

Elections in the 1950s

General election 1959: Birmingham, Hall Green^[35]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Aubrey Jones	29,148	62.6	+1.1
	Labour	Deryck HV Fereday	15,431	33.2	-5.3
	Ind. Conservative	Harry W Maynard	1,955	4.2	New
Majority			13,717	29.4	+6.3
Turnout			46,534	76.2	+0.9
	Conservative hold		Swing	+3.2

General election 1955: Birmingham, Hall Green^[36]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Aubrey Jones	28,543	61.5	+4.8
	Labour	William Pringle	17,846	38.5	-4.8
Majority			10,697	23.1	+9.7
Turnout			46,389	75.3	-7.6
	Conservative hold		Swing	+4.8

General election 1951: Birmingham, Hall Green^[37]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Aubrey Jones	27,289	56.7	+6.5
	Labour	Thomas Crehan	20,874	43.3	+1.1
Majority			6,415	13.4	+2.0
Turnout			48,163	82.9	-0.2
	Conservative hold		Swing	-2.7

General election 1950: Birmingham, Hall Green^[38]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Aubrey Jones	24,444	50.2
	Labour	Thomas Crehan	20,591	42.2
	Liberal	GL Roy	3,703	7.6
Majority			3,853	7.9
Turnout			48,738	83.1
	Conservative win (new seat)

See also

• List of parliamentary constituencies in the West Midlands (county)

Notes

References

1. . Neighbourhood Statistics. Office for National Statistics. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 30 January 2015.
2. . 2011 Electorate Figures. Boundary Commission for England. 4 March 2011. Archived from the original on 6 November 2010. Retrieved 13 March 2011.
3. "Constituencies A-Z - Election 2017". BBC News. Retrieved 10 June 2017.
4. "West Midlands | Boundary Commission for England". Boundary Commission for England. Retrieved 20 June 2023.
6. Craig, F.W.S., ed. (1972). Boundaries of parliamentary constituencies 1985-1972. Chichester, Sussex: Political Reference Publications. ISBN 0-900178-09-4.
7. "The Parliamentary Constituencies (Birmingham and North Warwickshire) Order 1955. SI 1955/177". Statutory Instruments 1955. Part II. London: Her Majesty's Stationery Office. 1956. pp. 2099–2102.
8. "Hall Green Demographics" (PDF). Hall Green Profile. Retrieved 22 January 2021.
9. "OS Maps - online and App mapping system | Ordnance Survey Shop". www.ordnancesurvey.co.uk.
10. "Google Maps". Google Maps.
11. "Labour Members of Parliament 2015". UK Political.info. from the original on 29 September 2018.
12. Brown, Graeme (28 June 2016). "Birmingham Leave MPs' constituencies voted Remain". Birmingham Live. Retrieved 15 February 2024.
13. Walker, Jonathan (30 January 2017). "MP who backed Brexit says he WON'T vote to trigger Article 50". Birmingham Live. Retrieved 15 February 2024.
14. "Candidates standing for election (Statement of Persons Nominated) | Birmingham City Council".
15. . Birmingham City Council. Archived from the original on 8 February 2019. Retrieved 11 May 2017.
16. "Birmingham Hall Green results". BBC News. Retrieved 9 June 2017.
17. . Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 17 October 2015. Retrieved 17 October 2015.
18. . Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 26 July 2013. Retrieved 17 October 2015.
19. . Archived from the original on 8 May 2010.
20. . Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
21. . Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
22. . Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
23. . Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
24. . Richard Kimber's Political Science Resources. Politics Resources. 9 April 1992. Archived from the original on 11 August 2011. Retrieved 6 December 2010.
25. . Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
26. . Richard Kimber's Political Science Resources. Politics Resources. 11 June 1987. Archived from the original on 11 August 2011. Retrieved 17 September 2010.
27. . Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
28. . Richard Kimber's Political Science Resources. Politics Resources. 9 April 1992. Archived from the original on 11 August 2011. Retrieved 6 December 2010.
29. . Richard Kimber's Political Science Resources. Politics Resources. 28 May 1979. Archived from the original on 11 August 2011. Retrieved 27 December 2012.
30. . Richard Kimber's Political Science Resources. Politics Resources. 10 October 1974. Archived from the original on 23 June 2013. Retrieved 27 December 2012.
31. . Richard Kimber's Political Science Resources. Politics Resources. 28 February 1974. Archived from the original on 23 June 2013. Retrieved 27 December 2012.
32. . Richard Kimber's Political Science Resources. Politics Resources. 18 June 1970. Archived from the original on 23 June 2013. Retrieved 27 December 2012.
33. . Richard Kimber's Political Science Resources. Politics Resources. 31 March 1966. Archived from the original on 23 June 2013. Retrieved 27 December 2012.
34. . Richard Kimber's Political Science Resources. Politics Resources. 15 October 1964. Archived from the original on 20 September 2011. Retrieved 27 December 2012.
35. . Richard Kimber's Political Science Resources. Politics Resources. 8 October 1959. Archived from the original on 23 June 2013. Retrieved 27 December 2012.
36. . Richard Kimber's Political Science Resources. Politics Resources. 26 May 1955. Archived from the original on 23 June 2013. Retrieved 27 December 2012.
37. . Richard Kimber's Political Science Resources. Politics Resources. 25 October 1951. Archived from the original on 23 June 2013. Retrieved 27 December 2012.
38. . Richard Kimber's Political Science Resources. Politics Resources. 31 March 1966. Archived from the original on 23 June 2013. Retrieved 27 December 2012.

External links

• Birmingham city council constituency page

52°26′N 1°50′W / 52.43°N 1.84°W / 52.43; -1.84