The 34 seats in the West England area have produced large-scale changes with both Labour and LibDems taking many seats from the Conservatives. Greens won their first seat in the area (Bristol Central). Labour are on 16 seats with 10 gains and six holds. LibDems now have 13 seats adding 11 gains to the two already held. Conservatives now reduced to four seats having lost 21.
Several constituencies have ceased to be conservative-held for the first time in over a century. Oxfordshire, dramatically, no longer has a single Conservative MP.
The Green Party success in Bristol Central was foreseen by our Bristol reporter, Julian Greenbank.
Julian also charted the many boundary changes in the whole West England area. Read his comprehensive review here. Alan Dixon interviewed some candidates in the newly formed Bicester and Woodstock constituency, which the LibDems won from the Conservatives.
This result reflects the desire for a radical change to a more progressive government. As West England Bylines have reported there are so many issues in ‘Broken Britain’ which need fixing. Let’s hope that Keir Starmer’s Labour can deliver on the most important ones.
The issues highlighted by some of the candidates in the North Cotswolds are the NHS, affordable housing, food poverty and river pollution. In the South Cotswolds it’s a similar story with the Lime Down solar farm a particular local issue. The voters in the rest of Gloucestershire and Wiltshire and in Oxfordshire, Bristol and Bath face the same issues which the elected MPs must get to grips with.
Detail of all the constituencies
Conservative holds (4)
- North Cotswolds
- East Wiltshire
- South West Wiltshire
- Salisbury
Labour holds (6)
- Bristol East
- Bristol North East
- Bristol North West
- Bristol South
- Oxford East
- Reading Central
LibDem holds (2)
- Bath
- Oxford West and Abingdon
Labour gains from Conservatives (10)
- Filton and Bradley Stoke
- North Somerset
- Stroud
- Swindon North
- Swindon South
- Forest of Dean
- Gloucester
- Banbury
- Reading West and Mid Berkshire
- Earley and Woodley
LibDem gains from Conservatives (11)
- Melksham and Devizes
- Thornbury and Yate
- Chippenham
- South Cotswolds
- Cheltenham
- Tewksbury
- Witney
- Bicester and Woodstock
- Didcot and Wantage
- Henley and Thame
- Newbury
Green gains from Labour (1)
- Bristol Central
Update 8 July 2024
The results for Herefordshire and Worcestershire, a county which we share with our sister publication Central Bylines, are:
Conservative hold
- Droitwich and Evesham
- West Worcestershire
- Hereford and South Herefordshire
Labour Gain from Conservative
- Worcester
- Redditch
Green Gain from Conservative
- North Herefordshire
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