Silvertown (UK Parliament constituency)

Silvertown was a borough constituency returning a single Member of Parliament (MP) to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom through the first-past-the-post voting system. The constituency was one of four divisions of the Parliamentary Borough of West Ham, which had at the time the same boundaries as the County Borough of West Ham. Although administratively separate since 1889, the area was formally part of the county of Essex; since 1965 it has been part of the London Borough of Newham in Greater London.

Silvertown
Former Borough constituency
for the House of Commons
Silvertown in Essex, showing boundaries used from 1918 to 1950.
CountyEssex
1918–1950
SeatsOne
Created fromWest Ham South
Replaced byWest Ham South

The creation of the constituency was recommended by the Boundary Commission in a report issued in 1917, and formally created by the Representation of the People Act 1918. It came into existence at the 1918 general election. As the borough of West Ham had only 120,586 electors on 15 October 1946, the relevant date for the subsequent Boundary Commission review, the borough was only entitled to two Members of Parliament; North and South divisions were recommended. As a consequence Silvertown was abolished as a separate constituency by the Representation of the People Act 1948 and went out of existence at the 1950 general election.

Boundaries

Silvertown was based on the two wards of Custom House and Silvertown (based either side of the Royal Victoria Dock), and Tidal Basin, which was to its north-west. The large wards in the southern County Borough of West Ham at the time of the 1917 Boundary Commission review made it necessary to split one ward across two constituencies, or else the divisions of West Ham would have had significantly different sizes. The ward which was split was the Canning Town ward, the southern part of which was included in Silvertown: the commissioners drew a line along the centre of the Woolwich branch of the Great Eastern Railway (now the North London Line) from Canning Town station north to join up with Star Lane (near the future Star Lane DLR station), then east along Star Lane, to join up with the ward boundary at Hermit Lane and Beckton Road.[1]

Members of Parliament
ElectionMemberParty
1918 Jack JonesNational Socialist
1918 Labour
1940 by-electionJames HollinsLabour
1945Louis ComynsLabour
1950 constituency abolished

Election results
1918 general election: Silvertown[2]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
National Socialist Party Jack Jones 6,971 51.6
C Unionist Thomas Walter Colby Carthew 4,259 31.5
Labour David John Davis 2,278 16.9
Majority 2,712 20.1
Turnout 13,508
National Socialist Party win (new seat)
C indicates candidate endorsed by the coalition government.
1922 general election: Silvertown[3]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Jack Jones 11,874 73.1 +56.2
Unionist Charles George Lewis 4,361 26.9 -4.6
Majority 7,513 46.2 +26.1
Turnout 16,235
Labour gain from National Socialist Party
1923 general election: Silvertown [4]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Jack Jones 12,777 81.3 +8.2
Unionist Charles George Lewis 2,948 18.7 -8.2
Majority 9,829 62.6 +16.4
Turnout 15,725 45.9
Labour hold Swing +8.2
1924 general election: Silvertown[5]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Jack Jones 15,962 81.1 -0.2
Unionist Edward Doran 3,732 18.9 +0.2
Majority 12,230 62.2 -0.4
Turnout 19,694
Labour hold Swing +0.2
1929 general election: Silvertown[6]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Jack Jones 23,451 85.7 +4.6
Unionist William Teeling 3,903 14.3 -4.6
Majority 19,548 71.4 +9.2
Turnout 27,354
Labour hold Swing +4.6
1931 general election: Silvertown[7]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Jack Jones 19,851 77.8 -7.9
Conservative Eleonora Tennant 5,654 22.2 +7.9
Majority 14,197 55.6 -15.8
Turnout 25,505
Labour hold Swing -7.9
1935 general election: Silvertown[8]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Jack Jones 18,177 81.0 +3.2
Conservative Eleonora Tennant 4,276 19.0 -3.2
Majority 13,901 62.0 +6.4
Turnout 22,453
Labour hold Swing +3.2
By-election, 22 February 1940: Silvertown[9]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour James Hollins 14,343 92.8 +11.8
Communist Harry Pollitt 966 6.2 New
British Union of Fascists Tommy Moran 151 1.0 New
Majority 13,377 86.6 +24.6
Turnout 15,460
Labour hold Swing
1945 general election: Silvertown[10]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Louis Comyns 9,358 91.3 +10.3
Conservative Edward Elverston 494 4.8 -14.2
Independent Arthur William Davies 401 3.9 New
Majority 8,864 86.5 +5.5
Turnout 10,253
Labour hold Swing +12.3

References
  1. "103. Parliamentary Borough of West Ham" in "Report of the Boundary Commission (England and Wales)", vol. III (Cd. 8758).
  2. "Debrett's House of Commons and Judicial Bench, 1921", p. 267.
  3. "Debrett's House of Commons and Judicial Bench, 1923", p. 232.
  4. "Return of Election Expenses", HCP 151.
  5. "Return of Election Expenses", HCP 1.
  6. "Return of Election Expenses", HCP 114.
  7. "Return of Election Expenses", HCP 109.
  8. "Return of Election Expenses", HCP 150.
  9. "Labour Victory At Silvertown", The Times, 24 February 1940, p. 6.
  10. "Return of Election Expenses", HCP 128.
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