Bracknell is a constituency in Berkshire represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2024 by Peter Swallow, from the Labour Party. It was created for the 1997 general election, largely replacing the abolished county constituency of East Berkshire.

Constituency profile

The seat covers the entirety of the town of Bracknell, as well as Sandhurst and Crowthorne - albeit the Crowthorne urban area is split with Wokingham. Additionally, it includes Quelm Park, Martins Heron, The Warren, Forest Park, and Whitegrove.

History

From creation in 1997 until 2010, Bracknell's MP was Andrew MacKay of the Conservative Party, who represented the old seat of East Berkshire from 1983. On 14 May 2009, he resigned from his position as parliamentary aide to David Cameron in the wake of a major scandal over his Parliamentary expenses. MacKay and his wife, fellow Tory MP Julie Kirkbride, had wrongfully claimed over £250,000 from the taxpayer for mortgage payments for second homes, in a case of so-called 'double-dipping'. They also wrongfully claimed for each other's travel costs. At a hastily called meeting with his constituents in Bracknell to explain the "unacceptable" expenses claims, Mr MacKay was jeered and called a "thieving toad". A video of the angry meeting was leaked to the press and, after an urgent phone call from David Cameron the next day, MacKay agreed to stand down at the 2010 general election. The Conservative Party chose Phillip Lee, a general practitioner, as its new candidate in an American-style open primary, involving seven candidates including Rory Stewart and Iain Dale in a contest open to all registered Bracknell voters. Lee went on to become the next MP in an election which saw the share of the vote for the Labour Party fall by 11.1%. The Liberal Democrats saw the biggest rise in support of all the parties (+4.5%), overtaking Labour to gain second place behind the Conservative Party. UKIP saw a slight rise in support to 4.4% of the vote. The 2010 election also saw for the first time the Green Party and British National Party vying for the seat. Lee held his seat at the 2017 general election. He gained 3.1% of votes, but Labour increased its share by 13.3%. Lee received 32,882 votes, Paul Bidwell (Labour) in second place had 16,866 votes. On 3 September 2019, Lee resigned from the Conservative party to join the Liberal Democrats due to the Conservative party's support for Brexit. At the 2019 General Election he unsuccessfully contested the adjacent Wokingham seat for that party. 2019 election James Sunderland was elected for the Conservative party with 58.7% of the vote. 2024 election Sunderland ran for re-election as Conservative MP for the constituency, but was narrowly defeated by Labour's Peter Swallow on a 16% swing. This marked the first time Labour had ever gained the seat and the first time a Conservative would not represent the area since it became covered by a single-member constituency in the late 19th century. Notably, Labour had previously gained control of Bracknell Forest Borough Council for the first time since 1997 in 2023.

Boundaries and boundary changes

Bracknell is based around the town of Bracknell and the Bracknell Forest authority. It is bordered by the constituencies of Wokingham, Maidenhead, Windsor, Surrey Heath, Aldershot, and North East Hampshire.

1997–2010

''The Borough of Bracknell Forest wards had formed the majority of the abolished constituency of East Berkshire. The two Finchampstead wards were transferred from Reading East, and the ward of Wokingham Without was transferred from Wokingham.''

2010–2024

Northern areas, including Binfield, were transferred to Windsor.

2024–present

Further to the 2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies which came into effect for 2024 general election, the seat lost its District of Wokingham wards to the Wokingham constituency in order to bring its electorate within the permitted range. To partly compensate, the Warfield Harvest Ride ward (as it existed on 1 December 2020) was transferred from Windsor. Following a local government boundary review which came into effect in May 2023, the constituency now comprises the following from the 2024 general election:

Members of Parliament

East Berkshire prior to 1997

Elections

Elections in the 2020s

Elections in the 2010s

Elections in the 2000s

Elections in the 1990s