Bethnal Green and Bow is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament (MP) by the first past the post system of election. It was created in 1997. A constituency is any cohesive corporate unit or body bound by shared structures, goals or loyalty. ... In some bicameral parliaments of a Westminster System, the House of Commons has historically been the name of the elected lower house. ... The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative institution in the United Kingdom and British overseas territories (it alone has parliamentary sovereignty). ... A Member of Parliament, or MP, is a representative elected by the voters of an electoral district to a parliament; in the Westminster system, specifically to the lower house. ... The first-past-the-post electoral system is a voting system for single-member districts, variously called first-past-the-post (FPTP or FPP), winner-take-all, plurality voting, or relative majority. ... 1997 is a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year of the Reef. ...

Boundaries

The seat is centred on the northern part of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, taking in much of Bethnal Green, Bow and Stepney. It includes much of the traditional East End, the Tower of London and Brick Lane. The London Borough of Tower Hamlets is the London borough to the east of the City of London, north of the River Thames in East London. ... Bethnal Green is a place in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, in the heart of Londons East End. ... Bow is a place in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. ... Stepney is a place in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. ... The term East End is most commonly used to refer to the East End of London, England. ... The Tower of London, seen from the river, with a view of the water gate called Traitors Gate. ... Brick Lane is a street in the East End of London, site of a Sunday market, heart of the citys Bengali community, former heart of the citys Jewish community, and before that, of its Huguenot community. ...

Prior to 1997 the equivalent seat was Bethnal Green and Stepney. The UK general election, 1997 was held on 1 May 1997. ...

Member of Parliament

The Member of Parliament since the seat was formed in 1997 was Oona King of the Labour Party. In the 2005 General Election 2005 she was defeated by George Galloway of the RESPECT coalition. A Member of Parliament, or MP, is a representative elected by the voters of an electoral district to a parliament; in the Westminster system, specifically to the lower house. ... The UK general election, 1997 was held on 1 May 1997. ... Oona King (born October 22, 1967) is a British politician, and Member of Parliament for Bethnal Green & Bow since the 1997 election. ... The Labour Party is a centre-left or Democratic Socialist political party in the United Kingdom (see British politics), and one of the United Kingdoms three main political parties. ... The United Kingdom general election of 2005 was held on Thursday, 5 May 2005 and won by the Labour Party, led by Tony Blair. ... George Galloway featured on BBC Newsnight George Galloway (born August 16, 1954) is a Scottish politician, and the Respect Member of Parliament for Bethnal Green and Bow, located in East London. ... Dignity in humans involves the earning or the expectation of personal respect or of esteem. ...

• 2005 – present: George Galloway, RESPECT
• 1997 – 2005: Oona King, Labour Party

George Galloway featured on BBC Newsnight George Galloway (born August 16, 1954) is a Scottish politician, and the Respect Member of Parliament for Bethnal Green and Bow, located in East London. ... Dignity in humans involves the earning or the expectation of personal respect or of esteem. ... Oona King (born October 22, 1967) is a British politician, and Member of Parliament for Bethnal Green & Bow since the 1997 election. ... The Labour Party is a centre-left or Democratic Socialist political party in the United Kingdom (see British politics), and one of the United Kingdoms three main political parties. ...

Election results

The United Kingdom general election of 2005 was held on Thursday, 5 May 2005 and won by the Labour Party, led by Tony Blair. ... RESPECT The Unity Coalition is a socialist British political party founded on January 25, 2004 in London. ... George Galloway featured on BBC Newsnight George Galloway (born August 16, 1954) is a Scottish politician, and the Respect Member of Parliament for Bethnal Green and Bow, located in East London. ... The Labour Party is a centre-left or Democratic Socialist political party in the United Kingdom (see British politics), and one of the United Kingdoms three main political parties. ... Oona King (born October 22, 1967) is a British politician, and Member of Parliament for Bethnal Green & Bow since the 1997 election. ... The Conservative Party is the largest political party on the centre-right in the United Kingdom. ... The Liberal Democrats, often shortened to Lib Dems, are a social liberal political party based in the United Kingdom. ... The Green Party of England and Wales emerged as a distinct party in the 1990s. ... RESPECT The Unity Coalition is a socialist British political party founded on January 25, 2004 in London. ... The Labour Party is a centre-left or Democratic Socialist political party in the United Kingdom (see British politics), and one of the United Kingdoms three main political parties. ... The UK general election, 2001 was held on 7 June 2001 and was dubbed the quiet landslide by the media. ... The Labour Party is a centre-left or Democratic Socialist political party in the United Kingdom (see British politics), and one of the United Kingdoms three main political parties. ... Oona King (born October 22, 1967) is a British politician, and Member of Parliament for Bethnal Green & Bow since the 1997 election. ... The Conservative Party is the largest political party on the centre-right in the United Kingdom. ... The Liberal Democrats, often shortened to Lib Dems, are a social liberal political party based in the United Kingdom. ... The Green Party of England and Wales emerged as a distinct party in the 1990s. ... The British National Party (BNP) is the largest political party of the far-right in the United Kingdom. ... The Labour Party is a centre-left or Democratic Socialist political party in the United Kingdom (see British politics), and one of the United Kingdoms three main political parties. ... The Labour Party is a centre-left or Democratic Socialist political party in the United Kingdom (see British politics), and one of the United Kingdoms three main political parties. ... Oona King (born October 22, 1967) is a British politician, and Member of Parliament for Bethnal Green & Bow since the 1997 election. ... The Conservative Party is the largest political party on the centre-right in the United Kingdom. ... The Liberal Democrats, often shortened to Lib Dems, are a social liberal political party based in the United Kingdom. ... The British National Party (BNP) is the largest political party of the far-right in the United Kingdom. ... The Liberal Party was one of the two major British political parties from the early 19th century until the 1920s, and a third party of varying strength and importance up to 1988, when it merged with the Social Democratic Party to form a new party which would become known as... The Green Party of England and Wales emerged as a distinct party in the 1990s. ... The Referendum Party were a single-issue party in the United Kingdom formed to contest the 1997 General Election. ... This article is about the Socialist Labour Party founded by Arthur Scargill in 1996. ...

Politics and History of the constituency

For the history of the constituency prior to 1997 please see Bethnal Green and Stepney. 1997 is a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year of the Reef. ...

Bethnal Green has a reputation for being a bastion of the Labour Party. The last time a Conservative was elected at any level in the area was in 1931. However there has been a strong challenge from the Liberal Party. The old Bethnal Green South West constituency was the last seat in Inner London to have a Liberal MP until the 1980s, whilst in more recent years the Liberals, and now the Liberal Democrats have emerged as strong challengers at the local government level. Between 1986 and 1994 they controlled Tower Hamlets council, but this proved a deeply controversial period, witnessing splits in the local party and much criticism from outside. 1931 is a common year starting on Thursday. ... Inner London is technically a term for the central part of Greater London, in contrast to Outer London. ... The Liberal Party was one of the two major British political parties from the early 19th century until the 1920s, and a third party of varying strength and importance up to 1988, when it merged with the Social Democratic Party to form a new party which would become known as... Events and trends The 1980s marked an abrupt shift towards more conservative lifestyles after the momentous cultural revolutions which took place in the 1960s and 1970s and the definition of the AIDS virus in 1981. ... The Liberal Democrats, often shortened to Lib Dems, are a social liberal political party based in the United Kingdom. ... 1986 is a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... 1994 was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International year of the Family. ... The London Borough of Tower Hamlets is the London borough to the east of the City of London, north of the River Thames in East London. ...

The seat also has a high level of non-white population, estimated at around 40% of the population. The largest non-white community are Bangladeshi.

In recent years the Westminster elections have seen some results that have shocked commentators outside the constituency. In the 1997 general election, the Conservative Party received a swing to them, despite almost every other constituency in the country experiencing a landslide against them. The Liberal Democrats fell to third place, whilst there were also strong votes for the continuing Liberal Party, the British National Party and several independents. The Labour Party candidate, Oona King, was new and many felt that a "New Labour" candidate had been imposed on the constituency, leading to a protracted public row over her selection. The Liberal Democrats were still divided and suffering amidst fallout from their administration of Tower Hamlets, with the continuning Liberal Party candidate garnering support from the division. It is also believed that as King is both Jewish and African-Caribbean this did not play well with Muslim and Asian voters - the Conservative candidate Kabir Choudhury was both Asian and Muslim and this may have contributed to his advance - it is estimated that many locally vote on community and ethnic lines. The UK general election, 1997 was held on 1 May 1997. ... The Conservative Party is the largest political party on the centre-right in the United Kingdom. ... The Liberal Democrats, often shortened to Lib Dems, are a social liberal political party based in the United Kingdom. ... The Liberal Party is a minor United Kingdom political party. ... The British National Party (BNP) is the largest political party of the far-right in the United Kingdom. ... The Labour Party is a centre-left or Democratic Socialist political party in the United Kingdom (see British politics), and one of the United Kingdoms three main political parties. ... New Labour is an alternative name of the British political Labour Party. ... The word Jew ( Hebrew: יהודי) is used in a wide number of ways, but generally refers to a follower of the Jewish faith, a child of a Jewish mother, or someone of Jewish descent with a connection to Jewish culture or ethnicity and often a combination of these attributes. ... The British Afro-Caribbean community is generally regarded as the most integrated non-white ethnic grouping of the United Kingdom. ... A Muslim is a believer in or follower of Islam. ... The term Asian can refer to something or someone from Asia. ...

The 2001 general election saw most parties that stood improve their vote due to fewer independent candidates and no Liberal candidate, though the British National Party's vote plummetted. However the Labour vote has not recovered to its previous levels. In more recent local elections the area has seen high votes for RESPECT The Unity Coalition, who topped the poll in Tower Hamlets in the 2004 European Parliamentary elections and subsequently won their first local council seat in a by-election. The founder of RESPECT, George Galloway, who ran on an anti-war platform, ousted Oona King in the May 2005 general election to take the seat. The UK general election, 2001 was held on 7 June 2001 and was dubbed the quiet landslide by the media. ... RESPECT The Unity Coalition is a socialist British political party founded on January 25, 2004 in London. ... The European Parliament election, 2004 was the UK part of the European Parliament election, 2004. ... George Galloway featured on BBC Newsnight George Galloway (born August 16, 1954) is a Scottish politician, and the Respect Member of Parliament for Bethnal Green and Bow, located in East London. ... The United Kingdom general election of 2005 was held on Thursday, 5 May 2005 and won by the Labour Party, led by Tony Blair. ...

External links

• UK Constituency Maps (http://www.election-maps.co.uk)
• BBC Vote 2001 (http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/static/vote2001/results_constituencies/constituencies/047.stm) (Incudes 1997 and 2001 results)
• BBC Election 2005 (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/vote2005/html/47.stm) (Includes 2005 candidates)