South Bedfordshire was a county constituency in Bedfordshire. It returned one Member of Parliament (MP) to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, elected by the first past the post system.
The constituency was created for the 1950 general election, and abolished for the 1983 general election.
Boundaries and boundary changes
1950–1974 The constituency was created by the Representation of the People Act 1948 as a County Constituency, comprising:
The Municipal Borough of Dunstable; The Urban District of Leighton Buzzard; The Municipal Borough of Luton wards of Leagrave and Limbury; and The Rural District of Luton.
Leighton Buzzard and surrounding rural areas were transferred from Mid Bedfordshire; and Dunstable, Leagrave and Limbury from the abolished constituency of Luton.
1974–1983 (Second Periodic Review of Westminster Constituencies)
The Municipal Borough of Dunstable; The Urban District of Leighton-Linslade; and The Rural District of Luton.
Gained the former Urban District of Linslade from Buckingham in Buckinghamshire - this had been merged with Leighton Buzzard to form the Urban District of Leighton-Linslade in 1965. Leagrave and Limbury were included in the new constituency of Luton West.
The constituency was abolished for the 1983 general election. It was largely absorbed into the new constituency of South West Bedfordshire, including Dunstable, Leighton Buzzard and Linslade. Areas to the north and south of Luton were included in the constituencies of North Luton and Luton South respectively.
Members of Parliament
ElectionMemberParty 1950 Edward Moeran Labour 1951 Norman Cole Conservative 1966 Gwilym Roberts Labour 1970 David Madel Conservative1983 constituency abolished
Elections
Elections in the 1950s
Elections in the 1960s
Elections in the 1970s
References