1970 United Kingdom general election

none December 2019 August 2023 1970 United Kingdom general election United Kingdom parliamentary no 1966 United Kingdom general election 1966 List of MPs elected in the 1966 United Kingdom general election February 1974 United Kingdom general election Feb 1974 List of MPs elected in the 1970 United Kingdom general election All 630 seats in the House of Commons 316 List of MPs elected in the United Kingdom general election, 1970 18 June 1970 Opinion polling for the 1970 United Kingdom general election 39,342,013 28,344,79872.0% (3.8 pp) Golda Meir and Edward Heath cropped (cropped).jpg 140 120 160 0 6 Edward Heath 28 July 1965 Conservative Party (UK) Bexley 253 seats, 41.9% 330 77 13,145,123 46.4% 4.5 pp Aankomst Premier Wilson en Minister Brown op vliegvel Ypenburg, v.l.n.r. Ministe, Bestanddeelnr 920-1137 (crop).jpg 120 120 160 0 0 Harold Wilson 14 February 1963 Labour Party (UK) Huyton 364 seats, 48.0% 288speaker Figure includes Speaker of the House of Commons Horace King in Southampton Itchen. 75 12,208,758 43.1% 4.9 pp Liberal Party (UK) Jeremy Thorpe 18 January 1967 Liberal Party (UK) North Devon 12 seats, 8.5% 6 6 2,117,035 7.5% 1.0 pp UK General Election, 1970.svg 200px Colours denote the winning party—as shown in Results File:1970 UK GE Westminster diagram.svg Composition of the House of Commons after the election Prime Minister Prime Minister after election Harold Wilson Labour Party (UK) Edward Heath Conservative Party (UK) A general election was held in the United Kingdom on Thursday, 18 June 1970. It resulted in a surprise victory for the Conservative Party under leader Edward Heath, which defeated the governing Labour Party under Prime Minister Harold Wilson. The Liberal Party, under its new leader Jeremy Thorpe, lost half its seats. The Conservatives, including the Ulster Unionist Party (UUP), secured a majority of 30 seats. This was the first general election in which people could vote from the age of eighteen years, after passage of the Representation of the People Act the previous year, and the first UK general election in which party affiliations of candidates were put on the ballot papers.Parliament of the United Kingdom Use Of Political Descriptions In Nomination Papers And Ballot Papers At Parliamentary Elections https://api.parliament.uk/historic-hansard/commons/1968/dec/10/use-of-political-descriptions-in House of Commons 10 December 1968 Harry Gourlay Deputy Chairman of Ways and Means Most opinion polls prior to the election indicated a comfortable Labour victory, and put Labour up to 12.4% ahead of the Conservatives. On election day, however, a late swing gave the Conservatives a 3.4% lead and ended almost six years of Labour government, although Wilson remained leader of the Labour Party in opposition. Writing in the aftermath of the election, the political scientist Richard Rose described the Conservative victory as "surprising" and noted a significant shift in votes between the two main parties.Richard Rose Richard Rose (political scientist) The Times Guide to the House of Commons 1970 1970 Times Newspapers Limited London 31 Voting Trends Surveyed The Times journalist George Clark wrote that the election would be "remembered as the occasion when the people of the United Kingdom hurled the findings of the opinion polls back into the faces of the pollsters".George Clark The Times Guide to the House of Commons 1970 1970 Times Newspapers Limited London 26 The General Election Campaign, 1970 The result would provide the mandate for Heath as Prime Minister to begin formal negotiations for the United Kingdom to become a member state of the European Communities (EC)—or the "Common Market" as it was more widely known at the time, before it later became the European Union; the UK officially joined the EC on 1 January 1973, along with the Republic of Ireland and Denmark. Frontbench Labour politicians George Brown and Jennie Lee lost their seats at this election. This marked the end of a series of elections where both main parties won over 40% of the vote. This would not occur again for the Conservatives for nine years; Labour would wait 27 years. The result was cast as a two-party politics outcome, with no third party reaching 10% of the (total) vote. Such an outcome would not happen again until the snap 2017 general election. This was the last election in which a nationwide UK party gained seats in Northern Ireland.Dan Keohane 2000 Security in British Politics 1945–99 183 The UUP sat with the Conservative Party at Westminster, traditionally taking the Conservative parliamentary whip. To all intents and purposes, the UUP functioned as the Northern Ireland branch of the Conservative Party. However, hardline unionist Ian Paisley unseated the UUP incumbent in North Antrim, a clear sign that the UUP's complete dominance over unionist politics in Northern Ireland was already starting to weaken. In 1972, in protest over the permanent prorogation of the Parliament of Northern Ireland, Westminster UUP MPs withdrew from the alliance.Stuart Bell Anthony Seldon The Heath Government 1970–74: A ReappraisalJune 2018 none 1964 1966 1970 February 1974 October 1974 Election date The date of 18 June was supposedly chosen because Harold Wilson wanted as Prime Minister to go to the polls before the introduction of decimal coinage in early 1971, for which his government had been responsible and which he thought was hugely unpopular,Joe Haines Glimmers of Twilight London Politico's Publishers 2003June 2018 and because Wilson sought to gain some momentum by surprising the Conservatives, who were expecting an October election.June 2018 Overview Commentators believed that an unexpectedly bad set of balance of payments figures (a £31,000,000 trade deficit) published three days before the election and a loss of national prestige after the England football team's defeat to West Germany on 14 June at the World Cup contributed to the Labour defeat.http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/vote_2005/basics/4393297.stm 1970: Heath's surprise victory 5 April 2005 BBC News 31 May 2018 thumb|Shadow Chancellor Iain Macleod campaigning in York. Other factors that were cited as reasons for the Conservative victory included: union indiscipline, rising prices, the risk of devaluation, the imposition of Selective Employment Tax (SET), and a set of jobless figures released on final week of the campaign showing unemployment at its highest level since 1940. Interviewed by Robin Day, the outgoing Prime Minister Harold Wilson highlighted the possibility that "complacency engendered by the opinion polls" may have resulted in a poor turnout of Labour supporters.BBC Election Results Programme 18–19 July 1970 As defending world champions, England's venture in the World Cup attracted a much keener public interest than the general election did.http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/static/vote2001/in_depth/election_battles/1970_over.stm Heath: The victory few predicted BBC News 31 May 2018 However, an analysis by pollster Matt Singh for the fiftieth anniversary of the election concluded that the late swing had been caused by the weak economic data and that there was "no evidence" that the World Cup had influenced the outcome.2020-06-19 Did England's World Cup defeat win the 1970 election for the Tories? https://capx.co/did-englands-world-cup-defeat-win-the-1970-election-for-the-conservatives/ 2020-06-19 CapX en-GB American pollster Douglas Schoen and Oxford University academic R. W. Johnson asserted that Enoch Powell had attracted 2.5 million votes to the Conservatives, although the Conservative vote only increased by 1.7 million. Johnson later stated "It became clear that Powell had won the 1970 election for the Tories ... of all those who had switched their vote from one party to another, 50 per cent were working class Powellites".Simon Heffer Like the Roman: The Life of Enoch Powell London Phoenix 1999 568 Like the Roman: The Life of Enoch Powell The Professor of Political Science Randall Hansen assessed a range of studies, including some which contended that Powell had made little or no difference to the result, but concluded that "At the very least, Powell's effect was likely to have fired up the Conservative vote in constituencies which would have voted Tory in any event".Randell Hansen Citizenship and Immigration in Post-War Britain Oxford University Press 2000 9781280904448June 2018 Election night commentators Michael Barratt and Jeffrey Preece dismissed any special "Powell factor", as did Conservative MPs Reginald Maudling, Timothy Raison and Hugh Dykes. The 1970–74 Parliament has to date been the only time since the 1924–29 Parliament in which the Conservative Party were only in government for one term before returning to opposition. The most notable casualty of the election was George Brown, Deputy Leader of the Labour Party, who lost to the Conservatives at Belper. Brown had held the seat since 1945. Labour Minister for the Arts, Jennie Lee lost her Cannock seat, held by Labour since 1935 on a swing of 10.7% to the Conservatives in what Richard Rose called "the biggest upset" of the election.Richard Rose Richard Rose (political scientist) The Times Guide to the House of Commons 1970 1970 Times Newspapers Ltd London 31 Voting Trends Surveyed Unusually for the Liberal Party, the by-elections between 1966-70 had proved almost fruitless, with many Liberal candidates losing deposits. The one exception was its by-election gain of Birmingham Ladywood in June 1969; this was promptly lost at the 1970 general election. The party found itself struggling to introduce its new leader Jeremy Thorpe to the public, owing to the extensive coverage and attention paid to Enoch Powell. The election result was poor for the Liberals, with Thorpe only narrowly winning his own seat in North Devon. Indeed, of the six MPs returned, three (Thorpe, David Steel and John Pardoe) were elected by a majority of less than 1,000 votes.The Times Guide to the House of Commons 1970 1970 Times Newspapers Ltd London 250 The BBC's election coverage was led by Cliff Michelmore, along with Robin Day, David Butler and Robert McKenzie. There were periodic cutaways to the BBC regions. This coverage has been repeated on BBC Parliament on several occasions, including on 18 July 2005 as a tribute to Edward Heath after his death the previous day. Its most recent screening was on 20 June 2020, to commemorate the fiftieth anniversary of the general election.http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00v9jgf BBC Election 1970 BBC Parliament https://web.archive.org/web/20101025182710/http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b00v9jgf 25 October 2010 The BBC coverage was parodied by Monty Python's Flying Circus in its famous "Election Night Special" sketch. Both BBC and ITN carried their 1970 election night broadcasts in colour, although segments broadcast from some remote locations and some BBC and ITN regional bureaux were transmitted in black-and-white. Some ITV regions were not yet broadcasting in colour at the time of the 1970 general election. The right to vote in this election was widened by the Labour government's Sixth Reform Act, which reduced the voting age from 21 to 18 years. The United Kingdom was the first major democratic nation to extend suffrage to this age group.Loughran Thomas Mycock Andrew Tonge Jonathan 2021-04-03 A coming of age: how and why the UK became the first democracy to allow votes for 18-year-olds https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/13619462.2021.1890589 Contemporary British History en 35 2 284–313 10.1080/13619462.2021.1890589 233956982 1361-9462 subscription Loughran Thomas Mycock Andrew Tonge Jonathan 2021-11-03 Lowering the voting age: three lessons from the 1969 Representation of the People's Act https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/politicsandpolicy/lessons-from-the-1969-representation-of-the-peoples-act/ 2022-12-31 British Politics and Policy at LSEBingham Adrian 25 June 2019 'The last milestone' on the journey to full adult suffrage? 50 years of debates about the voting age https://www.historyandpolicy.org/index.php/policy-papers/papers/the-last-milestone-on-the-journey-to-full-adult-suffrage 2022-12-31 History & Policy Case law subsequently established the right for undergraduate students to vote in the constituency of their university. This followed an appeal to the High Court.Stephen D. Fisher & Nick Hillman Do students swing elections? Registration, turnout and voting behaviour among full-time students https://www.hepi.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/Do-students-swing-elections.pdf HEPI 4 Timeline The Prime Minister, Harold Wilson, visited Buckingham Palace on 18 May and asked the Queen to dissolve Parliament on 29 May, announcing that the election would be held on 18 June. The key dates were as follows: Friday 29 MayDissolution of the 44th Parliament and campaigning officially beginsMonday 8 JuneLast day to file nomination papersWednesday 17 June Campaigning officially endsThursday 18 June Polling dayFriday 19 June The Conservative Party wins power with a majority of 31Monday 29 June45th Parliament assemblesThursday 2 JulyState Opening of Parliament Opinion poll summary Summary of the final polling results before the general election.Abrams M. 1970 The Opinion Polls and the 1970 British General Election The Public Opinion Quarterly 34 2 317–324 10.1086/267808 Party Marplan Gallup National opinion polls (NOP) Opinion Research Centre (OPC) Harris Conservative Party (UK) 41.5% 42.0% 44.1% 46.5% 46.0% Labour Party (UK) 50.2% 49.0% 48.2% 45.5% 48.0% Liberal Party (UK) 7.0% 7.5% 6.4% 6.5% 5.0% Other parties 1.3% 1.5% 1.3% 1.5% 1.0% Labour lead 8.7% 7.0% 4.1% −1.0% 2.0% Fieldwork dates 11–14 June 14–16 June 12–16 June 13–17 June 20 May16 June Sample size 2,267 2,190 1,562 1,583 4,841 Aftermath thumb|Declaration of results for the Isle of Thanet constituency, Ramsgate This was the first general election where 18-year-olds had the right to vote. Therefore, despite 1.1 million more people voting in 1970 compared to 1966, turnout actually fell by 3%. This 72% turnout was the lowest since the 1935 general election and compared with a post-War high of 84% in 1950. Professor Richard Rose described the low turnout, which he noted was "one of the lowest since the introduction of the democratic franchise", as surprising to politician and pollsters. Changes to electoral law as part of the Representation of the People Act 1969 had made postal voting easier and polling stations were open an hour later than in past elections, and this would have been expected to improve turnout. On top of this it was reported by Rose that an estimated 25% of 18- to 21-year-olds who were now eligible to vote had not put their names on the electoral register, meaning the turnout was even lower than the percentage figure suggested. Rose also argued that the turnout figures in Britain were "now among the lowest in the Western world." Because the previous election had been in 1966, some people had not had their chance to vote in a general election until the age of 25. Labour's number of votes, 12.2 million, was ironically the same amount they had needed to win in 1964. The Conservative vote surge cost Labour in many marginal seats. Rose suggested the absolute fall in the number of Labour votes suggested that many of the party's supporters had decided to abstain. He also noted that the Labour Party's local organisation was poorer than that of the Conservatives, but did not feel this was a significant factor in Labour supporters failing to come out to vote for the Party given that this organisational difference had been the case in past elections without having this effect. For the Liberals, a small 1% drop in their vote share saw them lose 6 seats, 3 of which were held by the narrowest of margins. In the end the Conservatives achieved a swing of 4.7%, enough to give them a comfortable working majority. As for the smaller parties, they increased their number in the Commons from 2 to 6 seats. The Scottish National Party won its first ever seat at a general election (they had won several by-elections previously, going back as far as 1945), although they did lose Hamilton, which they won in a by-election in 1967. Results Summary of seats returned + centre|420px PartyBritish Electoral Facts Colin Rallings Micheal Thrasher 43 Total Politics 978-1-907278-03-7 2006 Leader MPs Aggregate votes Of total Of total Conservative and Unionist Party Edward Heath 330 330 630 1 yes Conservative Party (UK) 13,145,123 46.4% 46.4 Conservative Party (UK) Conservative PartyConservative and Unionist Party results for Great Britain. Edward Heath 322 322 630 1 yes Conservative Party (UK) 12,723,082 44.9% 44.9 Conservative Party (UK) Ulster Unionist Party James Chichester-Clark 8 8 630 1 yes Ulster Unionist Party 422,041 1.5% 1.5 Ulster Unionist Party Labour Party Harold Wilson 288Includes 15 Co-operative Party MP, as part of the Labour-Co-op alliance.speaker 288 630 1 yes Labour Party (UK) 12,208,758 43.1% 43.1 Labour Party (UK) Liberal Party Jeremy Thorpe 6 6 630 1 yes Liberal Party (UK) 2,117,035 7.5% 7.5 Liberal Party (UK) Unity 2 2 630 1 yes Unity (Northern Ireland) 140,930 0.5% 0.5 Unity (Northern Ireland) Scottish National Party William Wolfe 1 1 630 1 yes Scottish National Party 306,802 1.1% 1.1 Scottish National Party Protestant Unionist Party Ian Paisley 1 1 630 1 yes Protestant Unionist Party 35,303 0.1% 0.1 Protestant Unionist Party Republican Labour Party Gerry Fitt 1 1 630 1 yes Republican Labour Party 30,649 0.1% 0.1 Republican Labour Party Independent Labour 1 1 630 1 yes Independent Labour 16,701 0.1% 0.1 Independent Labour Full results centre|500x500px +Results of the June 1970 general election to the House of Commons of the United KingdomPartyhttps://api.parliament.uk/uk-general-elections/general-elections/35 UK General Elections Results 1832-2019 12 August 2026British Electoral Facts Colin Rallings Micheal Thrasher Total Politics 978-1-907278-03-7 43-44 2006LeaderCandidatesMPsAggregate votes Total Gains Losses Net Of total (%) Total Of total (%) Change (%)   ConservativeFigure includes the Ulster Unionist Party under its nation affiliation with the Conservative Party. EdwardHeath 628 330 80 3 77 52.4 13,145,123 46.4 4.5   Labour HaroldWilson 625Includes 28 Co-operative Party candidates, as part of the Labour-Co-op alliance. 288Includes 15 Co-operative Party MPs, as part of the Labour-Co-op alliance.speaker 1Colne Valley. 77 76Includes 3 Co-operative Party MPs, as part of the Labour-Co-op alliance. 45.7Includes 2.4% for the Co-operative Party, as part of the Labour-Co-op alliance. 12,208,758 Includes 537,253 for the Co-operative Party, as part of the Labour-Co-op alliance. 43.1Includes 1.9% for the Co-operative Party, as part of the Labour-Co-op alliance. 3.9Includes 0.0% for the Co-operative Party, as part of the Labour-Co-op alliance.   Liberal JeremyThorpe 332 6 0 6 6 1.0 2,117,035 7.5 1.0   SNP WilliamWolfe 65 1 1Western Isles. 0 1 0.2 306,802 1.1 0.6   Plaid Cymru GwynforEvans 36 0 0 0 — 175,016 0.6 0.4   Unity 5 2 2 0 2 0.3 140,930 0.5 0.4   Communist JohnGollan 58 0 0 0 — 37,970 0.1 0.1   Protestant Unionist IanPaisley 2 1Ian Paisley in North Antrim. colspan=2 New 1 0.2 35,303 0.1 New   RepublicanLabour GerryFitt 1Leader Gerry Fitt stood in Belfast West. 1 0 0 0.2 30,649 0.1   Independent 26 0 0 0 — 20,727 0.1   IndependentUnionist 3 0 colspan=3 Did not stand in 1966 — 17,787 0.1   IndependentLabour 1Candidate S. O. Davies stood in Merthyr Tydfil. 1 0 0 0.2 16,701 0.1 0.1   Democratic DesmondDonnelly 5 0 colspan=3 Did not stand in 1966 — 15,292 0.1   National Democratic DavidBrown 4 0 0 0 — 14,321 0.1 0.1   NationalFront JohnO'Brien 10 0 colspan=3 New — 11,449 0.0 New   NationalDemocratic GerryQuigley 2 0 colspan=3 New — 10,349 0.0 New  DerryLabour 1Candidate Eamonn McCann stood in Londonderry. 0 colspan=3 New — 7,565 0.0 New   Anti-CommonMarket 3 0 colspan=3 New — 5,714 0.0 New   IndependentConservative 4 0 0 0 — 5,289 0.0   IndependentLiberal 1Candidate Gilbert Blades stood in Lincoln. 0 0 0 — 3,937 0.0   Ratepayers(Leigh) 1Candidate Joseph Knowles stood in Leigh. 0 colspan=3 New — 3,776 0.0 New   Anti-Immigration 1Candidate Dennis J Taylor in Leicester North East. 0 colspan=3 New — 1,616 0.0 New   New Liberal AlanLomas 1Leader Alan Ernest Lomas stood in Islington East. 0 0 0 — 1,161 0.0   VectisNational RonaldCawdell 1Leader Ronald W. J. Cowdell stood in Isle of Wight. 0 colspan=3 New — 1,607 0.0 New   IndependentScottish Nationalist 1Candidate David H. Livingstone stood in Rutherglen. 0 colspan=3 Did not stand in 1966 — 1,490 0.0   IndependentProtestant 1Candidate Jack Glass stood in Glasgow Bridgeton. 0 colspan=3 Did not stand in 1966 — 1,180 0.0   WorldGovernment GilbertYoung 2 0 colspan=3 Did not stand in 1966 — 1,016 0.0   MebyonKernow LenTruran 1Candidate Richard Jenkin stood in Falmouth and Camborne. 0 colspan=3 New — 960 0.0 New   Ind. Labour Party EmrysThomas 1Candidate Alistair Graham stood in Halifax. 0 0 0 — 847 0.0   BritishMovement ColinJordan 1Leader Colin Jordan stood in Birmingham Aston. 0 colspan=3 New — 704 0.0 New   IndependentProgressive 1Candidate C. C. Fairhead stood in Norwich North. 0 colspan=3 Did not stand in 1966 — 658 0.0   IndependentResident 1Leader Ronald Skilton stood in South West Hertfordshire. 0 colspan=3 New — 542 0.0 New   RadicalAlliance PatArrowsmith 1Leader Pat Arrowsmith stood in Fulham. 0 0 0 — 421 0.0   Socialist (GB) 2 0 0 0 — 376 0.0   Anti-Party 1Candidate Barry Elder stood in Chorley. 0 colspan=3 New — 334 0.0 New   IndependentScottish Labour 1Candidate Harry Charles Taylor stood in Hamilton. 0 colspan=3 New — 295 0.0 New   SocialCredit 1Candidate Archie S. Frost stood in Rugby. 0 0 0 — 254 0.0  NationalSocialist 1Candidate Phelim O'Neill stood in Mid Ulster. 0 colspan=3 New — 198 0.0 New   YoungIdeas DavidSutch 1Candidate David Sutch stood in Cities of London and Westminster. 0 colspan=3 New — 157 0.0 New   IndependentAnti-Labour 1Candidate Willoughby Clark stood in Cities of London and Westminster. 0 colspan=3 New — 157 0.0 New   BritishCommonwealth 1Candidate Saeeduz Zafar stood in Birmingham Small Heath. 0 colspan=3 New — 157 0.0 New   Anti-Election 1Leader Roger Moody stood in Fulham. 0 colspan=3 New — 112 0.0 New   Anti-Abortion 1Candidate William R. Cassell stood in Roxburgh, Selkirk and Peebles. 0 colspan=3 New — 103 0.0 New Blank and invalid votes 41,347https://researchbriefings.files.parliament.uk/documents/CBP-7529/CBP-7529.pdf UK Election Statistics: 1918-2023, A Century of Elections Cracknell Richard Uberoi Elise Burton Matthew 9 August 2023 House of Commons Library 32 8 August 2026 — — Total 1,837 630 0 100.0 28,344,798All valid votes excluding spoiled votes. 100.0 0.0 Registered voters, and turnout 39,342,013British Electoral Facts 1885-1975 F.W.S. Craig Macmillan Press 3 77 0333197348 1976 72.0https://researchbriefings.files.parliament.uk/documents/CBP-7529/CBP-7529.pdf UK Election Statistics: 1918-2023, A Century of Elections Cracknell Richard Uberoi Elise Burton Matthew 9 August 2023 House of Commons Library 29 8 August 2026 3.8 Votes summary Popular vote #ddd 600px 360px Conservative Conservative Party (UK) 46.44 Labour Labour Party (UK) 43.13 Liberal Liberal Party (UK) 7.48 SNP Scottish National Party 1.08 Others #A9A9A9 1.86 Seats summary Parliamentary seats #ddd 600px 360px Conservative Conservative Party (UK) 52.38 Labour Labour Party (UK) 45.71 Liberal Liberal Party (UK) 0.95 SNP Scottish National Party 0.16 Others #A9A9A9 0.79 Televised declarations These declarations were covered live by the BBC where the returning officer was heard to say "duly elected". + From BBC Parliament ReplayConstituencyWinning party 1966Constituency result by partyWinning party 1970ConLabLibOthersGuildford Conservative Party (UK)27,20313,1088,822 Conservative Party (UK) holdCheltenham Conservative Party (UK)22,82314,2138,431 Conservative Party (UK) holdSalford West Labour Party (UK)14,31016,986 Labour Party (UK) holdWolverhampton North East Labour Party (UK)15,35817,2511,592 Labour Party (UK) holdSalford East Labour Party (UK)9,58315,8533,000 Labour Party (UK) holdWolverhampton South West Conservative Party (UK)26,25211,7532,459318 Conservative Party (UK) holdNewcastle upon Tyne Central Labour Party (UK)4,25613,6711,433 Labour Party (UK) holdNewcastle upon Tyne North Conservative Party (UK)15,97812,518 Conservative Party (UK) holdExeter Labour Party (UK)21,68020,4096,672 Conservative Party (UK) gainNorth Devon Liberal Party (UK)18,5245,26818,893175 Liberal Party (UK) holdWest Aberdeenshire Liberal Party (UK)18,3966,14112,8472,112 Conservative Party (UK) gain Incumbents defeated PartyNameConstituencyOffice held whilst in Parliament or by-electionDefeated byPartyLabour Party (UK)Donald DewarAberdeen SouthIain SproatConservative Party (UK)Edwin BrooksBebingtonEric CockeramBrian ParkynBedfordTrevor SkeetGwilym RobertsBedfordshire SouthDavid MadelGeorge BrownBelperDeputy Leader of the Labour PartyGeoffrey Stewart-SmithEric MoonmanBillericayRobert McCrindleChristopher PriceBirmingham Perry BarrJoseph KinseyIoan EvansBirmingham YardleyComptroller of the HouseholdDerek CoombsRobert HowarthBolton EastLaurance ReedGordon OakesBolton WestRobert RedmondWoodrow WyattBosworthAdam ButlerNorman HaseldineBradford WestJohn WilkinsonColin JacksonBrighouse and SpenboroughWilfred ProudfootDennis HobdenBrighton KemptownAndrew BowdenRaymond DobsonBristol North EastAssistant WhipRobert AdleyJohn EllisBristol North WestMartin McLarenRobert MaxwellBuckinghamWilliam BenyonJennie LeeCannockMinister for the ArtsPatrick CormackTed RowlandsCardiff NorthMichael RobertsAlistair MacdonaldChislehurstPatricia Hornsby-SmithEdnyfed Hudson DaviesConwayWyn RobertsDavid WinnickCroydon SouthRichard ThompsonSydney IrvingDartfordChairman of Ways and MeansPeter TrewDavid EnnalsDoverMinister of State for Social ServicesPeter ReesStan NewensEppingNorman TebbitGwyneth DunwoodyExeterParliamentary Secretary at the Board of TradeJohn HannamJohn Dunwoody Falmouth and CamborneDavid MuddTerence BostonFavershamRoger MoateJohn DiamondGloucesterChief Secretary to the TreasurySally OppenheimAlbert MurrayGravesendParliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of TransportRoger WhiteBen Whitaker HampsteadParliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Overseas DevelopmentGeoffrey FinsbergRoy RoebuckHarrow EastHugh DykesPeter JacksonHigh PeakSpencer Le MarchantAlan Lee WilliamsHornchurchJohn LoveridgeArnold ShawIlford SouthAlbert CooperDingle FootIpswichSolicitor General for England and WalesErnle MoneyJohn BinnsKeighleyJoan HallJohn Page King's LynnChristopher Brocklebank-FowlerStanley HenigLancasterElaine Kellett-BowmanHarold DaviesLeekParliamentary Private Secretary to the Prime MinisterDavid KnoxJames DickensLewisham WestJohn GummerWilliam HowieLutonComptroller of the HouseholdCharles SimeonsJeremy BrayMiddlesbrough WestJohn SutcliffeDenis CoeMiddleton and PrestwichAlan HaselhurstDonald AndersonMonmouthJohn Stradling ThomasBert HazellNorfolk NorthRalph HowellGeorge PerryNottingham SouthNorman FowlerJohn HornerOldbury and HalesowenJohn StokesEvan LuardOxfordMontague WoodhouseRonald AtkinsPreston NorthMary HoltPeter MahonPreston SouthAlan GreenJohn LeeReadingGerard VaughanAnne KerrRochester and ChathamPeggy FennerAntony GardnerRushcliffeKenneth ClarkeFrank HooleySheffield HeeleyJohn SpenceBob MitchellSouthampton TestJames HillArnold GregoryStockport NorthIdris OwenErnest DaviesStretfordWinston ChurchillGerald FowlerThe WrekinAnthony TraffordJohn RyanUxbridgeCharles CurranMalcolm MacmillanWestern IslesDonald StewartScottish National PartyHugh GrayYarmouthAnthony FellConservative Party (UK)Conservative Party (UK)Kenneth BakerActonElected in the 1968 Acton by-electionNigel SpearingLabour Party (UK)Donald WilliamsDudleyElected in the 1968 Dudley by-electionJohn GilbertEsmond WrightGlasgow PollokElected in the 1967 Glasgow Pollok by-electionJames WhiteBruce CampbellOldham WestElected in the 1968 Oldham West by-electionMichael MeacherChristopher WardSwindonElected in the 1969 Swindon by-electionDavid StoddartFred SilvesterWalthamstow WestElected in the 1967 Walthamstow West by-electionEric DeakinsLiberal Party (UK)Wallace LawlerBirmingham LadywoodElected in the 1969 Birmingham Ladywood by-electionDoris FisherMichael WinstanleyCheadleTom NormantonConservative Party (UK)Richard WainwrightColne ValleyDavid ClarkLabour Party (UK)Eric Lubbock OrpingtonLiberal Chief WhipIvor StanbrookConservative Party (UK)Alasdair MackenzieRoss and CromartyHamish GrayUlster UnionistHenry ClarkAntrim NorthIan PaisleyDemocratic UnionistJames HamiltonFermanagh and South TyroneFrank McManusUnityScottish National PartyWinnie EwingHamiltonElected in the 1967 Hamilton by-electionAlex WilsonLabour Party (UK)Plaid CymruGwynfor EvansCarmarthenElected in the 1966 Carmarthen by-electionGwynoro JonesDemocratic PartyDesmond DonnellyPembrokeshireFormer Labour MPNicholas EdwardsConservative Party (UK) See also List of MPs elected in the 1970 United Kingdom general election 1970 United Kingdom general election in England 1970 United Kingdom general election in Scotland 1970 United Kingdom general election in Wales 1970 United Kingdom general election in Northern Ireland 1970 United Kingdom local elections Notes note References Further reading Butler David E. David Butler (psephologist) etal The British General Election of 1970 1971 , the standard scholarly study. F. W. S. Craig F. W. S. Craig British Electoral Facts: 1832–1987 1989 Dartmouth Gower 0900178302 External links United Kingdom election results—summary results 1885–1979 https://web.archive.org/web/20080223222448/http://www.election.demon.co.uk/geresults.html 23 February 2008 Manifestos A Better Tomorrow, 1970 Conservative Party manifesto Now Britain's stronglet's make it great to live in, 1970 Labour Party manifesto What a Life!, 1970 Liberal Party manifesto 1970 General election General election Category:Harold Wilson Category:Edward Heath Category:History of the Conservative Party (UK)