Colne Valley
Labour hold
Labour did not win any of the six Kirklees Borough wards within the Colne Valley seat in May 2000, and the council remains firmly under no overall control; yet Kali Mountford should exploit the national popularity of Tony Blair's government to win again in this constituency with such a dramatic and varied political history, going right back to the times of the early socialist Victor Grayson, who was to disappear mysteriously, but also including a Liberal tradition in the shape of Richard Wainwright who battled to share representation with Labour in the 1960s and 1970s. This seat is probably best known among the general public as the setting for that long-running celebration of sentiment, last of the summer wine, which has literally put Holmfirth on many maps. In late 2000 the BBC producers threatened to move filming from that town, a victim of its own success as a tourist magnet; many locals were appalled at the possible economic consequences.
Kali Mountford, Labour victor here in 1997, has had a bumpy ride, troubled by illness and upset by her suspension for leaking a social security select committee report to Chancellor Brown’s PPS Don Touhig in 1999. Otherwise she is fairly standard issue: born 1954, educated at Crewe Grammar School for Girls and Crewe & Alsager College. She worked for 20 years as a civil servant benefits clerk, was parachuted into the Commons first time out on an all women shortlist, and is hostile to sexist comments about women MPs. Her Tory opponent, Philip Davies, is young, born 1972, educated at Old Swinford Hospital School for Boys, Stourbridge, and Huddersfield University. He works with ASDA as a customer services manager, and has an interest in horse racing derived from three years spent running his family’s betting shop in Doncaster.
 |
Wealthy Achievers, Suburban Areas |
15.95% |
14.99% |
106.41 |
|
Affluent Greys, Rural Communities |
0.00% |
2.13% |
0.00 |
|
Prosperous Pensioners, Retirement Areas |
0.23% |
2.49% |
9.37 |
|
Affluent Executives, Family Areas |
2.42% |
4.43% |
54.64 |
|
Well-Off Workers, Family Areas |
12.85% |
7.27% |
176.68 |
|
Affluent Urbanites, Town & City Areas |
0.17% |
2.56% |
6.76 |
|
Prosperous Professionals, Metropolitan Areas |
0.02% |
2.04% |
0.79 |
|
Better-Off Executives, Inner City Areas |
0.08% |
3.94% |
2.07 |
|
Comfortable Middle Agers, Mature Home Owning Areas |
15.34% |
13.04% |
117.66 |
|
Skilled Workers, Home Owning Areas |
26.75% |
12.70% |
210.58 |
|
New Home Owners, Mature Communities |
8.61% |
8.14% |
105.69 |
|
White Collar Workers, Better-Off Multi Ethnic Areas |
2.51% |
4.02% |
62.42 |
|
Older People, Less Prosperous Areas |
3.90% |
3.19% |
122.35 |
|
Council Estate Residents, Better-Off Homes |
7.98% |
11.31% |
70.59 |
|
Council Estate Residents, High Unemployment |
0.35% |
3.06% |
11.46 |
|
Council Estate Residents, Greatest Hardship |
0.80% |
2.52% |
31.96 |
|
People in Multi-Ethnic, Low-Income Areas |
2.03% |
2.10% |
96.49 |
|
Unclassified |
0.00% |
0.06% |
0.00 |
|
|
 |
 |
 |
£0-5K |
8.95% |
9.41% |
95.09 |
|
£5-10K |
16.09% |
16.63% |
96.76 |
|
£10-15K |
16.60% |
16.58% |
100.13 |
|
£15-20K |
13.95% |
13.58% |
102.67 |
|
£20-25K |
10.82% |
10.39% |
104.08 |
|
£25-30K |
8.13% |
7.77% |
104.53 |
|
£30-35K |
6.04% |
5.79% |
104.27 |
|
£35-40K |
4.49% |
4.33% |
103.55 |
|
£40-45K |
3.35% |
3.27% |
102.52 |
|
£45-50K |
2.52% |
2.48% |
101.33 |
|
£50-55K |
1.91% |
1.90% |
100.06 |
|
£55-60K |
1.46% |
1.47% |
98.76 |
|
£60-65K |
1.12% |
1.15% |
97.49 |
|
£65-70K |
0.87% |
0.91% |
96.26 |
|
£70-75K |
0.68% |
0.72% |
95.08 |
|
£75-80K |
0.54% |
0.57% |
93.97 |
|
£80-85K |
0.43% |
0.46% |
92.93 |
|
£85-90K |
0.34% |
0.37% |
91.95 |
|
£90-95K |
0.28% |
0.31% |
91.05 |
|
£95-100K |
0.23% |
0.25% |
90.20 |
|
£100K + |
1.16% |
1.34% |
86.36 |
|
|
|
|




1992-1997
|
1997-2001
|
|
|
Con |
-9.30% |
Lab |
11.48% |
LD |
-4.39% |
|
Con |
-2.20% |
Lab |
-0.91% |
LD |
2.28% |
|
|
 |
Kali Mountford
Labour hold
|
Con |
 |
14,328 |
30.49% |
Lab |
 |
18,967 |
40.37% |
LD |
 |
11,694 |
24.89% |
Oth |
 |
1,998 |
4.25% |
Maj |
 |
4,639 |
9.87% |
Turn |
 |
46,987 |
63.33% |
|
|
 |
Kali Mountford
Labour hold
|
LD |
Gordon Beever |
11,694 |
24.89% |
C |
Philip Davies |
14,328 |
30.49% |
L |
Kali Mountford |
18,967 |
40.37% |
G |
Richard Plunkett |
1,081 |
2.30% |
UK |
Arthur Quarmby |
917 |
1.95% |
Candidates representing 5 parties stood for election to this seat.
|
|
 |
Kali Mountford
Labour gain
|
Con |
 |
18,445 |
32.70% |
Lab |
 |
23,285 |
41.28% |
LD |
 |
12,755 |
22.61% |
Ref |
|
0 |
0.00% |
Oth |
 |
1,926 |
3.41% |
Maj |
 |
2,530 |
4.48% |
Turn |
 |
56,411 |
76.92% |
|
|
 |
Conservative
|
Con |
 |
24,804 |
42.00% |
Lab |
 |
17,579 |
29.80% |
LD |
 |
15,953 |
27.00% |
Oth |
 |
720 |
1.20% |
Maj |
 |
7,225 |
12.20% |
Turn |
 |
59,056 |
81.02% |
|
|
 |
|
|