Houghton and Sunderland South
Notional 2005 Results:
Labour: 23354 (63.6%)
Conservative: 5982 (16.3%)
Liberal Democrat: 5973 (16.3%)
Other: 1439 (3.9%)
Majority: 17372 (47.3%)
Actual 2005 result
Conservative: 6923 (22.5%)
Labour: 17982 (58.6%)
Liberal Democrat: 4492 (14.6%)
BNP: 1166 (3.8%)
Other: 149 (0.5%)
Majority: 11059 (36%)
2001 Result
Conservative: 6254 (20.1%)
Labour: 19921 (63.9%)
Liberal Democrat: 3675 (11.8%)
UKIP: 470 (1.5%)
BNP: 576 (1.8%)
Other: 291 (0.9%)
Majority: 13667 (43.8%)
1997 Result
Conservative: 7536 (18.9%)
Labour: 27174 (68.1%)
Liberal Democrat: 4606 (11.5%)
Other: 609 (1.5%)
Majority: 19638 (49.2%)
Boundary changes:
Profile:
Outgoing MP: Chris Mullin(Labour) born 1947, Chelmsford. Educated at St Joseph`s College, Ipwich and the University of Hull. Journalist, having once worked on World in Action and edited the Tribune, and author, most famously of `A Very British Coup`. First elected as MP for Sunderland South in 1987. A left-winger and member of the Socialist Campaign Group, he nevertheless enjoyed two stints as a junior minister under Blair, serving as Parliamentary under-secretary in the department of the environment 1999-2001 and briefly in the department of international development 2001. Returned to government as a parliamentary under secretary in the foreign office 2003-2005. He will stand down at the next election (more information at They work for you)
Candidates: 
Robert Oliver (Conservative) Politics and history teacher. Sunderland councillor. Contested Sunderland South 2005.
Bridget Phillipson (Labour) Educated at St Roberts School and Oxford University. Women`s refuge manager.
Chris Boyle (Liberal Democrat) Lawyer. Newcastle councillor since 2003.
2001 Census Demographics
Total 2001 Population: 90046
Male: 48.4%
Female: 51.6%
Under 18: 22.4%
Over 60: 22.2%
Born outside UK: 1.4%
White: 99%
Asian: 0.5%
Mixed: 0.3%
Other: 0.2%
Christian: 84.2%
Full time students: 2.1%
Graduates 16-74: 10.9%
No Qualifications 16-74: 38.8%
Owner-Occupied: 60.8%
Social Housing: 35.1% (Council: 24.5%, Housing Ass.: 10.6%)
Privately Rented: 2.8%
Homes without central heating and/or private bathroom: 1.5%
Anthony,
Please, please , please re-open Sunderland Central. Surely everyone involved has learnt their lesson by now ? If they haven’t can you not just bar certain individuals (me included if you deem it necessary) from posting ?
yours obsequiously
RLC
er…’Dear ‘ Anthony …
I’m afraid Anthony cannot be moved – he’s being tough at the moment. He’s been generous to me in the past although I have always tried to be non-partisan and impartial in my comments and abide by the Comments Policy, however I am persona non grata
on Wansbeck now!! I still think Anthony is wonderful even though he’s rejecting me!!!
Amazingly most of Sunderland Labour Groups Councillors who can walk and talk (about half) descended mob-handed on Sandhill ward in this constituency yesterday.
Hardly a knife-edge ward in hardly a marginal constituency ! Other than the fact that the Labour Cllr up for election there is David Allan, the unofficial but real power behind several recent Leaders, one wonders why they chose to go here rather than Central ?
Still, there’s no doubt about it – Bridget Philipson is the only Labour candidate in Sunderland who’s running anything like a campaign at present even though, on paper, she’s least likely to need to.