Ipswich () is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since July 2024 by Jack Abbott of the Labour Party.
Constituency profile
The Ipswich constituency is located in Suffolk and covers most of the large town of Ipswich, excluding some outer suburbs. Ipswich is a historic town based around the Port of Ipswich, which dates back to the 7th century. Ipswich is an important commercial centre for the largely agricultural county of Suffolk, and is the county's largest town. The constituency contains the main campus of the University of Suffolk, which has around 14,000 students. The constituency has high levels of deprivation, particularly in the centre and west of the town. The north and east of the town have higher levels of wealth; the suburb of California is especially affluent. House prices in the constituency are lower than the national average and considerably lower than the rest of the East of England.
In general, residents of the constituency are young and have low levels of education and homeownership. Household income is below average. White people made up 83% of the population at the 2021 census, an identical figure to the country as a whole. In the mid eighteenth century the constituency had an electorate of around 700, which was a middle sized borough by the standards of the time – and a reputation of a borough that was likely to offer stiff opposition to government favoured candidates.
Ipswich is a marginal seat, having changed hands eleven times since its creation as a single-member constituency in 1918. It has generally been favourable to Labour Party candidates, who succeeded at every postwar general election since the end of World War II except 1970, February 1974, 1987, 2010, 2015 and 2019. It was traditionally won by either party by fairly small margins; however, from 1997 until being gained by the Conservative Party in 2010, Labour won the contests with safer margins, and after the Conservatives increased their majority in 2015, Labour regained the seat in 2017 only to lose it again in 2019 when the Conservative candidate got more than half the votes cast when there were more than two candidates for the first time since 1918. This was turned around in 2024 when Labour won the seat once again with a healthy majority of 16.8%
Ipswich was the only seat won by a Labour candidate at the 2017 general election from a total of seven seats in Suffolk, the others being retained by Conservatives and more rural in comparison to Ipswich. Martin's 2017 election victory was one of thirty net gains made by the Labour Party.
Boundaries
The present-day constituency consists of most of the Borough of Ipswich, with the exception of the Castle Hill, Whitehouse and Whitton wards.
1918–1983: The County Borough of Ipswich.
1983–2010: The Borough of Ipswich wards of Bixley, Bridge, Chantry, Gainsborough, Priory Heath, Rushmere, St Clement's, St John's, St Margaret's, Sprites, Stoke Park, and Town.
2010–present: The Borough of Ipswich wards of Alexandra, Bixley, Bridge, Gainsborough, Gipping, Holywells, Priory Heath, Rushmere, St John's, St Margaret's, Sprites, Stoke Park, and Westgate.
:Following a revision of the Borough of Ipswich wards, the constituency gained a small area from Central Suffolk and North Ipswich.
The 2023 periodic review of Westminster constituencies left the boundaries unchanged.
Members of Parliament
Freemen belonging to the Ipswich Corporation were entitled to elect two burgesses to the Parliament of England from the fourteenth century which continued uninterrupted after the parliament united with Scotland and Ireland, only becoming a single member constituency in 1918.
MPs 1386–1660
{| class="wikitable"
|-
!Parliament!!First member!!Second member
|-
| 1380 || William Master || ?
|-
| 1385 || William Master || ?
|-
| 1386 || Geoffrey Starling || Robert Waleys
|-
| 1388 (Feb)|| Geoffrey Starling || Robert Waleys ||
|-
| 1455|| Sir Gilbert Debenham||
|-
| 1460-1462|| Richard Felaw
|-
| 1512|| Thomas Baldry || Edmund Daundy
|-
| 1562/3|| Thomas Seckford I|| Edward Grimston
|-
| 1614|| Robert Snelling||William Cage
!First party!!colspan="2"|Second member
|-
| Dec 1757
|rowspan="3" style="color:inherit;background-color: " |
|rowspan="4"| Thomas Staunton <!-- c 1706 to 1 Oct 1784 -->
|rowspan="3"| <!-- party -->Whig
|-
| Nov 1759
|style="color:inherit;background-color: " |
| George Montgomerie <!-- 30 Aug 1712 to 26 Mar 1766 -->
| <!-- party -->Whig
|-
| Mar 1761
|style="color:inherit;background-color: " |
| Francis Vernon <!-- c 1715 to 15 Oct 1783 -->
| <!-- party -->Whig
|-
| Mar 1768
|style="color:inherit;background-color: " |
| William Wollaston <!-- Feb 1731 to 10 Nov 1797 -->
| Whig
|style="color:inherit;background-color: " |
| Rigby Wason <!-- died 24 Jul 1875 -->
| Whig
|-
| 1835
|style="color:inherit;background-color: " |
| Fitzroy Kelly <!-- 1 Oct 1796 to 18 Sep 1880 -->
| Conservative
|-
| Feb. 1838
|rowspan="2" style="color:inherit;background-color: " |
|rowspan="2"| Fitzroy Kelly <!-- 1 Oct 1796 to 18 Sep 1880 -->
|rowspan="2"| Conservative
|-
| 1859
|rowspan="2" style="color:inherit;background-color: " |
|rowspan="2" | Liberal
|-
| 1868
|style="color:inherit;background-color: " |
| Henry Wyndham West <!-- 1823 to 25 Nov 1893 -->
| Liberal
|-
| 1874
|style="color:inherit;background-color: " |
| John Cobbold <!-- 12 Jul 1831 to 10 Dec 1875 -->
| Conservative
|rowspan="2" style="color:inherit;background-color: " |
|rowspan="2"| James Redfoord Bulwer <!-- 22 May 1820 to 4 Mar 1899 -->
|rowspan="2"| Conservative
|-
| 1876
|rowspan="2" style="color:inherit;background-color: " |
|rowspan="2"| Thomas Cobbold <!-- 22 Jul 1833 to 21 Nov 1883 -->
|rowspan="2"| Conservative
|-
| 1880
|rowspan="2" style="color:inherit;background-color: " |
|rowspan="2"| Jesse Collings <!-- 2 Dec 1831 to 20 Nov 1920 -->
|rowspan="2"| Liberal
|-
| December 1883
|style="color:inherit;background-color: " |
| Henry Wyndham West <!-- 1823 to 25 Nov 1893 -->
| Liberal
|-
| April 1886
|rowspan="2" style="color:inherit;background-color: " |
|rowspan="2"| Sir Charles Dalrymple, Bt <!-- 15 Oct 1839 to 20 Jun 1916 -->
|rowspan="2"| Conservative
|style="color:inherit;background-color: " |
| Hugo Chatteris <!-- 25 Aug 1857 to 12 Jul 1937 -->
| Conservative
|-
| 1895
|rowspan="4" style="color:inherit;background-color: " |
|rowspan="4"| Sir Daniel Ford Goddard <!-- 17 Jan 1850 to 6 May 1922 -->
|rowspan="4"| Liberal
|-
| 1906
|style="color:inherit;background-color: " |
| Felix Cobbold <!-- 8 Sep 1841 to 6 Dec 1909 -->
| Liberal
|-
| January 1910
|style="color:inherit;background-color: " |
| Silvester Horne <!-- 15 Apr 1865 to 2 May 1914 -->
| Liberal
|-
| May 1914
|style="color:inherit;background-color: " |
| John Ganzoni
| Conservative
|}
During the period between 1835 and 1842 there were five elections and all were found to have been corrupt. After the 1835 election, Dundas and Kelly were unseated on the charge of bribery. After the 1837 election, Tufnell was unseated on a scrutiny. Gibson, who was elected in 1838, resigned. Cochrane was elected in 1839, after which a petition was presented complaining of gross bribery – it was not progressed because a general election was expected. After the 1841 election, Wason and Rennie were unseated, being declared guilty of bribery by their agents.
MPs 1918–present
{| class="wikitable"
|-
!colspan="2"|Election!!Member
Elections in the 2010s
Elections in the 2000s
Following the death of Jamie Cann on 15 October 2001, a by-election was held on 22 November 2001.