Records of members of parliament of the United Kingdom

Age

Youngest

Of those whose age can be verified, the youngest MP since the Reform Act of 1832^[1] was James Dickson who was elected as a Liberal at a by-election for the Borough of Dungannon on 25 June 1880. He was born on 19 April 1859 and so was aged 21 years 67 days. The youngest female MP was Bernadette Devlin, elected on 17 April 1969 from Mid Ulster aged 21 years 359 days.

Christopher Monck, Earl of Torrington was born on 14 August 1653, and was returned as Knight of the Shire for Devon on 8 January 1666/7, at the age of 13 years and 148 days.

It is known that Henry Long (1420–90) was returned to the seat of Old Sarum at the age of 15, although his precise date of birth is unknown.^[2]

The youngest current MP is Pamela Nash who was 26 years old when she was elected to Parliament in the 2010 general election.

Oldest

The oldest MP of all time is believed to be Sir Francis Knollys (c.1550–1648) who was re-elected to his Reading seat aged around 90, retaining the seat until his death at 97 or 98. The oldest in modern times was Samuel Young (1822–1918) who was MP for East Cavan until his death at the age of 96 years 63 days.^[2]

The oldest ever woman MP was Irene Ward, member for Tynemouth, who was a few days short of 79 when she retired at the February 1974 general election.

The oldest former MP still living is Morgan Morgan-Giles, born 19 June 1914.

List of oldest sitting MPs since 1945

Notes:

^F Also Father of the House (not necessarily contemporaneous with seniority)

¹ Died in office

² Retired

Longest-lived ex-MP

The longest-lived former-MP was Theodore Cooke Taylor, member for Radcliffe cum Farnworth between 1900 and 1918, who lived to be 102.^[2] Other ex-MPs who have reached their centenary are Bert Hazell, Manny Shinwell, Hartley Shawcross, Sir George Ernest Schuster, Sir Harry Brittain, John Oldfield, Nathaniel Micklem and Edgar Granville.

Frank James, who was elected MP for Walsall at the 1892 general election, but unseated on petition, achieved a slightly greater age than Theodore Cooke Taylor.^[4]

The longest-lived woman MP was Norah Runge who died aged 93 in 1978.

Period of service

Longest

Francis Knollys (also the oldest ever MP) was first elected as MP for Oxford in 1575 at the age of around 25 and was MP for Reading at the time of his death in 1648, a period of 73 years.^[2] The longest span of service of an MP during the 20th century was Winston Churchill who was first elected on 1 October 1900 and left the House of Commons on 25 September 1964, a period of 63 years 360 days. His service was not continuous, as he was not an MP for a spell in 1908 and between 1922 and 1924.

Charles Pelham Villiers is the longest continuously-serving MP. He was elected in 1835 and remained an MP continuously for over 62 years until his death on 16 January 1898, aged 96 years 13 days.

The longest continuous service and longest total service records for a female MP were held by Gwyneth Dunwoody, at over 34 years and 38 years respectively. The longest span of service for a woman was 42 years and 4 months for Irene Ward, first elected in 1931 and an MP until 1974 although she did not hold a seat between 1945 and 1950.

Shortest

There are cases of MPs being elected posthumously; Edward Legge (1710–47) was elected unopposed as MP for Portsmouth on 15 December 1747 until news arrived that he had died 87 days previously in the West Indies. In 1780 John Kirkman was elected as MP for the City of London despite passing away before polls closed.^[2]

In more recent times, members have died after polling, but before the declaration of the results. In 1906, Thomas Higgins was declared elected for the seat of North Galway, even though he had died earlier that morning, after polling day. More recently, in 1945 Sir Edward Taswell Campbell at Bromley and Leslie Pym at Monmouth died after polling, but nine days before the declaration of the results. Both were declared elected posthumously, and both had been MPs for a number of years. Noel Skelton is another example in 1935.

The shortest non-posthumous service was that of Alfred Dobbs, who was declared elected MP for Smethwick on 26 July 1945 and was killed the following day in a motorcycle accident on the way to take his seat.

Shortest total service since 1900

For a comprehensive list of MPs since 1900 with less than 365 days total service See

• List of United Kingdom MPs with the shortest service

Members who never took their seats

• Paul Maskey, 2011–
• Conor Murphy, 2005–
• Michelle Gildernew, 2001–
• Pat Doherty, 2001–
• Martin McGuinness, 1997–
• Gerry Adams, 1983–92, 1997–2011
• Owen Carron, 1981–83
• Bobby Sands, 1981
• Philip Clarke, 1955
• Tom Mitchell, 1955
• Alfred Dobbs, 1945
• Joseph Bell, 1922
• Harry Wrightson, 1918–19
• 69 Sinn Féin Members elected at the 1918 General Election (including 6 first elected in by-elections 1917–18)
• James Annand, 1906
• Thomas Higgins, 1906
• Henry Compton, 1905-6
• Joseph Andrews, 1905-6

MPs who never won an election

On rare occasions the election winner may be disqualified, either by an election court or by the House of Commons, and the seat awarded to the runner-up.

Malcolm St. Clair: Bristol South-East, 1961–63

Charles Beattie: Mid-Ulster, 1955–56

MPs elected to two or more constituencies simultaneously

Richard Hazleton: from 9 December 1910 until 23 February 1911, when he was unseated on a petition, he was MP for North Galway and North Louth.

MPs who have sat for three or more different constituencies

In modern times, it is unusual for an MP to represent more than one or two constituencies during their career, although prior to the 20th century it was quite common. MPs whose seats were altered purely by boundary changes are not listed.

George Galloway: Glasgow Hillhead/Kelvin ⁴; Bethnal Green and Bow ⁴; Bradford West

Michael Ancram: Berwick and East Lothian ¹; Edinburgh South ¹; Devizes

Kenneth Baker: Acton ¹; St. Marylebone ²; Mole Valley

William Clark: Nottingham South ¹; East Surrey ⁴; Croydon South

Roy Jenkins: Southwark Central ²; Birmingham Stechford ³; Glasgow Hillhead

Fergus Montgomery: Newcastle East ¹; Brierley Hill ²; Altrincham and Sale

Geoffrey de Freitas: Nottingham Central ⁴; Lincoln ³; Kettering

Arthur Palmer: Wimbledon ¹; Cleveland ¹; Bristol Central

Frank Markham: Chatham ⁵; Nottingham South ¹; Buckingham

Geoffrey Lloyd: Birmingham Ladywood ¹; Birmingham King's Norton ²; Sutton Coldfield

Ray Gunter: South-East Essex ²; Doncaster ¹; Southwark

Frank Soskice: Birkenhead East ²; Sheffield Neepsend ²; Newport

Charles Simmons: Birmingham Erdington¹; Birmingham West ²; Brierley Hill

Charles MacAndrew: Kilmarnock ¹; Glasgow Partick ⁴; Bute and North Ayrshire

Richard Kidston Law: Hull South West ¹; Kensington South ²; Haltemprice

Hyacinth Morgan: Camberwell North West ⁵; Rochdale ⁴; Warrington

Roger Conant: Chesterfield ¹; Bewdley ²; Rutland and Stamford

Ralph Assheton: Rushcliffe ¹; City of London ²; Blackburn West

John Wilmot: Fulham East ¹; Kennington ⁴; Deptford

Austin Hudson: Islington East ¹; Hackney North ¹; Lewisham North

Joseph Braithwaite: Hillsborough ¹; Holderness ²; Bristol North West

Walter Elliot: Lanark¹; Kelvingrove¹; Combined Scottish Universities ²; Kelvingrove

Walter Ayles: Bristol North¹; Southall ⁴; Hayes and Harlington

William Jowitt: Hartlepool ¹; Preston ⁴; Ashton-under-Lyne

Leonard Lyle: Stratford ¹; Epping ⁵; Bournemouth

Arthur Henderson: Barnard Castle ⁴; Widnes ¹; Newcastle East ¹; Burnley ¹; Clay Cross

Ramsay MacDonald: Leicester ²; Aberavon ⁴; Seaham ¹; Combined Scottish Universities

Wilfred Paling: Doncaster ¹; Wentworth ²; Dearne Valley

Winston Churchill Oldham⁴; Manchester North West¹; Dundee¹; Epping/Woodford⁵

Notes:

¹ defeated

² seat abolished

³ resigned

⁴ sought another constituency

⁵ retired

MPs who have made more than one comeback

In modern times, it is unusual for an MP who has been defeated (or retired e.g. due to their seat being abolished) to achieve more than one comeback to the House of Commons after a period of absence. Arthur Henderson was exceptional in achieving it on no fewer than four occasions.

William McCrea: 2000 ^b, 2005

Michael Ancram: 1979, 1992

Tony Benn: 1963 ^b, 1984 ^b

Fergus Montgomery: 1967 ^b, October 1974

Arthur Palmer: 1952 ^b, 1964

Alec Douglas-Home: 1950, 1963 ^b

Frank Soskice: 1950 ^b, 1956 ^b

Frank Markham: 1935, 1951

Cahir Healy: 1931 ^b, 1950

Austin Hudson: 1924, 1950

Walter Elliot: 1924, 1946 ^b

Harold Macmillan: 1931, 1945 ^b

Walter Ayles: 1929, 1945

Somerville Hastings: 1929, 1945

Ian Fraser: 1931, 1940 ^b

Cuthbert Headlam: 1931, 1940 ^b

Charles Lyle: 1923, 1940 ^b

George Isaacs: 1929, 1939 ^b

William Jowitt: 1929, 1939 ^b

Henry Guest: 1922, 1937 ^b

Ramsay MacDonald: 1922, 1936 ^b

James Chuter Ede: 1929, 1935

Robert Richards: 1929, 1935

Arthur Henderson, Jr.: 1929, 1935

Manny Shinwell: 1928 ^b, 1935

Arthur Henderson, Sr.: 1919 ^b, 1923 ^b, 1924 ^b, 1933 ^b

Tom Smith: 1929, 1933 ^b

Edward Anthony Strauss: December 1910, 1927 ^b, 1931

Vivian Henderson: 1924, 1931

Frank Sanderson: 1924, 1931

Frederick Guest: December 1910, 1923, 1931

Winston Churchill: 1908 ^b, 1924

Andrew Bonar Law: 1906 ^b, 1911 ^b

James Agg-Gardner: 1885, 1900, 1911 ^b

Notes:

^b indicates a by-election

Women

The first woman elected to the House of Commons was Constance Markievicz who was elected on 14 December 1918 to the constituency of Dublin St Patrick's, but she refused to take her seat as she was a member of Sinn Féin.

The first woman to take her seat as an MP was Conservative Nancy Astor, Viscountess Astor, elected 28 November 1919.^[5]

The first and only female Prime Minister of the United Kingdom was Margaret Thatcher who served as PM from 1979 to 1990 and Leader of the Conservative Party from 1975 to 1990. Thatcher is the only woman to have held either post and is currently the only female ever to be the Leader of the three major political parties in the UK. She was also the first woman to hold one of the Great Offices of State.

Ethnic Minorities

First general election victors from specific religions

When the UK Parliament was established in 1801, non-Anglicans were prevented from taking their seats as MPs under the Test Act 1672. However, Methodists took communion at Anglican churches until 1795, and some continued to do so, and many Presbyterians were prepared to accept Anglican communion, thus ensuring that members of these creeds were represented in the Parliament.^[6] Some Unitarians were also elected.

The first Roman Catholic general election victors in the UK Parliament were at the 1830 general election. They included Daniel O'Connell and James Patrick Mahon in Clare.

The first Quaker general election victor was Edward Pease, at the 1832 general election.

Lionel de Rothschild was the first Jewish general election victor, at the 1847 general election. He was not permitted to take his seat.

The first declared atheist to win a general election was Charles Bradlaugh at the 1880 general election. He was not permitted to take his seat.

Dadabhai Naoroji was the first Parsi general election victor at the 1892 general election.

Piara Khabra became the first Sikh general election victor, at the 1992 general election.

The first Muslim general election victor was Mohammed Sarwar at the 1997 general election.

Physical attributes

The heaviest MP of all time is believed to be Sir Cyril Smith, MP for Rochdale between 1972 and 1992, who weighed 189.6 kg (nearly 30 stone) at his peak in 1976.

The tallest MP of all time is believed to be Daniel Kawczynski at 6 feet 8½ inches (204 cm).^[7] Before Kawczynski's election in 2005, the record was held by Louis Gluckstein, MP for Nottingham East between 1931 and 1945, who measured 2.02m (6' 7.5").

Physically disabled MPs

Jack Cohen, MP for Liverpool Fairfield 1918–31, who lost both legs at the Third Battle of Ypres.

Ian Fraser, MP for St. Pancras North 1924–29, 1931–7 and for Lonsdale 1940–58, who was blinded at the Battle of the Somme.

Jack Ashley, MP for Stoke-on-Trent South 1966–1992, who became profoundly deaf in 1967 after a routine operation.

Terry Dicks, MP for Hayes and Harlington 1983–1997, who has cerebral palsy.

David Blunkett, MP for Sheffield Brightside since 1987, who has been blind since birth.

Anne Begg, MP for Aberdeen South since 1997, who has used a wheelchair for many years due to a degenerative disease.

Paul Maynard, MP for Blackpool North and Cleveleys since 2010, who has cerebral palsy.

Members of Parliament who died on wartime active service

Pre-World Wars

First World War

Second World War

Members of Parliament who have been accidentally killed

Members of Parliament who have been killed in a duel

Members of Parliament who have been murdered

Members of Parliament who have committed suicide

Members of Parliament who have disappeared

Members of Parliament who were executed, died in prison or escaped justice

Members of Parliament who were spies for foreign countries

References

See also

• Parliamentary records of the United Kingdom
• UK general election records
• UK by-election records
• Records of Prime Ministers of the United Kingdom