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1997 Result:
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Hall, Patrick
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Lab
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24,774
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50.60%
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Blackman, Robert John
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Con
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16,474
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33.70%
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Noyce, Christopher
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LibDem
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6,044
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12.30%
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Conquest, Peter
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Ref
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1,503
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3.10%
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Saunders, Patricia
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NLP
|
149
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0.30%
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Majority
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8,300
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13% swing from Con to Lab
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1992 Notional
Result:
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Con
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22,863
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45.43%
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|
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Lab
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18,318
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36.4%
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LibDem
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8,263
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16.42%
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Others
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881
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1.75%
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Notional Majority
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4,545
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9.03%
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Description:
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Although the seat is notionally Conservative, a Labour government with even a small majority could reasonably hope to have a member of Parliament for Bedford on its side of the House. The Conservative backbencher Sir Trevor Skeet has decided to retire having represented the Bedford electorate for over 25 years, first as MP for the old Bedford constituency and, since 1983, as the member for North Beds. Both Bedford and Kempston have expanded in recent years to accommodate the constituency's growing population. The electorate is ethnically diverse, with significant Italian, black, Asian, Polish and Irish communities. The area has suffered from significant job losses - Texas Instruments, George Fischer Castings and the Ministry of Defence research centre at Thurleigh Airfield have all closed in recent years. However, unemployment is just below the national average. The relocation of Unipath Limited to the area is expected to create up to 700 new jobs. De Montfort University, formerly Leicester Polytechnic, has a campus in Bedford.
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