United Kingdom general election, 2001

Infobox Election
election_name = United Kingdom general election, 2001
country = United Kingdom
type = parliamentary
ongoing = no
previous_election = United Kingdom general election, 1997
previous_year = 1997
previous_mps = MPs elected in the United Kingdom general election, 1997
next_election = United Kingdom general election, 2005
next_year = 2005
next_mps = MPs elected in the United Kingdom general election, 2005
seats_for_election = All 659 seats to the House of Commons
election_date = 7 June 2001

leader1 = Tony Blair
leader_since1 = 21 July 1994
party1 = Labour Party (UK)
leaders_seat1 = Sedgefield
last_election1 = 418 seats, 43.2%
seats1 = 413
seat_change1 = -5
popular_vote1 = 10,724,953
percentage1 = 40.7%
swing1 = -2.5%

leader2 = William Hague
leader_since2 = 19 June 1997
party2 = Conservative Party (UK)
leaders_seat2 = Richmond
last_election2 = 165 seats, 30.7%
seats2 = 166
seat_change2 = +1
popular_vote2 = 8,357,615
percentage2 = 31.7%
swing2 = +1%

leader3 = Charles Kennedy
leader_since3 = 9 August 1999
party3 = Liberal Democrats (UK)
leaders_seat3 = Ross, Skye and Lochaber
last_election3 = 46 seats, 16.8%
seats3 = 52
seat_change3 = +6
popular_vote3 = 4,814,321
percentage3 = 18.3%
swing3 = +1.5%

title = PM
before_election = Tony Blair
before_party = Labour Party (UK)
after_election = Tony Blair
after_party = Labour Party (UK)The UK general election, 2001 was held on 7 June 2001 and was dubbed "the quiet landslide" by the media. There was little change at all - outside Northern Ireland - with 620 out of 641 seats remaining unchanged. Labour enjoyed its second so called 'landslide victory' (not a landslide but more of a slip back as the Labour Party share of the vote dropped by 2.5% from 1997) in a row, maintaining its position from the previous election. Tony Blair became the first Labour prime minister to win enough seats to have a full second consecutive term in office. Labour won a majority of 167 overall (previously 179) and 247 over the Conservatives (previously 254).

The Conservatives netted a gain of only 1 seat after their crushing defeat of 1997 (gaining a few seats from Labour, but losing to the Liberal Democrats). Conservative leader William Hague resigned immediately, becoming the first Conservative leader since Austen Chamberlain to leave office without becoming Prime Minister. The Liberal Democrats, under Charles Kennedy, made a gain of 6 more seats from their already historical high of 1997.

The elections were also marked by voter apathy, with turnout falling to 59%, the lowest since the Coupon Election of 1918. Throughout the election the Labour Party had maintained a significant lead in the opinion polls and the result was deemed to be so certain that some bookmakers paid out for a Labour majority before the election day.

The election had been expected in May, to coincide with local elections, but both were postponed because of rural movement restrictions imposed in response to a foot and mouth outbreak. One of the more noted events of a quiet campaign was when a countryside protester Craig Evans threw an egg at Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott in Rhyl; Prescott then punched him and a struggle ensued, in front of television cameras. The 2001 Election also saw the rare election of an independent. Dr. Richard Taylor of Independent Kidderminster Hospital and Health Concern (usually now known simply as "Health Concern") unseated a government minister. There was also a high vote for British National Party leader Nick Griffin in Oldham, in the wake of recent race riots in the town.

In Northern Ireland, the election was far more dramatic and marked a move by unionists away from support for the Good Friday Agreement, with the moderate unionist Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) losing to the more hardline Democratic Unionist Party (DUP). This polarisation was also seen in the nationalist community, with the Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP) vote losing out to the hardline republican Sinn Féin. It also saw a tightening of the parties as the small UK Unionist Party lost its only seat.

During the election, Sharron Storer, a resident of Birmingham, England, criticised Prime Minister Tony Blair in front of television cameras about conditions in the National Health Service. The widely-televised incident happened on 16 May during a campaign visit by Blair to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Birmingham. Sharron Storer's partner, Keith Sedgewick, a cancer patient with non-Hodgkin's lymphoma and therefore highly susceptible to infection, was being treated at the time in the bone marrow unit, but no bed could be found for him and he was transferred to the casualty unit for his first 24 hours. [citation|title=British Government and Politics: A Comparative Guide |author=Duncan Watts|year=2006|publisher=Edinburgh University|url=http://books.google.com/books?vid=ISBN074862323X&id=MiTDykvtbEkC&pg=PA320&lpg=PA320&ots=VOmOjxEveF&dq=%22Sharron+Storer%22&ie=ISO-8859-1&output=html&sig=1_H6vnU8r39jq9fbogjBfxnTAQs|id=ISBN 074862323X ] [ [http://news.bbc.co.uk/vote2001/hi/english/newsid_1334000/1334131.stm BBC story from 16 May 2001] ] [ [http://news.bbc.co.uk/vote2001/hi/english/newsid_1334000/1334903.stm BBC story from 17 May 2001] ]

Results

Election Summary Begin|title = UK General Election 2001 Election Summary Party
party = Labour Party (UK)
seats = 413
gain = 2
loss = 8
net = −6
votes = 10,724,953
votes % = 40.7
seats % = 62.5
plus/minus = −2.5%
government = yesElection Summary Party
party = Conservative Party (UK)
seats = 166
gain = 9
loss = 8
net = +1
votes = 8,357,615
votes % = 31.7
seats % = 25.2
plus/minus = +1.0%Election Summary Party
party = Liberal Democrats (UK)
seats = 52
gain = 8
loss = 2
net = +6
votes = 4,814,321
votes % = 18.3
seats % = 7.9
plus/minus = +1.5%Election Summary Party
party = Scottish National Party
seats = 5
gain = 0
loss = 1
net = −1
votes = 464,314
votes % = 1.8
seats % = 0.8
plus/minus = −0.2%Election Summary Party
party = United Kingdom Independence Party
seats = 0
gain = 0
loss = 0
net = 0
votes = 390,563
votes % = 1.5
seats % = 0.0
plus/minus = 1.2%Election Summary Party
party = Ulster Unionist Party
seats = 6
gain = 1
loss = 5
net = −4
votes = 216,839
votes % = 0.8
seats % = 0.9
plus/minus = 0.0%Election Summary Party
party = Plaid Cymru
seats = 4
gain = 1
loss = 1
net = 0
votes = 195,893
votes % = 0.7
seats % = 0.6
plus/minus = +0.2%Election Summary Party
party = Democratic Unionist Party
seats = 5
gain = 3
loss = 0
net = +3
votes = 181,999
votes % = 0.7
seats % = 0.8
plus/minus = +0.4%Election Summary Party
party = Sinn Féin
seats = 4
gain = 2
loss = 0
net = +2
votes = 175,933
votes % = 0.7
seats % = 0.6
plus/minus = +0.3%Election Summary Party
party = Social Democratic and Labour Party
seats = 3
gain = 0
loss = 0
net = 0
votes = 169,865
votes % = 0.6
seats % = 0.5
plus/minus = 0.0%Election Summary Party
party = Green Party of England and Wales
seats = 0
gain = 0
loss = 0
net = 0
votes = 166,477
votes % = 0.6
seats % = 0.0
plus/minus = +0.3%Election Summary Party
party = Independent (politician)
seats = 0
gain = 0
loss = 1
net = −1
votes = 97,070
votes % = 0.4
seats % = 0.0
plus/minus = +0.3%Election Summary Party
party = Scottish Socialist Party
seats = 0
gain = 0
loss = 0
net = 0
votes = 72,516
votes % = 0.3
seats % = 0.0
plus/minus = "N/A"Election Summary Party
party = Socialist Alliance (England)
seats = 0
gain = 0
loss = 0
net = 0
votes = 57,553
votes % = 0.2
seats % = 0.0
plus/minus = "N/A"Election Summary Party
party = Socialist Labour Party (UK)
seats = 0
gain = 0
loss = 0
net = 0
votes = 57,288
votes % = 0.2
seats % = 0.0
plus/minus = 0.0%Election Summary Party
party = British National Party
seats = 0
gain = 0
loss = 0
net = 0
votes = 47,129
votes % = 0.2
seats % = 0.0
plus/minus = +0.1%Election Summary Party
party = Alliance Party of Northern Ireland
seats = 0
gain = 0
loss = 0
net = 0
votes = 28,999
votes % = 0.1
seats % = 0.0
plus/minus = −0.1%Election Summary Party
party = Independent Kidderminster Hospital and Health Concern
seats = 1
gain = 1
loss = 0
net = +1
votes = 28,487
votes % = 0.1
seats % = 0.2
plus/minus = "N/A"Election Summary Party
party = Liberal Party (UK, 1989)
seats = 0
gain = 0
loss = 0
net = 0
votes = 13,685
votes % = 0.1
seats % = 0.0
plus/minus = 0.0%Election Summary Party
party = UK Unionist Party
seats = 0
gain = 0
loss = 1
net = −1
votes = 13,509
votes % = 0.1
seats % = 0.0
plus/minus = +0.1%Election Summary Party
party = Prolife Alliance
seats = 0
gain = 0
loss = 0
net = 0
votes = 9,453
votes % = 0.0
seats % = 0.0
plus/minus = −0.1%Election Summary Party
party = Legalise Cannabis Alliance
seats = 0
gain = 0
loss = 0
net = 0
votes = 8,677
votes % = 0.0
seats % = 0.0
plus/minus = "N/A"Election Summary Party
party = People's Justice Party (UK)
seats = 0
gain = 0
loss = 0
net = 0
votes = 7,443
votes % = 0.0
seats % = 0.0
plus/minus = "N/A"Election Summary Party
party = Official Monster Raving Loony Party
seats = 0
gain = 0
loss = 0
net = 0
votes = 6,655
votes % = 0.0
seats % = 0.0
plus/minus = 0.0%Election Summary Party
party = Progressive Unionist Party
seats = 0
gain = 0
loss = 0
net = 0
votes = 4,781
votes % = 0.0
seats % = 0.0
plus/minus = 0.0%Election Summary Party
party = Mebyon Kernow
seats = 0
gain = 0
loss = 0
net = 0
votes = 3,199
votes % = 0.0
seats % = 0.0
plus/minus = 0.0%Election Summary Party
party = Northern Ireland Women's Coalition
seats = 0
gain = 0
loss = 0
net = 0
votes = 2,968
votes % = 0.0
seats % = 0.0
plus/minus = 0.0%Election Summary Party
party = Scottish Unionist Party (modern)
seats = 0
gain = 0
loss = 0
net = 0
votes = 2,728
votes % = 0.0
seats % = 0.0
plus/minus = "N/A"Election Summary Party
party = Rock 'n' Roll Loony Party
seats = 0
gain = 0
loss = 0
net = 0
votes = 2,634
votes % = 0.0
seats % = 0.0
plus/minus = "N/A"Election Summary Party
party = British National Front
seats = 0
gain = 0
loss = 0
net = 0
votes = 2,484
votes % = 0.0
seats % = 0.0
plus/minus = 0.0%Election Summary Party
party = Workers Party (Ireland)
seats = 0
gain = 0
loss = 0
net = 0
votes = 2,352
votes % = 0.0
seats % = 0.0
plus/minus = 0.0%Election Summary
party = Neath Port Talbot Ratepayers
seats = 0
gain = 0
loss = 0
net = 0
votes = 1,960
votes % = 0.0
seats % = 0.0
plus/minus = "N/A"Election Summary Party
party = Northern Ireland Unionist Party
seats = 0
gain = 0
loss = 0
net = 0
votes = 1,794
votes % = 0.0
seats % = 0.0
plus/minus = "N/A"Election Summary Party
party = Socialist Party (England and Wales)
seats = 0
gain = 0
loss = 0
net = 0
votes = 1,454
votes % = 0.0
seats % = 0.0
plus/minus = 0.0%Election Summary
party = Reform 2000
seats = 0
gain = 0
loss = 0
net = 0
votes = 1,418
votes % = 0.0
seats % = 0.0
plus/minus = "N/A"Election Summary
party = Isle of Wight
seats = 0
gain = 0
loss = 0
net = 0
votes = 1,164
votes % = 0.0
seats % = 0.0
plus/minus = "N/A"Election Summary
party = Muslim
seats = 0
gain = 0
loss = 0
net = 0
votes = 1,150
votes % = 0.0
seats % = 0.0
plus/minus = "N/A"Election Summary Party
party = Communist Party of Britain
seats = 0
gain = 0
loss = 0
net = 0
votes = 1,003
votes % = 0.0
seats % = 0.0
plus/minus = 0.0%Election Summary Party
party = New Britain Party
seats = 0
gain = 0
loss = 0
net = 0
votes = 888
votes % = 0.0
seats % = 0.0
plus/minus = 0.0%Election Summary
party = Free Party
seats = 0
gain = 0
loss = 0
net = 0
votes = 832
votes % = 0.0
seats % = 0.0
plus/minus = "N/A"Election Summary
party = Left Alliance
seats = 0
gain = 0
loss = 0
net = 0
votes = 770
votes % = 0.0
seats % = 0.0
plus/minus = "N/A"Election Summary
party = New Millennium Bean Party
seats = 0
gain = 0
loss = 0
net = 0
votes = 727
votes % = 0.0
seats % = 0.0
plus/minus = "N/A"Election Summary Party
party = Workers Revolutionary Party (UK)
seats = 0
gain = 0
loss = 0
net = 0
votes = 607
votes % = 0.0
seats % = 0.0
plus/minus = 0.0%Election Summary
party = Tatton
seats = 0
gain = 0
loss = 0
net = 0
votes = 505
votes % = 0.0
seats % = 0.0
plus/minus = "N/A"

"Total votes cast: 26,368,204. All parties with more than 500 votes shown."

"The seat gains reflect changes on the 1997 general election result. Two seats had changed hands in by-elections in the intervening period. These were as follows:"
* "Romsey from Conservative to Liberal Democrats. This seat stayed Liberal Democrat in 2001."
* "South Antrim from Ulster Unionists to Democratic Unionists. This seat reverted to the Ulster Unionists in 2001."

The results of the election give a Gallagher index of disproportionality of 17.74.

ee also

* MPs elected in the United Kingdom general election, 2001
* 2001 UK foot and mouth crisis

Manifestos

* [http://www.labour-party.org.uk/manifestos/2001/2001-labour-manifesto.shtml Labour (Ambitions for Britain)]
* [http://www.conservative-party.net/manifestos/2001/2001-conservative-manifesto.shtml Conservative (Time for Common Sense)]
* [http://www.libdemmanifesto.com/2001/2001-liberal-manifesto.shtml Liberal Democrat (Freedom, Justice, Honesty)]
* [http://www.ukip.org.uk/manifestos/2001/ UK Independence Party]

References

External links

* [http://news.bbc.co.uk/vote2001/ BBC News: Vote 2001] - in depth coverage.
* [http://archives.lse.ac.uk/dserve.exe?dsqServer=lib-4.lse.ac.uk&dsqIni=Dserve.ini&dsqApp=Archive&dsqDb=Catalog&dsqCmd=Overview.tcl&dsqSearch=((RefNo='general')AND(RefNo='election')AND(RefNo='2001')) Catalogue of 2001 general election ephemera] at the [http://www.lse.ac.uk/library/archive/Default.htm Archives Division] of the London School of Economics.