Hull, or more properly Kingston-Upon-Hull, is represented by three constituencies all of which are currently held by Labour. The party's success has been made easier by the fact many Conservative voters born in and around the town, or who work there now, live in pleasant suburbs outside the city boundaries. Kevin McNamara, MP here since 1966, won easily in 1997 with a majority of 19,705.
Elections to the new Hull authority were held in 1995, and Labour won all seven wards, each returning three councillors. The owner-occupiers of Beverley and University voted just as solidly for Labour as the council tenants of Noddle Hill and Orchard Park.
Hull is a city that few outsiders really know much about. Its anonymity convinced Philip Larkin it was just the sort of place to allow him work as both poet and university librarian unmolested by the media or visiting American "fans". Today the university is the most attractive part of an essentially working-class seat. Unemployment is higher than in the rest of the city, and factories mingle with terraces and council estates in a mostly urban sprawl.