Stability has not been a watchword for Oldham East & Saddleworth in recent times. Over the past five years, this constituency has been held by MPs from all 3 parties. Although Phil Woolas could only manage second place behind the Liberal Democrat’s Chris Davies in the 1995 by-election following the death of the Conservative MP Geoffrey Dickens, the Oldham voters allowed him to win this seat on his second attempt in 1997 and he beat Mr Davies to Westminster by 3,389 votes.
As one might expect from an area that has elected members from all 3 parties in such a short space of time, this seat is somewhat eclectic in its social and geographical composition and residents are able to drive from the inner-city Oldham wards of St. James and St. Mary’s to moorland and farms in the north and east in a matter of minutes.
The seat has a mix of traditional manufacturing, food and clothing, and also modern, hi-tech industries, including a plant that assembles electronic components for aircraft. The Saddleworth area is fairly middle class in composition, serving as a commuter dormitory for people who work in nearby Manchester.