On the north eastern tip of the Wirral peninsula at the mouth of the Mersey River, Wallasey - the "Island of the Welshmen" has been represented since 1992 by Labour's Angela Eagle.
Long-regarded as a safe Conservative stronghold, the slim majority of 279 votes which returned Lynda Chalker, Minister of State for the Foreign Office, in 1987 signalled the weakening of Conservative fortunes in the seat. In 1992 Angela Eagle beat Lynda Chalker by almost 4,000 votes. An historic victory, it was the first time that Labour had gained Wallasey - the Conservatives had tenaciously held on in both 1945 and 1966 when Labour had won landslide national victories.
A constituency of contrasts, Wallasey encompasses residential areas, derelict docklands, council estates and the seaside resort of New Brighton. Wallasey emerged battered from the 1970s and 80s - two recessions in a decade wrecked the basic manufacturing industries on which the prosperity of the area was founded - especially shipbuilding. Unemployment is among the highest in the UK.