Bedford (UK Parliament constituency)

Bedford
County constituency for the House of Commons
Boundary of Bedford in Bedfordshire.
Location of Bedfordshire within England.
County	Bedfordshire
Population	101,066 (2011 census)
Electorate	69,019 (December 2010)
Major settlements	Bedford, Kempston
Current constituency
Created	1997
Member of parliament	Richard Fuller (Conservative)
Number of members	One
Created from	North Bedfordshire and Mid Bedfordshire
1918–1983
Number of members	One
Type of constituency	County constituency
Replaced by	North Bedfordshire
1295–1918
Number of members	1295–1885: Two 1885–1918: One
Type of constituency	Borough constituency
Overlaps
European Parliament constituency	East of England

Bedford /ˈbɛdfᵿd/ is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2010 by Richard Fuller of the Conservative Party.

1918-1950: The Municipal Borough of Bedford, the Urban District of Kempston, and the Rural Districts of Bedford and Eaton Socon.

1950-1983: The Municipal Borough of Bedford, the Urban District of Kempston, and part of the Rural District of Bedford.

1997-2010: The Borough of Bedford wards of Brickhill, Castle, Cauldwell, De Parys, Goldington, Harpur, Kempston East, Kempston West, Kingsbrook, Newnham, Putnoe, and Queen's Park.

2010-present: The Borough of Bedford wards of Brickhill, Castle, Cauldwell, De Parys, Goldington, Harpur, Kempston Central and East, Kempston North, Kempston South, Kingsbrook, Newnham, Putnoe, Queens Park.

Bedford is a marginal seat between the Labour Party and the Conservatives. The main settlement is Bedford, a well-developed town centre with a considerable amount of social housing relative to Bedfordshire and higher poverty index but on a fast train link to London and other destinations, the town is at the north end of the Thameslink service to Brighton and is not far from Milton Keynes which has a larger economy. The smaller and town of Kempston is also in the constituency.