§ 81. Mr. Keelingasked the Home Secretary what is the average number of electors per Member of Parliament in Great Britain; in how many single-Member constituencies does the number of electors exceed this average by 25 per cent, or more; and whether the disparity between large and small electorates has ever, since the Reform Act, 1832, been greater than it is to-day?
§ Mr. LloydExcluding university constituencies the average number of electors per Member of Parliament in England and Wales is 54,654. In 81 of the 498 single-Member constituencies the number of electors exceeds this average by 25 per cent, or more. I understand that the corresponding figures for Scotland are not in the possession of my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Scotland. The disparity between the electorates of large and small single-Member constituencies was, proportionately to the total electorate, much greater before 1918 than it is to-day.
§ Mr. J. GriffithsIs it not the case that no juggling with constituencies will get the Government back again?