Reading East (UK Parliament constituency)

Reading East was a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament. In the 2019-2024 Parliament, it was one of two Labour seats from a total of eight seats in Berkshire.

Further to the completion of the 2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies, the seat was abolished. The area was transferred to the new constituencies of Earley and Woodley (Bulmershe and Whitegates, Church, Loddon and South Lake wards) and Reading Central (all other wards). These constituencies were first contested at the 2024 general election.

Constituency profile
The seat contained the University of Reading and most of its students. The Thames Valley Business Park is in another part of the seat, hosting multinational and cutting-edge technology companies in the software and advanced computer science areas. Adjoining the redeveloped heart of town are a handful mid-rise blocks of ex-council flats and serried ranks of former relatively philanthropic biscuit, brick and seeds manufacturing/processing workers' neat terraces towards the south-centre and east of the town, including firmly Labour-held wards. The suburban north bank of the Thames section takes in Caversham, forming four wards, whilst Earley and Woodley, adding a further three wards, make up strongly-leaning Conservative wards. Intermediate wards such as Redlands and Park are more marginal including Green Party and Liberal Democrat representation.

History
The Reading East parliamentary constituency was first contested in 1983, when it was won by a partial incumbent, Gerry Vaughan, a Conservative who was before that election sitting MP for abolished Reading South. He held the seat through two general elections until he retired before the 1997 election. The constituency was won in 1997 by the Labour Party's Jane Griffiths, thus a backbencher under the Blair Ministry. She retained the seat in the 2001 election but was deselected by her Constituency Labour Party before the 2005 election, when the seat was won by the Tory candidate, Rob Wilson, who held the seat through two elections. Until 2005 the seat had been a national bellwether.

The seat was regained by the Labour Party's candidate in 2017, Matt Rodda, achieving the party's best showing since the seat's creation. Rodda's 2017 win was one of 30 net gains of the Labour Party. The 2017 result came when there was a hung parliament nationally. Reading East was one of five constituencies, the others being Croydon Central, Enfield Southgate, Leeds North West and Peterborough, which elected Labour MPs in 2017 having not done so since 2001.

At the 2019 general election, the seat was retained by Rodda with an increased majority, achieving a swing to Labour of 1.9%, and bucking the national trend which saw an overall swing to the Conservatives of 4.6%.

The seat has been, relative to others, a semi-marginal seat, and major-swing (volatile) seat since 2010. Its winner's majority has not exceeded 12.9% of the vote since the 15.2% majority won in that year. The seat has changed hands once since 2010.

1983–1997

 * The Borough of Reading wards of Abbey, Caversham, Church, Park, Peppard, Redlands, Thames, and Whitley; and
 * The District of Wokingham wards of Arborfield, Barkham, Finchampstead, Shinfield, and Swallowfield.

''Formed as a county constituency, largely from parts of the abolished constituency of Reading South. It also incorporated parts of the abolished constituency of Reading North, including Caversham.''

1997–2010

 * The Borough of Reading wards of Abbey, Caversham, Church, Katesgrove, Park, Peppard, Redlands, and Thames;and
 * The District of Wokingham wards of Bulmershe, Loddon, South Lake, and Whitegates.

''For the 1997 general election, the constituency lost its southern areas comprising the parts of the District of Wokingham to Wokingham (including Shinfield) and Bracknell (Finchampstead), but gained other parts of Wokingham to the east of the Reading. The boundary with Reading West was realigned, gaining Katesgrove ward and losing Whitley ward. It was redesignated as a Borough Constituency.''

2010–2024

 * The Borough of Reading wards of Abbey, Caversham, Church, Katesgrove, Mapledurham, Park, Peppard, Redlands, and Thames; and
 * The District of Wokingham wards of Bulmershe and Whitegates, Loddon, and South Lake.

Marginal changes due to revision of local authority wards.

Reading East was bordered by the constituencies of Reading West, Henley, Maidenhead, and Wokingham.