Islington South and Finsbury.
Labour Party MP Emily Thornberry holds the seat on 53.7% of the vote — a split-council geography across 2 councils.
1 Jun 2026
Thornberry is one of Labour's more prominent backbenchers, chairing the Foreign Affairs Committee and using that platform to push positions that occasionally put distance between her and the government. In April she wrote an op-ed criticising her own government's immigration reforms as unfair -- yet days later voted in support of tightening asylum support rules, including powers to withdraw accommodation from failed asylum seekers who work illegally. That tension between public advocacy and lobby-card discipline is a recurring feature. On defence and foreign affairs she has been notably vocal: her attack on Donald Trump's remarks about British veterans drew applause on BBC Question Time in January, and in March she led a committee report warning that open democracies are "sitting ducks" to foreign disinformation, calling for more government funding to counter it.
Her voting participation -- 50% of divisions -- sits well below the Commons average and warrants scrutiny, though MPs in senior committee roles sometimes prioritise that work over floor votes. Where she does vote, she is a 100% party-line voter with zero rebel votes on record. Her stance profile shows strong alignment with workers' rights and progressive taxation, and she votes notably more often with the government on pension protection and immigration control than the average Labour MP. She speaks most frequently on defence and the economy, consistent with her committee brief.
Thornberry has represented Islington South and Finsbury since 2005. Her housing speeches -- including telling Parliament that moving to Islington is "impossible for an ordinary person" -- reflect long-running local pressures in one of London's most expensive boroughs. News coverage over the past 90 days is high-volume (108 articles), with the best-performing stories centred on her committee work on disinformation and her immigration commentary.
Ward-level direction-of-travel: who controls what, who flipped recently, who holds the line. Each ward links to the council that runs it.
| Ward | Latest winner | Votes | Council | Last cycle |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Barnsbury(3 seats) | Chowdhury · Emerson · Champion | 4,364 | Islington Lab | May 2026 |
| Bunhill(3 seats) | Prasad · Gallagher · Bossman-Quarshie | 2,928 | Islington Lab | May 2026 |
| Caledonian(3 seats) | Rahman · Convery · O'Halloran | 3,433 | Islington Lab | May 2026 |
| Canonbury(3 seats) | Jeapes · Banks · Wayne | 3,760 | Islington Lab | May 2026 |
| Clerkenwell(3 seats) | Ferrini · Falkenburg · Hayes | 3,360 | Islington Lab | May 2026 |
| De Beauvoir(2 seats) | Per-Bo · Anderson | 2,355 | Hackney Grn | May 2026 |
| Holloway(3 seats) | Zammit · Jackson · Peck | 4,330 | Islington Lab | May 2026 |
| Laycock(3 seats) | Staff · Hamilton · Turan | 3,604 | Islington Lab | May 2026 |
| St Marys St James(3 seats) | McHugh · Croft · Pandor | 3,710 | Islington Lab | May 2026 |
| St Peters Canalside(3 seats) | Klute · Ogunro · North | 3,506 | Islington Lab | May 2026 |
Source · Democracy Club · DCLEAPIL v1.0 (CC BY-SA 4.0)
The seat’s population is concentrated in Islington (106,757), with Hackney (10,740) as the second pole. Total population across named built-up areas: 117,497.
Source · ONS Built-Up Areas · Census 2021
| Settlement | Pop. | Class |
|---|---|---|
| Islington | 106,757 | city |
| Hackney | 10,740 | city |
Headline indicators.
| Indicator | Local | National | Δ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Employment rate | 61.7% | 57.1% | +8% |
| Owner-occupied | 26.5% | 63.1% | -58% |
| Private rented | 31.4% | 20.0% | +57% |
| Social rented | 41.8% | 16.8% | +149% |
Ethnicity.
Source · Census 2021
Population by age & sexCensus 2021 · 18 bands · click to expand
Source · Census 2021 (ONS) · % of usual residents; tick marks the median seat per band
Income tax contribution.
| Total income tax | £1570m |
| Taxpayers | 64,000 |
| Median per taxpayer | £5,670 |
| Mean per taxpayer | £24,700 |
Source · HMRC SPI · ±8% confidence
Where the money flows back in.
This constituency is served by Islington and Hackney. Each council’s service spend, peer rank and supplier list lives on its own page — open from the meta block above or the compass strip below.
Move the income slider on My place to see income tax, NI, VAT and council tax against your earnings — the household lens.
Headline rate.
By category.
Source · data.police.uk · 3-month rate per 1,000 pop
2024 — full result.
| Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Emily ThornberryWON | Lab | 22,946 | 53.7 |
| Carne Ross | Grn | 7,491 | 17.5 |
| Terry Stacy | LD | 4,045 | 9.5 |
| Imogen Sinclair | Con | 3,584 | 8.4 |
| Max Nelson | Ref | 3,388 | 7.9 |
| Andrew Parry | Ind | 569 | 1.3 |
| Lesley Woodburn | Ind | 354 | 0.8 |
| Ethan Saunders | Ind | 215 | 0.5 |
| Jake Painter | Ind | 162 | 0.4 |
Turnout 42,754
Prior contests.
| Year | Winner | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | Emily Thornberry | Lab | 56.3 |
| 2017 | Emily Thornberry | Lab | 62.8 |
| 2015 | Emily Thornberry | Lab | 50.9 |
| 2010 | Thornberry, Emily | Lab | 42.3 |
Sources, methods & last update
2023 boundary review
DCLEAPIL v1.0 (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Census 2021
National avg over 575 seats
±8% confidence
LSOA-aggregated · rolling 12mo