Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard: MP, 2024 result and local figures
The MP for Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard is Alex Mayer (Labour), returned on 4 July 2024. Alex Mayer took the seat for Labour in July 2024 with 14,976 votes (32.5%), ahead of Andrew Selous (Conservative) on 14,309. Turnout, counted as valid votes over the electorate, was 60.0% (46,045 of 76,742); the winning margin was 667 votes.
Key figures
What the figures show
Two figures set Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard apart: the 34th highest employment rate of the 632 constituencies with this figure (84.6%), and the 39th lowest economic inactivity rate of the 632 constituencies with this figure (12.7%).
The Annual Population Survey puts the employment rate for 16 to 64 year olds at 84.6% for April 2025 to March 2026, give or take 6.4 points. The economically inactive share was 12.7%.
Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard had an estimated population of 118,490 in mid-2024, against 99,389 in 2014 (ONS). Children under 16 numbered 24,724; people aged 65 and over, 19,458.
Residents of Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard earned more than jobs based there paid in April 2025: median full-time pay was £35,058 for workplace jobs and £41,436 for residents. A year before, the residents' median was £39,560. The residents' figure ranks 195th highest of 632 constituencies with an estimate. The latest year is provisional.
5,003 children in Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard were in relative low income families after housing costs in 2024/25, the Department for Work and Pensions estimates: 20.2% of under-16s, where the UK share is 26.0%. Before housing costs the share was 13.8% in 2024/25, from 12.9% in 2021/22.
Homes in Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard sold for a median £332,750 in the year to March 2026, from HM Land Registry records compiled by the ONS. That is up 51% on £220,000 ten years before. The highest March-year median in the series was £350,000, in the year to March 2025. It ranks 214th highest of 575 constituencies. The figure rests on 1,590 recorded sales.
4,915 business sites were registered in Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard in March 2026 (4,775 a year before), and employed 46,000 people in 2024.
2,430 people were claiming unemployment-related benefits in September 2026, 3.3% of residents aged 16 to 64. A year earlier the count was 2,315.
At the 2021 Census there were 44,211 households and 1,374.4 residents per square kilometre; 29.8% of workers mainly worked from home and 19.9% of residents aged 16 and over were retired.
MP
Alex Mayer, Labour
- MP for Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard since 4 July 2024
Official UK Parliament page · Statements by Alex Mayer on this site
In Parliament
What Alex Mayer said most recently in Parliament, word for word from Hansard (from 14 September 2026 to 22 October 2026). Hansard search returns 111 spoken contributions by Alex Mayer since 4 July 2024.
This weekend, the clocks go back, and overnight we will be plunged once again into darker and gloomier evenings, but there is another way: we could embrace our wartime predecessors. Winston Churchill set up a system whereby we had lighter evenings all year round.
Read in Hansard (opening words; the full contribution is longer)
I recently met Paul Hughes, who proudly showed me his AI-enabled heat battery boiler. I am delighted that the Government have made that tech eligible for the boiler upgrade scheme.
Read in Hansard (opening words; the full contribution is longer)
A wide range of issues have been raised today: accessibility, driver recruitment, planning, international travel and, perhaps most of all, fuel.
Read in Hansard (opening words; the full contribution is longer)
The right hon. Gentleman makes a good point, and I am keen to hear from the Minister when we might hear back from the Government about the consultation that was undertaken.
Read in Hansard (opening words; the full contribution is longer)
I was somewhat confused about the concept that after the period of seven months had elapsed the decision was then given to the Chair of the Liaison Committee, when the Speaker would have already deemed that that individual was entitled to leave from the House generally.
Read in Hansard (opening words; the full contribution is longer)
Read from the Hansard API on 27 October 2026. Up to two items per debate; remarks under 40 characters are left out. All contributions in Hansard.
General election, 4 July 2024
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share | Change in share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alex Mayer | Labour | 14,976 | 32.5% | +5.7 |
| Andrew Selous | Conservative | 14,309 | 31.1% | −27.6 |
| Harry Palmer | Reform UK | 8,071 | 17.5% | |
| Emma Holland-Lindsay | Liberal Democrat | 6,497 | 14.1% | +3.3 |
| Sukhinder Hundal | Green Party | 2,115 | 4.6% | +0.9 |
| Antonio Vitiello | English Democrats | 77 | 0.2% |
Result summary as published: Lab gain from Con. Change in share is in percentage points against the notional 2019 result on the new boundaries. Source: House of Commons Library, election results (data, read 14 October 2026).
Results on these boundaries
| Date | Election | First | Second | Majority | Turnout |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 July 2024 | General election | Labour 32.5% | Conservative 31.1% | 667 | 60.0% |
| 12 December 2019 | General election (notional result on these boundaries) | Conservative 58.7% | Labour 26.8% | 15,386 | 65.2% |
Only results on the constituency boundaries first used at the 2024 general election are shown. The 2019 figures are the House of Commons Library's notional estimates of how votes cast in 2019 would have fallen on these boundaries, not a result that was declared. Source: House of Commons Library, constituency results.
Councils
Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard lies within Central Bedfordshire.
- Central Bedfordshire E06000056
Who has power over Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard
Every body that makes decisions for Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard, from the street up to the G20. Each one links to its page on the official record. How the ten levels work.
Level 1: Neighbourhood and community power
Residents' and tenants' groups, neighbourhood forums and local policing panels.
Level 2: Parish, town and community councils
Parish, town and community councils, where the area has them, sit below the council.
Level 5: Devolved and state governments
England has no devolved parliament of its own: its laws are made by the UK Parliament.
Level 6: National government
- Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard this page: Alex Mayer (Labour) MP
- All 650 MPs votes, interests and costs
- UK government and Parliament official figures and sources
Level 7: Regional blocs and supranational bodies
- Council of Europe and the European Court of Human Rights (CoE / ECtHR) The UK Government says the United Kingdom was one of the Council of Europe's founding members.
Level 8: The UN and global treaty bodies
- United Nations (General Assembly and Security Council) The UN lists the United Kingdom as a member admitted on 24 October 1945.
- United Nations Security Council (UNSC) The UK is one of the five permanent members of the Security Council and holds the veto, according to the UN.
- NATO NATO lists the United Kingdom among its 12 founding members, which signed the North Atlantic Treaty in Washington, D.C.
- World Health Organization (WHO) WHO's list of member states includes the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
- World Trade Organization (WTO) The WTO says the United Kingdom has been a WTO member since 1 January 1995 and a member of GATT since 1 January 1948.
- Commonwealth of Nations The UK is one of the 56 members, one of three European members with Cyprus and Malta, and the Commonwealth Secretariat is headquartered at Marlborough House in London.
Level 9: The IMF, World Bank and global finance
- International Monetary Fund (IMF) The UK has been a member since 27 December 1945 and has a quota of SDR 20,155.1 million (IMF country page for the United Kingdom).
- World Bank Group (WBG) The UK holds 3.75% of voting power in the IBRD (data as of 30 June 2026) and 6.92% in IDA (as of 30 June 2026), according to the World Bank's voting tables.
Level 10: G7, G20, Davos and global forums
Sources
| Figure | Period | Publisher | Read | Links |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Population | mid-2024 | ONS | 14 October 2026 | data · area |
| Claimants as a share of residents aged 16 to 64 | September 2026 | ONS | 29 October 2026 | data · area |
| Claimant count | September 2026 | ONS | 29 October 2026 | data · area |
| Employment rate, aged 16 to 64 | April 2025 to March 2026 | ONS | 14 October 2026 | data · area |
| Median full-time pay of residents | April 2025 | ONS | 14 October 2026 | data · area |
| Median full-time pay of people working here | April 2025 | ONS | 14 October 2026 | data · area |
| Median house price | the year to March 2026 | ONS | 14 October 2026 | data · release |
| Homes sold | the year to March 2026 | ONS | 14 October 2026 | data · release |
| Children in relative low income families, after housing costs | 2024/25 | DWP | 14 October 2026 | data · release |
| Children in relative low income families, before housing costs | 2024/25 | DWP | 14 October 2026 | data · release |
| Business sites (local units) | March 2026 | ONS | 14 October 2026 | data · area |
| People employed by businesses here | 2024 | ONS | 14 October 2026 | data · area |
| Economically inactive, aged 16 to 64 | April 2025 to March 2026 | ONS | 14 October 2026 | data · area |
| Households | Census 2021 | ONS | 14 October 2026 | data · area |
| Residents per square kilometre | Census 2021 | ONS | 14 October 2026 | data · area |
| Workers mainly working from home | Census 2021 | ONS | 14 October 2026 | data · area |
| Residents aged 16+ who are retired | Census 2021 | ONS | 14 October 2026 | data · area |
"Data" is the file or query each figure was read from (its SHA-256 is in the link title); "area" shows the same table for this constituency alone.
Common questions
Who is the MP for Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard?
UK Parliament lists Alex Mayer, Labour, as the Member of Parliament for Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard since the July 2024 general election.
What was the 2024 general election result in Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard?
Alex Mayer (Labour) won with 14,976 votes, a majority of 667, on a turnout of 60.0% (House of Commons Library).
What is the unemployment claimant rate in Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard?
3.3% of residents aged 16 to 64 in September 2026, 2,430 people, on the ONS claimant count.
What is the average house price in Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard?
The median price paid was £332,750 in the year to March 2026 (ONS, from HM Land Registry sales).
What is the average salary in Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard?
Median full-time pay of residents was £41,436 a year in April 2025 (ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings).
How many children in Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard live in low income families?
DWP counts 5,003 (20.2% of under-16s) in relative low income after housing costs for 2024/25.
What is the population of Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard?
The ONS estimate for mid-2024 is 118,490 residents.
Built 14 October 2026 from official records; how these pages are compiled. This page lists what the record shows and gives no verdict on the MP or the area. Link moved or figure wrong? Tell us.