Torbay: MP, 2024 result and local figures
The MP for Torbay is Steve Darling (Liberal Democrat), returned on 4 July 2024. The 2024 count gave Steve Darling (Liberal Democrat) 18,937 votes and Kevin Foster (Conservative) 13,588, a majority of 5,349. 46,115 valid votes were cast by an electorate of 76,185, 60.5% of those registered.
Key figures
What the figures show
Compared with other constituencies, Torbay has the 15th lowest median full-time pay for jobs based here of the 632 constituencies with this figure (£30,649 a year).
Residents of Torbay earned more than jobs based there paid in April 2025: median full-time pay was £30,649 for workplace jobs and £34,288 for residents. In April 2024 the residents' figure was £30,831. The residents' figure ranks 101st lowest of 632 constituencies with an estimate. The latest year is provisional.
DWP figures count 5,083 children under 16 in relative low income families after housing costs in 2024/25, 31.2% of children here against 26.0% across the UK. On the before-housing-costs measure it rose from 18.6% in 2021/22 to 20.5% in 2024/25.
At the 2021 Census there were 47,481 households and 2,879.6 residents per square kilometre; 20.6% of workers mainly worked from home and 28.9% of residents aged 16 and over were retired.
HM Land Registry sales put the middle house price at £228,000 for the year to March 2026. Ten years earlier, in the year to March 2016, it was £170,000. The highest March-year median in the series was £245,000, in the year to March 2025. It ranks 166th lowest of 575 constituencies. 1,327 sales were registered in the period, against 1,607 in the year to March 2025.
Workplaces in Torbay accounted for 40,000 jobs in 2024; the business register lists 3,790 local units for March 2026.
In mid-2024 the ONS put the number of residents at 104,727; the estimate for 2014 was 100,934. Children under 16 numbered 16,286; people aged 65 and over, 27,665.
The Annual Population Survey puts the employment rate for 16 to 64 year olds at 77.1% for April 2025 to March 2026, give or take 3.8 points. 19.5% were economically inactive.
The number of people claiming unemployment-related benefits stood at 2,110 in September 2026, a claimant rate of 3.5%. A year earlier the count was 2,005.
MP
Steve Darling, Liberal Democrat
- MP for Torbay since 4 July 2024
Official UK Parliament page · Statements by Steve Darling on this site
In Parliament
Hansard records these as Steve Darling's latest words in Parliament, from 19 October 2026 to 21 October 2026. Hansard search returns 442 spoken contributions by Steve Darling since 4 July 2024.
I am sure that many Members present will have already raised local issues with Royal Mail and got back what feels very much like a stock letter, as I did. What advice would the Minister give to Members about how to hold it to account for such an appalling service?
It is a privilege and an honour to serve under your chairmanship, Ms Lewell. I congratulate the hon. Member for Lagan Valley (Sorcha Eastwood) on her incredible speech and on securing this debate.
Read in Hansard (opening words; the full contribution is longer)
On a point of order, Madam Deputy Speaker. Earlier today at oral questions, the Minister for Secondary Care, the hon.
Read in Hansard (opening words; the full contribution is longer)
The fire service and the Care Quality Commission have now served legal notice against the tower block at Torbay hospital, and more than 100 beds are under threat. With that new information, this is now a crisis at Torbay hospital.
Read in Hansard (opening words; the full contribution is longer)
As a west country MP, I am absolutely delighted to see that cider is given as adequate a billing as beer under these proposals. As colleagues have said, the proposals are a simplification and will make things easier for consumers to understand. The Liberal Democrats welcome them.
Read from the Hansard API on 28 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Steve Darling | Liberal Democrat | 18,937 | 41.1% | +16.8 |
| Kevin Foster | Conservative | 13,588 | 29.5% | −29.6 |
| Gordon Scott | Reform UK | 8,660 | 18.8% | |
| Chris Wongsosaputro | Labour | 3,276 | 7.1% | −5.9 |
| Charlie West | Green Party | 1,420 | 3.1% | +0.7 |
| Paul Moor | Workers Party of Britain | 234 | 0.5% |
Result summary as published: LD 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 | Liberal Democrat 41.1% | Conservative 29.5% | 5,349 | 60.5% |
| 12 December 2019 | General election (notional result on these boundaries) | Conservative 59.1% | Liberal Democrat 24.3% | 17,751 | 67.3% |
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
Torbay lies within Torbay.
- Torbay E06000027
Who has power over Torbay
Every body that makes decisions for Torbay, 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 3: Local councils
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
- Torbay this page: Steve Darling (Liberal Democrat) 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 Torbay?
Steve Darling (Liberal Democrat), elected on 4 July 2024, according to UK Parliament records.
What was the 2024 general election result in Torbay?
The House of Commons Library records 18,937 votes for Steve Darling of Liberal Democrat and a majority of 5,349; 60.5% of the electorate cast a valid vote.
What is the unemployment claimant rate in Torbay?
The ONS claimant count for September 2026 is 2,110, 3.5% of the 16 to 64 population.
What is the average house price in Torbay?
£228,000: the middle price of homes sold in the year to March 2026, published by the ONS from Land Registry records.
What is the average salary in Torbay?
For full-time employees living here the ONS puts median annual pay at £34,288 (April 2025).
How many children in Torbay live in low income families?
5,083 children under 16, 31.2%, after housing costs in 2024/25, according to the Department for Work and Pensions.
What is the population of Torbay?
104,727 in mid-2024, the latest ONS estimate.
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.