Mark Ereira-Guyer

The constituency was created as a Parliamentary Borough in 1614, returning two MPs to the House of Commons of England until 1707, then to the House of Commons of Great Britain until 1800, and from 1800 to the House of Commons of the United Kingdom.

By the mid eighteenth century the seat was seen as heavily influenced by the Earl of Bristol and the Duke of Grafton.

The electorate has elected Conservative Party candidates at the general elections and two by-elections since a Liberal victory in 1880.

Its representation was reduced to one seat under the Redistribution of Seats Act 1885.

Under the Representation of the People Act 1918, it was abolished as a borough and reconstituted as a division of the Parliamentary County of West Suffolk.

As well as the abolished borough, the expanded seat comprised most of the abolished Stowmarket Division, except for the town of Stowmarket itself.

On Guinness's nomination as Minister of Agriculture a by-election in 1925 was required under the electoral law of the time, which he won.

Following the death of Frank Heilgers on 16 January 1944 a by-election was held on 29 February 1944.

From 1950, it has been classified as a county constituency in terms of election expenses and type of returning officer.

The closest contest since that year was in 1997 when the Labour Party candidate fell 368 votes, less than 1%, short of winning the seat in 1997 during Tony Blair's first landslide result.

Extended to the south-west, gaining western and northern parts of the abolished Sudbury Division of West Suffolk, including Haverhill.

''Southern areas, including Haverhill, were transferred to the new constituency of South Suffolk.

The easternmost area, equivalent to the former Rural District of Thedwastre, was transferred to the new constituency of Central Suffolk.''

''Major reconfiguration, with the majority of the constituency, including Newmarket, forming the basis of the new County Constituency of West Suffolk.

Extended eastwards, gaining western half of Central Suffolk, including Stowmarket.''

Marginal changes due to revision of local authority wards.

The constituency contains the towns of Bury St Edmunds, Stowmarket and Needham Market.

Its boundaries do not match those of the borough of St Edmundsbury, which includes Haverhill (part of West Suffolk constituency), and excludes Stowmarket and Needham Market.

Two Members

Note: Independent politician St Edmundsbury Borough Councillor and Bury St Edmunds Town Councillor Paul Hopfensperger submitted a valid nomination but this was subsequently withdrawn.

Because of the timing of the withdrawal, his name appears in the Statement of Persons Nominated for this election.

Bury St Edmunds is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2015 by Jo Churchill, a Conservative.

Further to the completion of the 2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies, the seat will be subject to moderate boundary changes, losing eastern, rural areas to the newly created constituency of Waveney Valley.

The revised seat will be renamed Bury St Edmunds and Stowmarket, to be first contested at the next general election.

The constituency covers Bury St Edmunds, Stowmarket and smaller settlements on the A14 corridor.

Residents' wealth is around average for the UK.