Britain votes 2001

In the June election, Labour won 413 out of the 659 seats in the House of Commons - just five fewer than in the 1997 election - so it still has a majority of 167. Conser-vative seats rose by only one to 166.

The chief gainers were the Liberal Democrats where the number rose by six to 52.

This series of essays makes a detailed analysis of the reasons for the results. It shows that the average turnout of 59% of those on the electoral register was the lowest since the 1920s, while a growing number - over four million - do not bother to join the register.

The number of women MPs fell by two to 118 - of whom 95 were Labour, 14 Conservative and five Liberal Democrats. A special essay on the "race card" reveals that there are now 12 black or Asian MPs, all of whom are Labour.

Other essays include descriptions of the election campaigns undertaken by the various parties and the issues which most influenced the voters.