Hackney North and Stoke Newington is a constituency represented in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom since 1987 by Diane Abbott of the Labour Party, who served as Shadow Home Secretary from 6 October 2016 to 5 April 2020. Abbott was one of the first three Black British MPs elected, and the first female Black British MP in the UK. Constituency profile The constituency has always elected Labour MPs since its creation in 1950. While well connected to Central London, including the City of London, the seat generally has moderate incomes rather than high, and a narrow majority of wards had a relatively high ranking when placed in the Index of Multiple Deprivation, compiled in 2000. In line with most of Greater London since 2000 many parts, especially Stamford Hill, Upper Clapton, Lower Clapton have become marginal in terms of local councillors and these districts, with to a lesser extent the eponymous Hackney and Stoke Newington, are in the process of becoming re-gentrified with ongoing increases in land value, proximity to the London 2012 venues and a council that successfully reduced the level of crime by about 30% within a four-year period. Demographically, almost 60% of households are singletons and households have a higher than average level of unemployment. Through all these changes, under incumbent Diane Abbott, the seat has become a safe seat for Labour. Prior to her promotion to the Shadow Cabinet, Abbott for many years was Labour's regular commentator opposite Michael Portillo on the light-hearted political round-up series This Week, and continued to appear on the show periodically until its cancellation in 2019. On 23 February 2020, Abbott announced she would be returning to the backbenches upon the election of the new Labour leader on 4 April that year. History The seat was created in 1950 and has gone through many changes: in January 2006 the boundary moved again, this time to correspond with the local government ward boundaries. Following major electoral reform at the Redistribution of Seats Act, 1885, part of the Third Reform Act, the seat of Hackney was divided into two and Hackney North was formed, this time to return only one Member of Parliament, commencing with the 1885 general election. The Stoke Newington constituency was created at the 1918 general election by the division of the Hackney North constituency by the Representation of the People Act, 1918, known generally as Fourth