Isle of Wight ferry services War four of the SW&BRCSPS paddle steamers were commandeered by the Royal Navy as minesweepers leaving only two behind. The PS "Duchess of Richmond" was lost to a mine in the Mediterranean Sea. On 1 January 1923 the SW&BRCSPS was taken over by Southern Railway which had been created in the Grouping ordered by the Railways Act 1921. Isle of Wight ferry services There are currently three different ferry companies that operate vessels carrying passengers and, on certain routes, vehicles across the Solent, the stretch of sea that separates the Isle of Wight from mainland England. These are Wightlink, Red
Politics of the Isle of Wight stood for the Isle of Wight constituency in the 2015 United Kingdom general election which was held on 7 May 2015. Eleven candidates stood for the Isle of Wight constituency in the 2010 United Kingdom general election which was held on 6 May 2010. Five candidates contested the Isle of Wight constituency in the United Kingdom general election, 2005 held on the 5th May 2005. The election was expected to be a close race between the Liberal Democrats and Conservatives, but the high Conservative vote even surprised the successful candidate. The simultaneous local elections resulted in a Conservative landslide, and