Henley is a large rural constituency covering South Eastern Oxfordshire. It includes three small towns, Henley itself, Thame and Watlington together with several large villages such as Chinnor, Sonning Common and Wheatley, and a number of smaller villages and hamlets. It borders Reading and includes most of the South Oxfordshire local government district with the exception of Didcot and Wallingford and, following boundary changes it now includes parts of the Cherwell District, notably Kirtlington, Otmoor and Islip.

The constituency Labour Party has selected Richard McKenzie to fight the seat. Richard is an active member of Reading Labour Party and was a Labour Councillor for a marginal ward in Reading from 2003-2007. A Londoner by birth he has forged local links ever since his undergraduate days at Reading University and now works as a Marketing Manager for a local firm. He became politically active after establishing a residents' association at the end of the nineties and is an active campaigner on issues such as Equal Pay, Road Safety, Antisocial Behaviour and Social Housing. He is a strong supporter of local small businesses. At a personal level, he is a family man, a keen musician and a churchgoer. Richard's local connections mean that he can be relied upon to keep his eye on local issues!