Cleethorpes (UK Parliament constituency)

Cleethorpes
Former county constituency
for the House of Commons
Outline map
2010–2024 boundary of Cleethorpes in the former county of Humberside
Outline map
Location of the former county of Humberside within England
CountyLincolnshire
Electorate72,187 (December 2019)[1]
Major settlementsCleethorpes, Barton-upon-Humber, Immingham, Humberston and Waltham
1997–2024
SeatsOne
Created fromBrigg & Cleethorpes
Replaced by

Cleethorpes was a constituency created in 1997,[n 1] represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2010 by Martin Vickers of the Conservative Party.[n 2]

Further to the completion of the 2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies, the seat will be subject to boundary changes which will entail the loss of the centre of Cleethorpes to the new constituency of Great Grimsby and Cleethorpes, offset by the addition of the town of Brigg from the disappearing seat of Brigg and Goole. As a consequence, it will be renamed Brigg and Immingham, to be first contested at the 2024 general election.[2]

Political history

Cleethorpes is historically considered as a bellwether seat, having been won by the party that went on to become the largest in the House of Commons at the seven elections contested from and including 1997 (Labour-won in 1997, 2001 and 2005 and Conservative-won in 2010, 2015, 2017 and 2019). However, this status may be under threat in the future, as the Conservatives won by a margin of over 20,000 votes in 2019 – what is considered a safe seat. The seat also swung heavily out of step with the nation as a whole from 2010 onwards, including swinging towards the Conservatives moderately in 2017, an election where Labour made significant gains.

Constituency profile

The seat as it stands since the 2010-implemented boundary reforms forms a broad c-shape as it follows the estuarine south coast of the Humber estuary, ranging from silt to sand along its shore. It is a large part-rural, part-urban seat predominantly on flat alluvial clay in northern Lincolnshire. As well as the eponymous town itself, the constituency includes similarly commercial Barton-upon-Humber and industrial, container ship docks-hosting Immingham, as well as many smaller settlements. It surrounds on three sides the seat of Great Grimsby which covers the town of Grimsby and its short shoreline on the Humber; its other present neighbours are Brigg & Goole, Gainsborough and Louth & Horncastle seats.

The Labour vote tends to be stronger around Cleethorpes town itself, in the wards of Croft Baker and Sidney Sussex as well as in Immingham, while the Conservative vote is much stronger across Humberston, Waltham, the rural villages and in parts of Barton.

Boundaries

Map
Map of boundaries 2010-2024

1997–2010: The Borough of North East Lincolnshire wards of Cleethorpes Park, Croft Baker, Haverstoe, Humberston, Immingham, and Wold Parishes, and the Borough of North Lincolnshire wards of Ferry and Wold.

2010–2024: The Borough of North East Lincolnshire wards of Croft Baker, Haverstoe, Humberston and New Waltham, Immingham, Sidney Sussex, Waltham, and Wolds, and the Borough of North Lincolnshire wards of Barton and Ferry.

Members of Parliament

Election Member[3] Party
1997 Shona McIsaac Labour
2010 Martin Vickers Conservative
2024 Constituency abolished

Election results 1997–2024

Elections in the 1990s

General election 1997: Cleethorpes[4]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Shona McIsaac 26,058 51.6
Conservative Michael Brown 16,882 33.4
Liberal Democrats Keith Melton 5,746 11.4
Referendum John Berry 894 3.5
Majority 9,176 18.2 +4.9
Turnout 49,580 73.4
Labour gain from Conservative Swing

Elections in the 2000s

General election 2001: Cleethorpes[5]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Shona McIsaac 21,032 49.6 −2.0
Conservative Stephen Howd 15,412 36.3 +2.9
Liberal Democrats Gordon Smith 5,080 12.0 +0.6
UKIP Janet Hatton 894 2.1 New
Majority 5,620 13.3 −4.9
Turnout 42,418 62.0 −11.4
Labour hold Swing
General election 2005: Cleethorpes[6]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Shona McIsaac 18,889 43.3 −6.3
Conservative Martin Vickers 16,247 37.3 +1.0
Liberal Democrats Geoff Lowis 6,437 14.8 +2.8
UKIP William Hardie 2,016 4.6 +2.5
Majority 2,642 6.0 −7.3
Turnout 43,589 61.6 −0.4
Labour hold Swing -3.6

Elections in the 2010s

See also: Opinion polling in United Kingdom constituencies, 2010–15 § Cleethorpes
General election 2010: Cleethorpes[7][8]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Martin Vickers 18,939 42.1 +4.8
Labour Shona McIsaac 14,641 32.6 −10.8
Liberal Democrats Malcolm Morland 8,192 18.2 +3.5
UKIP Stephen Harness 3,194 7.1 +2.5
Majority 4,298 9.5 N/A
Turnout 44,966 64.0 +2.4
Conservative gain from Labour Swing +7.8
General election 2015: Cleethorpes[9][10]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Martin Vickers 21,026 46.6 +4.5
Labour Peter Keith 13,133 29.1 −3.5
UKIP Stephen Harness 8,356 18.5 +11.4
Liberal Democrats Roy Horobin 1,346 3.0 −15.2
Green Carol Thornton 1,013 2.2 New
TUSC Malcolm Morland 215 0.5 New
Majority 7,893 17.5 +8.0
Turnout 45,089 63.9 −0.1
Conservative hold Swing +4.0
General election 2017: Cleethorpes[11]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Martin Vickers 27,321 57.1 +10.5
Labour Peter Keith 16,921 35.4 +6.3
UKIP Tony Blake 2,022 4.2 −14.3
Liberal Democrats Roy Horobin 1,110 2.3 −0.7
Green Loyd Emmerson 470 1.0 −1.2
Majority 10,400 21.7 +4.2
Turnout 47,844 65.5 +1.6
Conservative hold Swing +2.1
General election 2019: Cleethorpes[12]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Martin Vickers 31,969 69.0 +11.9
Labour Ros James 10,551 22.8 −12.6
Liberal Democrats Roy Horobin 2,535 5.5 +3.2
Green Jodi Shanahan 1,284 2.8 +1.8
Majority 21,418 46.2 +24.5
Turnout 46,339 62.9 −2.6
Conservative hold Swing +12.25

See also

Notes

  1. ^ A county constituency (for the purposes of election expenses and type of returning officer)
  2. ^ As with all existing constituencies, the constituency elects one Member of Parliament (MP) by the first past the post system of election at least every five years.

References

  1. ^ "Constituency data: electorates – House of Commons Library". Parliament UK. 15 June 2020. Retrieved 22 July 2020.
  2. ^ "The 2023 Review of Parliamentary Constituency Boundaries in England – Volume one: Report – Yorkshire and the Humber | Boundary Commission for England". boundarycommissionforengland.independent.gov.uk. Retrieved 4 August 2023.
  3. ^ Leigh Rayment's Historical List of MPs – Constituencies beginning with "C" (part 4)
  4. ^ "Election Data 1997". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
  5. ^ "Election Data 2001". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
  6. ^ "Election Data 2005". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
  7. ^ "Election Data 2010". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 26 July 2013. Retrieved 17 October 2015.
  8. ^ "Cleethorpes". BBC News. Retrieved 7 May 2010.
  9. ^ "Election Data 2015". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 17 October 2015. Retrieved 17 October 2015.
  10. ^ "Cleethorpes". BBC News. Retrieved 11 May 2015.
  11. ^ "Cleethorpes parliamentary constituency". BBC News.
  12. ^ "Election of a Member of Parliament for the CLEETHORPES Constituency STATEMENT OF PERSONS NOMINATED" (PDF). North East Lincolnshire Council. Archived from the original (PDF) on 15 November 2019. Retrieved 15 November 2019.