Ince_(UK_Parliament_constituency)
Ince (UK Parliament constituency)
Parliamentary constituency in the United Kingdom, 1885–1983
Ince was a parliamentary constituency in England which elected one Member of Parliament (MP) to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It comprised the town of Ince-in-Makerfield and other towns south of Wigan.
| Ince | |
|---|---|
| Former County constituency for the House of Commons | |
| County | Lancashire |
| Major settlements | Ince-in-Makerfield, Abram |
| 1885–1974 (1974) | |
| Created from | South West Lancashire |
| 1974 (1974)–1983 | |
| Type of constituency | Borough constituency |
| Replaced by | Makerfield, West Lancashire, St Helens North and Wigan[1] |
It was created by the Redistribution of Seats Act 1885 as a division of the parliamentary county of Lancashire. The constituency boundaries were redrawn in 1918 and 1950, and in 1974 it was reclassified as a borough constituency.[2]
The constituency ceased to exist with the implementation of the 1983 boundary changes and was largely replaced by the Makerfield Parliamentary constituency.
1885–1918
The constituency, officially designated as South-West Lancashire, Ince Division consisted of parishes south of, but not including, the town of Wigan, namely:
The electorate also included the freeholders of the municipal borough of Wigan who were entitled to vote in the county.[3]
1918–1950
The Representation of the People Act 1918 reorganised constituencies throughout the United Kingdom. Boundaries were adjusted and seats were defined in terms of the districts created by the Local Government Act 1894. According to the schedules of the Act, the Lancashire, Ince Division comprised:[4]
- Abram Urban District
- Ashton in Makerfield Urban District
- Billinge Urban District
- Ince-in-Makerfield Urban District
- Orrell Urban District
- Standish with Langtree Urban District
- The civil parish of Shevington from Wigan Rural District
1950–1983
The Representation of the People Act 1948 redistributed parliamentary seats, with the constituencies first being used in the general election of 1950. The term "county constituency" was introduced in place of "division". Ince County Constituency was redefined as consisting of seven urban districts:[5]
- Abram
- Ashton in Makerfield
- Billinge & Winstanley
- Ince-in-Makerfield
- Orrell
- Skelmersdale
- Upholland
The changes reflected local government boundary changes that had taken place, and the renaming of Billinge UD as "Billinge and Winstanley" in 1924. Standish with Langtree and Shevington were transferred to the Westhoughton county constituency. Skelmersdale and Upholland had previously formed part of the Ormskirk division.[2]
The Parliamentary Constituencies (England) Order 1970 altered the seat's name to Ince Borough Constituency. The constituency was defined as consisting of six urban districts: Abram, Ashton in Makerfield, Billinge & Winstanley, Ince-in-Makerfield, Orrell, and Skelmersdale & Holland. Skelmersdale and Upholland urban districts had been amalgamated in 1968, and the 1970 boundaries were the same as those of 1950.[2][6]
The constituency was abolished by the Parliamentary Constituencies (England) Order 1983, which redrew constituencies based on the new counties and districts created in 1974. Most of the area (Abram, Orrell and Winstanley) was included in the Makerfield County Constituency, in the parliamentary county of Greater Manchester. Ashton in Makerfield and Billinge was divided between Makerfield Constituency, in Greater Manchester, and St Helens North Borough Constituency in Merseyside; Skelmersdale & Upholland formed part of West Lancashire County Constituency.[7]
| Election | Member | Party | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1885 | Henry Blundell-Hollinshead-Blundell | Conservative | |
| 1892 | Samuel Woods | Lib-Lab | |
| 1895 | Henry Blundell-Hollinshead-Blundell | Conservative | |
| 1906 | Stephen Walsh | Labour | |
| 1929 | Gordon Macdonald | Labour | |
| 1942 by-election | Tom Brown | Labour | |
| 1964 | Michael McGuire | Labour | |
| 1983 | constituency abolished | ||
Elections in the 1880s
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Henry Blundell-Hollinshead-Blundell | 4,271 | 53.4 | ||
| Liberal | Cornelius McLeod Percy[9] | 3,725 | 46.6 | ||
| Majority | 546 | 6.8 | |||
| Turnout | 7,996 | 87.3 | |||
| Registered electors | 9,157 | ||||
| Conservative win (new seat) | |||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Henry Blundell-Hollinshead-Blundell | 4,308 | 57.2 | +3.8 | |
| Liberal | George Paul Taylor[10] | 3,228 | 42.8 | −3.8 | |
| Majority | 1,080 | 14.4 | +7.6 | ||
| Turnout | 7,536 | 82.3 | −5.0 | ||
| Registered electors | 9,157 | ||||
| Conservative hold | Swing | +3.8 | |||
Elections in the 1890s
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lib-Lab | Sam Woods | 4,579 | 51.3 | +8.5 | |
| Conservative | Henry Blundell-Hollinshead-Blundell | 4,352 | 48.7 | −8.5 | |
| Majority | 227 | 2.6 | N/A | ||
| Turnout | 8,931 | 88.8 | +6.5 | ||
| Registered electors | 10,059 | ||||
| Lib-Lab gain from Conservative | Swing | +8.5 | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Henry Blundell-Hollinshead-Blundell | 5,235 | 52.2 | +3.5 | |
| Lib-Lab | Sam Woods | 4,790 | 47.8 | −3.5 | |
| Majority | 445 | 4.4 | N/A | ||
| Turnout | 10,025 | 91.7 | +2.9 | ||
| Registered electors | 10,935 | ||||
| Conservative gain from Lib-Lab | Swing | +3.5 | |||
Elections in the 1900s
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Henry Blundell-Hollinshead-Blundell | Unopposed | |||
| Conservative hold | |||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour Repr. Cmte. | Stephen Walsh | 8,046 | 70.2 | New | |
| Conservative | Henry Blundell-Hollinshead-Blundell | 3,410 | 29.8 | N/A | |
| Majority | 4,636 | 40.4 | N/A | ||
| Turnout | 11,456 | 88.2 | N/A | ||
| Registered electors | 12,986 | ||||
| Labour Repr. Cmte. gain from Conservative | Swing | N/A | |||
Elections in the 1910s
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Stephen Walsh | 7,723 | 60.6 | −9.6 | |
| Conservative | Walter Greaves-Lord | 5,029 | 39.4 | +9.6 | |
| Majority | 2,694 | 21.2 | −19.2 | ||
| Turnout | 12,752 | 90.4 | +2.2 | ||
| Registered electors | 14,107 | ||||
| Labour hold | Swing | −9.6 | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Stephen Walsh | 7,117 | 57.2 | −3.4 | |
| Conservative | Walter Greaves-Lord | 5,332 | 42.8 | +3.4 | |
| Majority | 1,785 | 14.4 | −6.8 | ||
| Turnout | 12,449 | 88.2 | −2.2 | ||
| Registered electors | 14,107 | ||||
| Labour hold | Swing | −3.4 | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Stephen Walsh | 14,882 | 87.0 | +29.8 | |
| Socialist Labour | William Paul | 2,231 | 13.0 | New | |
| Majority | 12,651 | 74.0 | +59.6 | ||
| Turnout | 17,113 | 55.7 | −32.5 | ||
| Registered electors | 30,736 | ||||
| Labour hold | Swing | N/A | |||
Elections in the 1920s
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Stephen Walsh | 17,332 | 67.7 | −19.3 | |
| Unionist | E.L. Fleming | 8,257 | 32.3 | New | |
| Majority | 9,075 | 35.4 | −38.6 | ||
| Turnout | 25,589 | 80.0 | +24.3 | ||
| Registered electors | 31,974 | ||||
| Labour hold | Swing | N/A | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Stephen Walsh | 17,365 | 73.5 | +5.8 | |
| Unionist | Rachel Parsons | 6,262 | 26.5 | −5.8 | |
| Majority | 11,103 | 47.0 | +11.6 | ||
| Turnout | 23,627 | 72.2 | −7.8 | ||
| Registered electors | 32,710 | ||||
| Labour hold | Swing | +5.8 | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Stephen Walsh | 18,272 | 70.0 | −3.5 | |
| Unionist | E.V. Gabriel | 7,820 | 30.0 | +3.5 | |
| Majority | 10,452 | 40.0 | −7.0 | ||
| Turnout | 26,092 | 78.5 | +6.3 | ||
| Registered electors | 33,235 | ||||
| Labour hold | Swing | −3.5 | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Gordon Macdonald | 26,091 | 73.8 | +3.8 | |
| Unionist | John Bankes Walmsley | 9,260 | 26.2 | −3.8 | |
| Majority | 16,831 | 47.6 | +7.6 | ||
| Turnout | 35,351 | 82.2 | +3.7 | ||
| Registered electors | 43,026 | ||||
| Labour hold | Swing | +3.8 | |||
Elections in the 1930s
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Gordon Macdonald | 23,237 | 63.4 | -10.4 | |
| Conservative | R Catterall | 13,440 | 36.6 | +10.4 | |
| Majority | 9,797 | 26.7 | -20.9 | ||
| Turnout | 36,677 | 82.5 | +0.3 | ||
| Labour hold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Gordon Macdonald | 26,334 | 72.6 | +9.2 | |
| Conservative | Herbert F. Ryan | 9,928 | 27.4 | -9.2 | |
| Majority | 16,406 | 45.2 | +18.5 | ||
| Turnout | 36,262 | 77.3 | -5.2 | ||
| Labour hold | Swing | ||||
Elections in the 1940s
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Tom Brown | 28,702 | 74.4 | +1.8 | |
| Conservative | Robert Cecil | 9,875 | 25.6 | -1.8 | |
| Majority | 18,827 | 48.8 | +3.6 | ||
| Turnout | 38,577 | 79.0 | +1.7 | ||
| Labour hold | Swing | ||||
Elections in the 1950s
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Tom Brown | 32,145 | 71.8 | -2.6 | |
| Conservative | JG Scott | 12,612 | 28.2 | +2.6 | |
| Majority | 19,533 | 43.6 | -5.2 | ||
| Turnout | 44,757 | 88.7 | +9.7 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Tom Brown | 32,148 | 72.3 | +0.5 | |
| Conservative | James Porter | 12,305 | 27.7 | -0.5 | |
| Majority | 19,843 | 44.6 | +1.0 | ||
| Turnout | 44,453 | 87.0 | -1.7 | ||
| Labour hold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Tom Brown | 29,830 | 72.7 | +0.4 | |
| Conservative | Geoffrey Beaman | 11,183 | 27.3 | -0.4 | |
| Majority | 18,647 | 45.4 | +0.8 | ||
| Turnout | 41,013 | 81.0 | -6.0 | ||
| Labour hold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Tom Brown | 30,752 | 72.3 | -0.4 | |
| Conservative | Walter Clegg | 11,795 | 27.7 | +0.4 | |
| Majority | 18,957 | 44.6 | -0.8 | ||
| Turnout | 42,547 | 83.0 | +2.0 | ||
| Labour hold | Swing | ||||
Election in the 1960s
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Michael McGuire | 31,042 | 72.0 | -0.3 | |
| Conservative | Francis Henry Gerard Heron Goodhart | 12,077 | 28.0 | +0.3 | |
| Majority | 18,965 | 44.0 | -0.6 | ||
| Turnout | 43,119 | 79.6 | -3.4 | ||
| Labour hold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Michael McGuire | 30,915 | 73.6 | +1.6 | |
| Conservative | John Birch | 11,075 | 26.4 | -1.6 | |
| Majority | 19,840 | 47.2 | +3.2 | ||
| Turnout | 41,990 | 75.4 | -4.2 | ||
| Labour hold | Swing | ||||
Elections in the 1970s
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Michael McGuire | 32,295 | 68.5 | -5.1 | |
| Conservative | Allan Coupe | 14,877 | 31.5 | +5.1 | |
| Majority | 17,418 | 37.0 | -10.2 | ||
| Turnout | 47,172 | 70.7 | -4.7 | ||
| Labour hold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Michael McGuire | 39,822 | 70.0 | +1.5 | |
| Conservative | John Richard Dyson | 17,063 | 30.0 | -1.5 | |
| Majority | 22,759 | 40.0 | +3.0 | ||
| Turnout | 56,885 | 74.4 | +3.7 | ||
| Labour hold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Michael McGuire | 35,453 | 63.5 | -6.5 | |
| Conservative | John Richard Dyson | 11,923 | 21.4 | -8.6 | |
| Liberal | John Kenneth Gibb | 8,436 | 15.1 | New | |
| Majority | 23,530 | 42.1 | +2.1 | ||
| Turnout | 55,812 | 72.4 | -2.0 | ||
| Labour hold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Michael McGuire | 34,599 | 56.2 | −7.3 | |
| Conservative | Peter Brown | 20,263 | 32.9 | +11.5 | |
| Liberal | John Kenneth Gibb | 6,294 | 10.2 | −4.9 | |
| Workers Revolutionary | John Simons | 442 | 0.7 | New | |
| Majority | 14,336 | 23.3 | -18.8 | ||
| Turnout | 61,598 | 74.2 | +1.8 | ||
| Labour hold | Swing | ||||
- "'Ince', Feb 1974 - May 1983". ElectionWeb Project. Cognitive Computing Limited. Retrieved 23 March 2016.
- Youngs, Guide to the Local Administrative Units of England, Volume 2
- Seventh Schedule: Counties at Large: Number of Members and Names and Contents of Divisions, Redistribution of Seats Act 1885, (1885 c.23)
- Ninth Schedule - Part II, Parliamentary Counties: England, excluding Monmouthshire, Representation of the People Act 1918 (1918 c.64)
- First Schedule: Parliamentary Constituencies, Representation of The People Act 1948, (1948 c.65)
- The Parliamentary Constituencies (England) Order 1970 (S.I. 1970 No. 1674)
- Parliamentary Constituencies (England) Order 1983 (S.I. 1983 No. 417)
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- "Ince Division". Leigh Chronicle and Weekly District Advertiser. 27 November 1885. p. 5. Retrieved 1 December 2017 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- "South-West Lancashire". Manchester Courier and Lancashire General Advertiser. 8 July 1886. pp. 5–6. Retrieved 1 December 2017 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- Craig, F.W.S., ed. (1969). British parliamentary election results 1918-1949. Glasgow: Political Reference Publications. p. 398. ISBN 0-900178-01-9.
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- UK General Election results: October 1951 Politics Resources
- The Times' Guide to the House of Commons. 1951.
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