West Lancashire (UK Parliament constituency)

Constituency profile

The constituency is located in southern Lancashire, and borders Merseyside to the south and west and Greater Manchester to the east. Skelmersdale is the largest town, followed by Ormskirk and Burscough. The constituency shares its boundaries with the southern part of the borough of West Lancashire, while the northern part of the borough is in the South Ribble constituency.

Farming is a significant industry in the constituency, with much of the farmland classed as grade 1 or grade 2. The entirety of the constituency is within the North West Green Belt.

West Lancashire is home to a significant proportion of those working at managerial and professional levels and an above average retired age quotient. Workless claimants who were registered jobseekers were in November 2012 lower than the national average of 3.8%, at 3.5% of the population based on a statistical compilation by The Guardian.

Boundaries

1983–1997: Aughton Park, Aughton Town Green, Bickerstaffe, Birch Green, Burscough, Derby, Digmoor, Downholland, Halsall, Hesketh-with-Becconsall, Knowsley, Lathom, Moorside, Newburgh, North Meols, Rufford, Scarisbrick, Scott, Skelmersdale North, Skelmersdale South, Tanhouse, Tarleton, Upholland North, and Upholland South.

1997–2010: Aughton Park, Aughton Town Green, Bickerstaffe, Birch Green, Burscough, Derby, Digmoor, Downholland, Halsall, Knowsley, Lathom, Moorside, Newburgh, Parbold, Scarisbrick, Scott, Skelmersdale North, Skelmersdale South, Tanhouse, Upholland North, Upholland South, and Wrightington.

2010–2023: Ashurst, Aughton and Downholland, Aughton Park, Bickerstaffe, Birch Green, Burscough East, Burscough West, Derby, Digmoor, Halsall, Knowsley, Moorside, Newburgh, Parbold, Scarisbrick, Scott, Skelmersdale North, Skelmersdale South, Tanhouse, Upholland, and Wrightington.

The constituency boundaries remained unchanged.

2023–present: Following a local government boundary review which came into effect in May 2023, the constituency now comprises the following wards or part wards of the Borough of West Lancashire:

• Aughton & Holborn; Burscough Bridge & Rufford (part); Burscough Town; Old Skelmersdale; Ormskirk East; Ormskirk West; Rural North East; Rural South; Rural West; Skelmersdale North; Skelmersdale South; Tanhouse & Skelmersdale Town Centre; Up Holland.

The 2023 review of Westminster constituencies, which was based on the ward structure in place at 1 December 2020, left the boundaries unchanged.

History

The seat was established under the third periodic review of Westminster constituencies of 1983.

The new seat took in parts of Ormskirk and Ince, both abolished in the review. Ince had elected Labour MPs since 1906, but Ormskirk had a mixed and longer history as a more marginal seat. Both seats were represented by Labour MPs when they were abolished.

The seat's first member, Ken Hind, held the seat for two terms as a Conservative, winning the first election in the landslide Conservative result of 1983. In 1992 the seat was won by Colin Pickthall of the Labour Party, who was succeeded by Rosie Cooper in 2005. The 2010 result was more marginal, with a 9.0% majority, but was not within the 50 most narrowly won seats for Cooper's party.

In September 2022 Rosie Cooper announced she had accepted a new role as Chair of Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust and would therefore resign as MP, triggering a by-election. Her successor Ashley Dalton is a member of the Labour Party who was appointed as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Public Health and Prevention in 2025.

Members of Parliament

Elections

Elections in the 2020s

|reg. electors = 74083

Elections in the 2010s

1: After nominations were closed, Sen was suspended from UKIP after sending an allegedly anti-semitic tweet to Liverpool Wavertree Labour candidate Luciana Berger. His name still appeared on ballot papers with the UKIP party name.

Elections in the 2000s

Elections in the 1990s

Elections in the 1980s

Notes

References

Sources

• Election results, 1983 - 2001

References

1. Council, Lancashire County. "Environment and conservation maps".
2. Council, Lancashire County. "Green belt land".
3. "Local statistics - Office for National Statistics".
4. (2010-11-17). "Unemployment: the key UK data and benefit claimants for every constituency".
5. LGBCE. "West Lancashire {{!}} LGBCE".
6. "The West Lancashire (Electoral Changes) Order 2022".
7. "New Seat Details - Lancashire West".
8. "The Parliamentary Constituencies Order 2023".
9. "Electoral Commission - Previous UK general elections".
10. (20 September 2022). "Campaigning MP to chair foundation trust". HSJJobs.com.
11. {{rayment-hc. l. 1. (March 2012)
12. (7 June 2024). "Statement of Persons Nominated, Notice of Poll and Situation of Polling Stations". [[West Lancashire Council]].
13. "Statement of persons nominated 2019".
14. (11 May 2017). "Election of a Member of Parliament for West Lancashire".
15. "Election Data 2015". [[Electoral Calculus]].
16. "Lancashire West". BBC News.
17. (2015-05-01). "UKIP candidate Jack Sen suspended over Jewish slur tweet". BBC News.
18. "Election Data 2010". [[Electoral Calculus]].
19. "BBC News - Election 2010 - Constituency - Lancashire West".
20. "Election Data 2005". [[Electoral Calculus]].
21. "Election Data 2001". [[Electoral Calculus]].
22. "Election Data 1997". [[Electoral Calculus]].
23. "Election Data 1992". [[Electoral Calculus]].
24. (9 April 1992). "UK General Election results April 1992". Politics Resources.
25. "Election Data 1987". [[Electoral Calculus]].
26. "Election Data 1983". [[Electoral Calculus]].