Ince (UK Parliament constituency)

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
Created from	South West Lancashire
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.

Boundaries

Ince in Lancashire, boundaries used 1974-83

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:

• Abram
• Haigh
• Hindley
• Ince-in-Makerfield
• Orrell
• Pemberton

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]

Abolition

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]

Members of Parliament

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

Election results

Elections in the 1880s

General election Nov 1885: Ince[8]

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)

General election Jul 1886: Ince[8]

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

General election Jan 1892: Ince[8]

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

General election Jan 1895: Ince[8]

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

General election 1900: Ince[8]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Henry Blundell-Hollinshead-Blundell	Unopposed
	Conservative hold

General election Jan 1906: Ince[8]

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

General election Jan 1910: Ince[8]

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

General election Dec 1910: Ince[8]

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

General election 1918: Ince[11]

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

General election 1922: Ince[11]

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

General election 1923: Ince [12][11]

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

General election 1924: Ince[11]

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

General election 1929: Ince [13]

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

General election 1931: Ince

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

General election 1935: Ince[14]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Gordon Macdonald	26,334	72.6	+9.2
	Conservative	H 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

General election 1945: Ince[15]

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

General election 1950: Ince[16]

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

General election 1951: Ince[17][18]

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

General election 1955: Ince[19][20]

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

General election 1959: Ince[21]

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

General election 1964: Ince[22]

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

General election 1966: Ince[23][24]

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

General election 1970: Ince[25][26]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Michael McGuire	32,295	68.5	-5.1
	Conservative	Allan Coupe	14,877	31.5	+5.1
Majority			17,418	31.5	-15.7
Turnout			47,172	70.7	-4.7
	Labour hold		Swing

General election February 1974: Ince[27]

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	+8.5
Turnout			56,885	74.4	+3.7
	Labour hold		Swing

General election October 1974: Ince[28]

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

General election 1979: Ince[29]

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

See also

• Makerfield Parliamentary constituency.

References

1. "'Ince', Feb 1974 - May 1983". ElectionWeb Project. Cognitive Computing Limited. Retrieved 23 March 2016.
2. Youngs, Guide to the Local Administrative Units of England, Volume 2
3. Seventh Schedule: Counties at Large: Number of Members and Names and Contents of Divisions, Redistribution of Seats Act 1885, (1885 c.23)
4. Ninth Schedule - Part II, Parliamentary Counties: England, excluding Monmouthshire, Representation of the People Act 1918 (1918 c.64)
5. First Schedule: Parliamentary Constituencies, Representation of The People Act 1948, (1948 c.65)
6. The Parliamentary Constituencies (England) Order 1970 (S.I. 1970 No. 1674)
7. Parliamentary Constituencies (England) Order 1983 (S.I. 1983 No. 417)
8. Craig, FWS, ed. (1974). British Parliamentary Election Results: 1885-1918. London: Macmillan Press. ISBN 9781349022984.
9. "Ince Division". Leigh Chronicle and Weekly District Advertiser. 27 Nov 1885. p. 5. Retrieved 1 December 2017 – via British Newspaper Archive.
10. "South-West Lancashire". Manchester Courier and Lancashire General Advertiser. 8 July 1886. pp. 5–6. Retrieved 1 December 2017 – via British Newspaper Archive.
11. Craig, F.W.S., ed. (1969). British parliamentary election results 1918-1949. Glasgow: Political Reference Publications. p. 398. ISBN 0-900178-01-9.
12. The Liberal Year Book, 1930
13. British Parliamentary Election Results 1918-1949, FWS Craig
14. UK General Election results: November 1935 Politics Resources
15. UK General Election results: July 1945 Archived 2015-02-27 at the Wayback Machine Politics Resources
16. UK General Election results: February 1950 Archived 2011-08-11 at the Wayback Machine Politics Resources
17. UK General Election results: October 1951 Politics Resources
18. The Times' Guide to the House of Commons. 1951.
19. UK General Election results: May 1955 Politics Resources
20. The Times' Guide to the House of Commons. 1955.
21. UK General Election results: October 1959 Politics Resources
22. UK General Election results: October 1964 Archived 2011-08-11 at the Wayback Machine Politics Resources
23. UK General Election results: March 1966 Archived 2011-08-11 at the Wayback Machine Politics Resources
24. The Times' Guide to the House of Commons. 1966.
25. UK General Election results: June 1970 Archived 2011-08-11 at the Wayback Machine Politics Resources
26. The Times' Guide to the House of Commons. 1970.
27. UK General Election results: February 1974 Politics Resources
28. UK General Election results: October 1974 Politics Resources
29. UK General Election results: May 1979 Politics Resources

Sources

• Leigh Rayment's Historical List of MPs – Constituencies beginning with "I"
• Election results, 1950–1979