Louth and Horncastle
UK Parliament constituency (since 1997)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Louth and Horncastle is a constituency[n 1] in Lincolnshire represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2015 by Victoria Atkins, a Conservative.[n 2]
| Louth and Horncastle | |
|---|---|
| County constituency for the House of Commons | |
 Boundaries since 2024 | |
Boundary of Louth and Horncastle in the East Midlands | |
| County | Lincolnshire |
| Electorate | 75,959 (2023)[1] |
| Major settlements | Louth, Horncastle, Mablethorpe, Sutton-on-Sea, Woodhall Spa |
| Current constituency | |
| Created | 1997 |
| Member of Parliament | Victoria Atkins[2] (Conservative) |
| Seats | One |
| Created from | East Lindsey |
Constituency profile
Louth and Horncastle is a large rural constituency located in Lincolnshire. Its largest town is Louth, which has a population of around 18,000.[3] Other settlements include the small market towns of Horncastle, Wragby, Coningsby, Alford and Spilsby, the spa town of Woodhall Spa, the seaside resort towns of Mablethorpe and Sutton-on-Sea and the village of Holton-le-Clay. The Lincolnshire Wolds National Landscape is located in the constituency, and like much of Lincolnshire, the constituency contains a number of former and active Royal Air Force bases. The coastal area is popular with tourists and contains numerous holiday parks, although like much of coastal England, there are high levels of deprivation here due to the decline in domestic tourism. The inland areas have average levels of wealth.[4] House prices are lower than the rest of the East Midlands and considerably lower than the national average.[5]
Louth and Horncastle has a large retiree population and thus residents have a very high average age. Residents have high rates of homeownership but low levels of income, education and professional employment.[5] A high proportion of residents work in the agriculture, manufacturing and tourism sectors,[6] and the percentage of residents claiming unemployment benefits is low. The child poverty rate is higher than the national figure.[7] White people made up 98% of the population at the 2021 census.[8] At the local district council, the constituency is represented by a mixture of Conservative and independent councillors with some Labour Party representation in Louth and Mablethorpe. At the county council, which held elections in 2025, all seats in the constituency were won by Reform UK. Voters in the constituency strongly supported leaving the European Union in the 2016 referendum; an estimated 68% voted in favour of Brexit compared to 52% nationwide.[5]
Boundaries
History of boundaries
From 1885 to 1983, Louth and Horncastle both existed as separate constituencies. Then in 1983, Horncastle was moved into the new seat of Gainsborough and Horncastle, while Louth was moved into the newly formed East Lindsey constituency. These boundaries remained the same until 1997, when the current Louth and Horncastle constituency was formed.
1997–2010
The District of East Lindsey wards of Alford, Chapel St Leonards, Coningsby, Donington on Bain, Fotherby, Grimoldby, Halton Holegate, Hogsthorpe, Holton le Clay, Horncastle, Hundleby, Legbourne, Mablethorpe, Mareham le Fen, Marshchapel, New Leake, North Holme, North Somercotes, North Thoresby, Partney, Priory, Roughton, St James', St Margaret's, St Mary's, St Michael's, Spilsby, Sutton and Trusthorpe, Tattershall, Tetford, Tetney, Theddlethorpe St Helen, Trinity, Willoughby with Sloothby, Withern with Stain, and Woodhall Spa.
2010–2024
The District of East Lindsey wards of Alford, Binbrook, Chapel St Leonards, Coningsby and Tattershall, Grimoldby, Halton Holegate, Holton le Clay, Horncastle, Hundleby, Legbourne, Ludford, Mablethorpe Central, Mablethorpe East, Mablethorpe North, Mareham le Fen, Marshchapel, North Holme, North Somercotes, North Thoresby, Priory, Roughton, St James', St Margaret's, St Mary's, St Michael's, Skidbrooke with Saltfleet Haven, Spilsby, Sutton on Sea North, Sutton on Sea South, Tetford, Tetney, Trinity, Trusthorpe and Mablethorpe South, Willoughby with Sloothby, Withern with Stain, and Woodhall Spa.
Current
Further to the 2023 review of Westminster constituencies, which came into effect for the 2024 general election, the composition of the constituency is as follows (as they existed on 1 December 2020):
- The District of East Lindsey wards of: Alford; Binbrook; Coningsby & Mareham; Fulstow; Grimoldby; Hagworthingham; Halton Holegate; Holton-le-Clay & North Thoresby; Horncastle; Legbourne; Mablethorpe; Marshchapel & Somercotes; North Holme; Priory & St. James’; Roughton; St. Margaret’s; St. Mary’s; St. Michael’s; Spilsby; Sutton on Sea; Tetford & Donington; Tetney; Trinity; Withern & Theddlethorpe; Woodhall Spa; Wragby.[9]
The two wards of Chapel St Leonards and Willoughby with Sloothby were transferred to Boston and Skegness, whilst the previously orphaned ward of Wragby was added from Gainsborough.
History
The seat was created in 1997. Conservatives have been dominant in the area for decades, the closest result was in 1997, when a Labour Party candidate came the closest of any opponents to being elected.
Members of Parliament
The MP for this seat is Victoria Atkins. She succeeded Peter Tapsell at the 2015 general election. He previously represented the predecessor seats of East Lindsey and Horncastle from 1966 to 1997, and before that represented Nottingham West from 1959 to 1964 before being defeated by Labour. Prior to standing down, he was the longest-serving Conservative MP, albeit with the break in service, and from 2001, he was the only MP of any party first elected in the 1950s. Following the retirement of Alan Williams, Tapsell became, on his re-election in 2010, Father of the House. He was succeeded in the honorific position in 2015 by Gerald Kaufman.
Before 1997, see East Lindsey
| Election | Member[10] | Party | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1997 | Sir Peter Tapsell | Conservative | |
| 2015 | Victoria Atkins | Conservative | |
Elections
Elections in the 2020s
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Victoria Atkins | 17,441 | 37.5 | −35.0 | |
| Reform | Sean Matthews | 11,935 | 25.7 | New | |
| Labour | Jonathan Slater | 10,475 | 22.5 | +4.8 | |
| Green | Robert Watson | 2,504 | 5.4 | New | |
| Liberal Democrats | Ross Pepper | 2,364 | 5.1 | −2.7 | |
| Independent | Paul Hugill | 1,359 | 2.9 | New | |
| Monster Raving Loony | Iconic Arty-Pole | 309 | 0.7 | −1.3 | |
| SDP | Marcus Moorehouse | 92 | 0.2 | New | |
| Majority | 5,506 | 11.8 | −43.4 | ||
| Turnout | 46,479 | 60.6 | −4.9 | ||
| Registered electors | 76,882 | ||||
| Conservative hold | Swing | ||||
Elections in the 2010s
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Victoria Atkins | 38,021 | 72.7 | +8.8 | |
| Labour | Ellie Green | 9,153 | 17.5 | −9.2 | |
| Liberal Democrats | Ross Pepper | 4,114 | 7.9 | +4.1 | |
| Monster Raving Loony | The Iconic Arty-Pole | 1,044 | 2.0 | +1.1 | |
| Majority | 28,868 | 55.2 | +18.0 | ||
| Turnout | 52,332 | 65.5 | −3.7 | ||
| Conservative hold | Swing | +8.95 | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Victoria Atkins | 33,733 | 63.9 | +12.7 | |
| Labour | Julie Speed | 14,092 | 26.7 | +8.7 | |
| UKIP | Jonathan Noble | 2,460 | 4.7 | −16.7 | |
| Liberal Democrats | Lisa Gabriel | 1,990 | 3.8 | −0.7 | |
| Monster Raving Loony | The Iconic Arty Pole | 496 | 0.9 | +0.4 | |
| Majority | 19,641 | 37.2 | +7.4 | ||
| Turnout | 52,771 | 69.2 | +2.0 | ||
| Conservative hold | Swing | +2.0 | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Victoria Atkins | 25,755 | 51.2 | +1.6 | |
| UKIP | Colin Mair | 10,778 | 21.4 | +17.1 | |
| Labour | Matthew Brown | 9,077 | 18.0 | +0.7 | |
| Liberal Democrats | Lisa Gabriel | 2,255 | 4.5 | −17.7 | |
| Green | Romy Rayner | 1,549 | 3.1 | New | |
| Lincolnshire Independent | Daniel Simpson | 659 | 1.3 | +0.2 | |
| Monster Raving Loony | Peter Hill[16] | 263 | 0.5 | New | |
| Majority | 14,977 | 29.8 | +2.4 | ||
| Turnout | 50,336 | 67.23 | +2.2 | ||
| Conservative hold | Swing | −7.8 | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Peter Tapsell | 25,065 | 49.6 | +3.2 | |
| Liberal Democrats | Fiona Martin | 11,194 | 22.2 | +1.6 | |
| Labour | Patrick Mountain | 8,760 | 17.3 | −8.0 | |
| BNP | Julia Green | 2,199 | 4.4 | New | |
| UKIP | Pat Nurse | 2,183 | 4.3 | −3.4 | |
| Lincolnshire Independent | Daniel Simpson | 576 | 1.1 | New | |
| English Democrat | Colin Mair[19] | 517 | 1.0 | New | |
| Majority | 13,871 | 27.4 | +5.3 | ||
| Turnout | 50,494 | 65.0 | +2.8 | ||
| Conservative hold | Swing | +0.8 | |||
Elections in the 2000s
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Peter Tapsell | 21,744 | 46.6 | −1.9 | |
| Labour | Frank Hodgkiss | 11,848 | 25.4 | −6.1 | |
| Liberal Democrats | Fiona Martin | 9,480 | 20.3 | +0.2 | |
| UKIP | Christopher Pain | 3,611 | 7.7 | New | |
| Majority | 9,896 | 21.2 | +4.2 | ||
| Turnout | 46,683 | 62.0 | −0.1 | ||
| Conservative hold | Swing | +2.1 | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Peter Tapsell | 21,543 | 48.5 | +5.1 | |
| Labour | David Bolland | 13,989 | 31.5 | +1.9 | |
| Liberal Democrats | Fiona Martin | 8,928 | 20.1 | −4.3 | |
| Majority | 7,554 | 17.0 | +3.2 | ||
| Turnout | 44,460 | 62.1 | −10.3 | ||
| Conservative hold | Swing | +1.6 | |||
Elections in the 1990s
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Peter Tapsell | 21,699 | 43.4 | ||
| Labour | John Hough | 14,799 | 29.6 | ||
| Liberal Democrats | Fiona Martin | 12,207 | 24.4 | ||
| Green | Rosemary Robinson | 1,248 | 2.5 | ||
| Majority | 6,900 | 13.8 | |||
| Turnout | 49,953 | 72.6 | |||
| Conservative win (new seat) | |||||
See also
Notes
- A county constituency (for the purposes of election expenses and type of returning officer)
- As with all constituencies, the constituency elects one Member of Parliament (MP) by the first past the post system of election at least every five years.