# Cleethorpes (UK Parliament constituency)

Cleethorpes was a constituency created in 1997, represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament since 2010 by Martin Vickers of the Conservative Party.
Further to the completion of the 2023 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.

## 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

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 | Party |
| 1997 | Shona McIsaac | Labour |
| 2010 | Martin Vickers | Conservative |
| 2024 | Constituency abolished | Constituency abolished |

## Election results 1997–2024
### Elections in the 1990s

General election 1997: Cleethorpes :
| Party | 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 | Majority | Majority | 9,176 | 18.2 | +4.9 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 49,580 | 73.4 | |
| | Labour gain from Conservative | Labour gain from Conservative | Swing | | |

### Elections in the 2000s

General election 2001: Cleethorpes :
| Party | 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 | Majority | Majority | 5,620 | 13.3 | −4.9 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 42,418 | 62.0 | −11.4 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |
General election 2005: Cleethorpes :
| Party | 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 | Majority | Majority | 2,642 | 6.0 | −7.3 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 43,589 | 61.6 | −0.4 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | −3.6 | |

### Elections in the 2010s

General election 2010: Cleethorpes :
| Party | 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 | Majority | Majority | 4,298 | 9.5 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 44,966 | 64.0 | +2.4 |
| | Conservative gain from Labour | Conservative gain from Labour | Swing | +7.8 | |
General election 2015: Cleethorpes :
| Party | 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 | Majority | Majority | 7,893 | 17.5 | +8.0 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 45,089 | 63.9 | −0.1 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | +4.0 | |
General election 2017: Cleethorpes :
| Party | 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 | Majority | Majority | 10,400 | 21.7 | +4.2 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 47,844 | 65.5 | +1.6 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | +2.1 | |
General election 2019: Cleethorpes :
| Party | 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 | Majority | Majority | 21,418 | 46.2 | +24.5 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 46,339 | 62.9 | −2.6 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | +12.25 | |