# Westhoughton (UK Parliament constituency)

Westhoughton was a parliamentary constituency in Lancashire, England. Centred on the former mining and cotton town of Westhoughton, it returned one Member of Parliament (MP) to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom.
The constituency was created for the 1885 general election, and abolished for the 1983 general election.

## History and boundaries
### 1885–1918

The Redistribution of Seats Act 1885 divided the existing constituency of South East Lancashire into eight single-member seats. The new seat of South-East Lancashire, Westhoughton Division comprised an area surrounding, but not including, the County Borough of Bolton. It consisted of the towns of Aspull, Blackrod, Horwich, Little Lever, and Westhoughton, and the surrounding townships of Anglezarke, Bradshaw, Breightmet, Darcy Lever, Edgworth, Entwistle, Great Lever, Harwood, Heaton, Longworth, Lostock, Middle Hulton, Over Hulton, Quarlton and Rivington, plus Turton Urban District, and the parts of Rumworth, Sharples and Tonge with Haulgh outside the Parliamentary Borough of Bolton.

### 1918–1950

The Representation of the People Act 1918 reorganised parliamentary seats throughout Great Britain and Ireland. Constituencies were redefined in terms of the urban and rural districts created by the Local Government Act 1894. Lancashire, Westhoughton Division consisted of five adjoining urban districts: Aspull, Blackrod, Hindley, Horwich and Westhoughton.

### 1950–1983

The next redrawing of English constituencies was effected by the Representation of the People Act 1948. The Act introduced the term "county constituency". Westhoughton County Constituency was enlarged by the addition of Standish with Langtree Urban District and Wigan Rural District. The revised boundaries were first used at the 1950 general election, and were unchanged until abolition.

### Abolition

The 1983 redistribution of seats reflected local government reforms made in 1974. The bulk of the seat became part of the parliamentary county of Greater Manchester: Blackrod, Horwich and Westhoughton formed part of the new Bolton West county constituency, Aspull and Standish part of Wigan borough constituency and Hindley was included in Leigh borough constituency. Some parishes in the north of the old constituency remained in Lancashire, and were included in Chorley county constituency.

## Members of Parliament

| Election | Election | Member | Party |
| | 1885 | Frank Hardcastle | Conservative |
| | 1892 | Edward Stanley | Conservative |
| | 1906 | William Wilson | Labour |
| | 1921 by-election | Rhys Davies | Labour |
| | 1951 by-election | Tom Price | Labour |
| | 1973 by-election | Roger Stott | Labour |
| 1983 | 1983 | constituency abolished | constituency abolished |

## Election results
### Elections in the 1880s

General election 1885: Westhoughton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Frank Hardcastle | 6,011 | 61.6 | |
| | Liberal | Edward Cross | 3,741 | 38.4 | |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,270 | 23.2 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 9,752 | 91.8 | |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 10,625 | | |
| | Conservative win (new seat) | Conservative win (new seat) | Conservative win (new seat) | Conservative win (new seat) | Conservative win (new seat) |
General election 1886: Westhoughton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Frank Hardcastle | Unopposed | Unopposed | Unopposed |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Conservative hold |

### Elections in the 1890s

General election 1892: Westhoughton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Edward Stanley | 6,711 | 57.9 | N/A |
| | Liberal | Lewis Haslam | 4,871 | 42.1 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,840 | 15.8 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 11,582 | 89.2 | N/A |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 12,979 | | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | N/A | |
General election 1895: Westhoughton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Edward Stanley | Unopposed | Unopposed | Unopposed |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Conservative hold |

### Elections in the 1900s

General election 1900: Westhoughton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Edward Stanley | 7,989 | 61.7 | N/A |
| | Liberal | Franklin Thomasson | 4,949 | 38.3 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 3,040 | 23.4 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 12,938 | 81.7 | N/A |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 15,827 | | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | N/A | |
By-election, 1903: Westhoughton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Edward Stanley | Unopposed | Unopposed | Unopposed |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Conservative hold |
General election 1906: Westhoughton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour Repr. Cmte. | William Wilson | 9,262 | 60.2 | New |
| | Conservative | Edward Stanley | 6,134 | 39.8 | −21.9 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 3,128 | 20.4 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 15,396 | 85.6 | +3.9 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 17,984 | | |
| | Labour Repr. Cmte. gain from Conservative | Labour Repr. Cmte. gain from Conservative | Swing | N/A | |

### Elections in the 1910s

General election January 1910: Westhoughton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | William Wilson | 10,141 | 56.8 | −3.4 |
| | Conservative | H. M. Byrne | 7,709 | 43.2 | +3.4 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,432 | 13.6 | −6.8 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 17,850 | 90.4 | +4.8 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 19,751 | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | −3.4 | |
General election December 1910: Westhoughton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | William Wilson | 9,064 | 53.2 | −3.6 |
| | Conservative | G. F. Clarke | 7,974 | 46.8 | +3.6 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,090 | 6.4 | −7.2 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 17,038 | 86.3 | −4.1 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 19,751 | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | −3.6 | |
General election 1918: Westhoughton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | William Wilson | 11,849 | 63.9 | +10.7 |
| | Independent Liberal | James Tonge | 6,697 | 36.1 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 5,152 | 27.8 | +21.4 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 18,546 | 61.6 | −24.7 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 30,108 | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | N/A | |

### Elections in the 1920s

1921 Westhoughton by-election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Rhys Davies | 14,876 | 57.8 | −6.1 |
| | Liberal | James Tonge | 10,867 | 42.2 | +6.1 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 4,009 | 15.6 | −12.2 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 25,743 | 84.7 | +23.1 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 30,409 | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | −6.1 | |
* Endorsed by the Coalition Government
General election 1922: Westhoughton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Rhys Davies | 14,846 | 55.4 | −8.5 |
| | National Liberal | James Tonge | 11,937 | 44.6 | +8.5 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,909 | 10.8 | −17.0 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 26,783 | 85.4 | +23.8 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 31,351 | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | −8.5 | |
General election 1923: Westhoughton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Rhys Davies | 15,347 | 60.3 | +4.9 |
| | Unionist | John Haslam | 10,103 | 39.7 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 5,244 | 20.6 | +9.8 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 25,450 | 79.3 | −6.1 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 32,081 | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | +4.9 | |
General election 1924: Westhoughton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Rhys Davies | 16,033 | 55.8 | −4.5 |
| | Unionist | John Haslam | 12,684 | 44.2 | +4.5 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 3,349 | 11.6 | −9.0 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 28,717 | 88.8 | +8.8 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 32,587 | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | −4.5 | |
General election 1929: Westhoughton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Rhys Davies | 22,305 | 61.5 | +5.7 |
| | Unionist | James Wain Lomax | 9,855 | 27.2 | −17.0 |
| | Liberal | Ernest Everett Canney | 4,132 | 11.4 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 12,450 | 34.3 | +22.7 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 36,292 | 87.1 | −1.7 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 41,648 | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | +11.3 | |

### Elections in the 1930s

General election 1931: Westhoughton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Labour | Rhys Davies | 19,301 | 53.46 |
| | Conservative | P. Higson | 16,801 | 46.54 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,500 | 6.92 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 36,102 | 85.49 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | |
General election 1935: Westhoughton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Labour | Rhys Davies | 21,093 | 60.36 |
| | Conservative | H. O. Dixon | 13,851 | 39.64 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 7,242 | 20.72 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 34,944 | 83.24 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | |

### Elections in the 1940s

General election 1945: Westhoughton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Labour | Rhys Davies | 20,990 | 64.91 |
| | Conservative | Stanley Bell | 11,346 | 35.09 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 9,644 | 29.82 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 32,336 | 77.44 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | |

### Elections in the 1950s

General election 1950: Westhougton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Labour | Rhys Davies | 30,117 | 62.26 |
| | Conservative | F. Joan Crowther | 18,259 | 37.74 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 11,858 | 24.52 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 48,376 | 88.30 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | |
1951 Westhoughton by-election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Tom Price | 25,368 | 60.4 | −1.9 |
| | Conservative | Frank J. Land | 16,614 | 39.6 | +1.9 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 8,754 | 20.8 | −3.7 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 41,982 | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |
General election 1951: Westhoughton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Labour | Tom Price | 29,319 | 61.13 |
| | Conservative | Frank J. Land | 18,644 | 38.87 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 10,675 | 22.26 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 47,963 | 86.6 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | |
General election 1955: Westhoughton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Labour | Tom Price | 27,900 | 60.99 |
| | Conservative | Eric Dunnett | 17,848 | 39.01 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 10,052 | 21.98 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 45,748 | 82.95 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | |
General election 1959: Westhoughton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Labour | Tom Price | 29,359 | 61.17 |
| | Conservative | John Edward Gouldbourn | 18,634 | 38.83 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 10,725 | 22.34 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 47,993 | 84.28 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | |

### Elections in the 1960s

General election 1964: Westhoughton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Labour | Tom Price | 30,249 | 61.75 |
| | Conservative | John I. Hanrahan | 18,738 | 38.25 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 11,511 | 23.50 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 48,987 | 81.92 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | |
General election 1966: Westhoughton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Labour | Tom Price | 31,387 | 64.96 |
| | Conservative | John I. Hanrahan | 16,927 | 35.04 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 14,460 | 29.92 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 48,314 | 78.75 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | |

### Elections in the 1970s

General election 1970: Westhoughton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Tom Price | 29,674 | 55.4 | −9.6 |
| | Conservative | Cyril A. Unsworth | 23,847 | 44.6 | +9.6 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 5,827 | 10.9 | −19.0 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 53,521 | 76.9 | −1.8 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |
1973 Westhoughton by-election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Roger Stott | 26,294 | 57.0 | +1.6 |
| | Conservative | Cyril A. Unsworth | 19,511 | 42.3 | −2.3 |
| | Democratic Socialist | Brian O'Hara | 335 | 0.7 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 6,783 | 14.7 | +3.8 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 46,140 | | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |
General election February 1974: Westhoughton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Roger Stott | 30,574 | 51.5 | −5.5 |
| | Conservative | Brian H. Tetlow | 17,909 | 30.1 | −12.2 |
| | Liberal | R. S. Hale | 10,939 | 18.4 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 12,665 | 21.3 | +6.6 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 59,422 | 83.2 | |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |
General election October 1974: Westhoughton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Roger Stott | 30,373 | 54.1 | +2.6 |
| | Conservative | Brian H. Tetlow | 16,798 | 29.9 | −0.2 |
| | Liberal | R. S. Hale | 8,926 | 15.9 | −2.5 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 13,575 | 24.2 | +2.9 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 56,097 | 77.9 | −5.3 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |
General election 1979: Westhoughton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Roger Stott | 29,685 | 48.2 | −5.9 |
| | Conservative | Carolyn Johnson | 24,398 | 39.6 | +9.7 |
| | Liberal | J. Pigott | 7,544 | 12.2 | −3.7 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 5,287 | 8.6 | −15.6 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 61,627 | 80.1 | +2.2 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | | |