# Lowestoft (UK Parliament constituency)

Lowestoft (LOH-(ih)-stoft, LOH-stəf) is a parliamentary constituency centred on the town of Lowestoft in Suffolk. It returns one Member of Parliament (MP) to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, elected by the first past the post voting system.
The constituency was originally created for the 1885 general election, and abolished for the 1983 general election. It was succeeded by the constituency of Waveney.
Further to the completion of the 2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies, Waveney was abolished and Lowestoft re-established for the 2024 general election.

## History

The Northern or Lowestoft Division was one of five single-member county divisions of the Parliamentary County of Suffolk created by the Redistribution of Seats Act 1885 to replace the existing two 2-member divisions for the 1885 general election. It was formed from parts of the Eastern Division of Suffolk. It became a county constituency from the 1950 general election and was abolished for the 1983 general election, being replaced by the county constituency of Waveney.
It was more often won by the Conservative Party than not, although its representatives include two from the Liberal Party and one from the Labour Party.

## Boundaries and boundary changes
### 1885–1918

* The Borough of Southwold;
* The Sessional Divisions of Beccles, Bungay, Lothingland, and Mutford;
* Part of the Sessional Division of Blything; and
* The part of the Borough of Great Yarmouth in the county of Suffolk.
As Great Yarmouth formed a separate Parliamentary Borough, only non-resident freeholders of the Borough were entitled to vote in this constituency.
Throughout its existence, the Lowestoft constituency covered the North-Eastern corner of Suffolk and, although encompassing some rural areas, drew the majority of its voters from the towns of Lowestoft, a resort and fishing port, and Beccles; it also included the smaller towns of Bungay and Southwold, with its brewing interests. Southwold is now in the Suffolk Coastal constituency.
The constituency established in 1885, which was formally named The Northern or Lowestoft Division of Suffolk (and was sometimes referred to simply as "Suffolk North"), also included the town of Halesworth and the rural areas in between.

### 1918–1950

* The Boroughs of Beccles, Lowestoft, and Southwold;
* The Urban Districts of Bungay and Oulton Broad;
* The Rural Districts of Mutford and Lothingland, and Wangford; and
* The Rural District of Blything parishes of Benacre, Covehithe, Easton Bavents, Frostenden, Henstead, Reydon, South Cove, and Wrentham.
In the boundary changes of 1918, when the constituency became simply the "Lowestoft Division of East Suffolk" or East Suffolk, Lowestoft, Halesworth was transferred to the neighbouring Eye division.

### 1950–1983

* The Boroughs of Beccles, Lowestoft, and Southwold;
* The Urban Districts of Bungay and Halesworth; and
* The Rural Districts of Lothingland and Wainford.
At the 1950 general election, Halesworth was once more placed in the revised Lowestoft County Constituency, but it otherwise underwent only minor changes to reflect local government rationalisations. The boundaries were not altered in the boundary review implemented in 1974.
The constituency was revised in 1983 and renamed Waveney, as its new boundaries were now identical with those of the local government district of that name. The new constituency was very similar to the old Lowestoft one except a small area in the north, including Bradwell (comprising about 10,000 voters), which had been transferred from Suffolk to Norfolk as a result of the Local Government Act 1972, and was now transferred to the county constituency of Great Yarmouth.

### Current

The re-established constituency, which came into effect for the 2024 general election, is composed of the following wards of the District of East Suffolk (as they existed on 1 December 2020):
* Beccles & Worlingham; Carlton & Whitton; Carlton Colville; Gunton & St. Margarets; Harbour & Normanston; Kessingland; Kirkley & Pakefield; Lothingland; Oulton Broad.
The bulk of the existing Waveney seat, including Lowestoft, Somerleyton and Beccles, was included in the re-established seat, whereas Bungay and The Saints were transferred to the newly created constituency of Waveney Valley.

## Members of Parliament
### MPs 1885–1983

East Suffolk prior to 1885
| Election | Member | Party |
| 1885 | Sir Savile Crossley | Liberal |
| 1886 | Sir Savile Crossley | Liberal Unionist |
| 1892 | Harry Foster | Conservative |
| 1900 | Lt Colonel Francis Lucas | Conservative |
| 1906 | Edward Beauchamp | Liberal |
| 1910 (January) | Harry Foster | Conservative |
| 1910 (December) | Sir Edward Beauchamp | Liberal |
| 1918 | Sir Edward Beauchamp | Coalition Liberal |
| 1922 | Sir Gervais Rentoul | Conservative |
| 1934 by-election | Pierse Loftus | Conservative |
| 1945 | Edward Evans | Labour |
| 1959 | Jim Prior | Conservative |
| 1983 | constituency abolished, became Waveney | constituency abolished, became Waveney |

### MPs since 2024

Waveney prior to 2024
| Election | Election | Member | Party |
| | 2024 | Jess Asato | Labour |

## Elections
### Elections in the 2020s

General election 2024: Lowestoft :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Jess Asato | 14,464 | 34.6 | +6.4 |
| | Conservative | Peter Aldous* | 12,448 | 29.8 | −31.1 |
| | Reform UK | June Mummery | 10,328 | 24.7 | N/A |
| | Green | Toby Hammond | 3,095 | 7.4 | +2.2 |
| | Liberal Democrats | Adam Robertson | 1,489 | 3.6 | −1.5 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,016 | 4.8 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 41,824 | 56.3 | –5.1 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 74,332 | | |
| | Labour gain from Conservative | Labour gain from Conservative | Swing | 18.8 | |
* Incumbent MP for Waveney

### Elections in the 2010s

2019 notional result :
| Party | Party | Vote | % |
| | Conservative | 27,648 | 60.9 |
| | Labour | 12,798 | 28.2 |
| | Green | 2,362 | 5.2 |
| | Liberal Democrats | 2,333 | 5.1 |
| | Others | 245 | 0.5 |
| Turnout | Turnout | 45,386 | 61.4 |
| Electorate | Electorate | 73,967 |

## Election results 1885-1983
### Elections in the 1880s

General election 1885: Lowestoft :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal | Savile Crossley | 4,324 | 53.6 | |
| | Conservative | Heneage Bagot-Chester | 3,743 | 46.4 | |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 581 | 7.2 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 8,067 | 73.6 | |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 10,956 | | |
| | Liberal win (new seat) | Liberal win (new seat) | Liberal win (new seat) | Liberal win (new seat) | Liberal win (new seat) |
General election 1886: Lowestoft :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal Unionist | Savile Crossley | Unopposed | Unopposed | Unopposed |
| | Liberal Unionist gain from Liberal | Liberal Unionist gain from Liberal | Liberal Unionist gain from Liberal | Liberal Unionist gain from Liberal | Liberal Unionist gain from Liberal |

### Elections in the 1890s

General election 1892: Lowestoft :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Harry Foster | 5,099 | 56.6 | N/A |
| | Liberal | James Judd | 3,909 | 43.4 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,190 | 13.2 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 9,008 | 76.2 | N/A |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 11,827 | | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | N/A | |
General election 1895: Lowestoft :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Harry Foster | 5,199 | 57.6 | +1.0 |
| | Liberal | Alfred Sington | 3,820 | 42.4 | −1.0 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,379 | 15.2 | +2.0 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 9,019 | 74.2 | −2.0 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 12,153 | | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | +1.0 | |

### Elections in the 1900s

General election 1900: Lowestoft :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Francis Lucas | 5,077 | 60.3 | +2.7 |
| | Liberal | Adam Adams | 3,348 | 39.7 | −2.7 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,729 | 20.6 | +5.4 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 8,425 | 66.5 | −7.7 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 12,678 | | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | +2.7 | |
General election 1906: Lowestoft :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal | Edward Beauchamp | 6,510 | 57.0 | +17.3 |
| | Conservative | Francis Lucas | 4,905 | 43.0 | −17.3 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,605 | 14.0 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 11,415 | 81.5 | +15.0 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 14,002 | | |
| | Liberal gain from Conservative | Liberal gain from Conservative | Swing | +17.3 | |

### Elections in the 1910s

General election January 1910: Lowestoft :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Harry Foster | 6,530 | 50.9 | +7.9 |
| | Liberal | Edward Beauchamp | 6,294 | 49.1 | −7.9 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 236 | 1.8 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 12,824 | 85.0 | +3.5 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 15,084 | | |
| | Conservative gain from Liberal | Conservative gain from Liberal | Swing | +7.9 | |
General election December 1910: Lowestoft :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal | Edward Beauchamp | 6,248 | 51.1 | +2.0 |
| | Conservative | Harry Foster | 5,983 | 48.9 | −2.0 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 265 | 2.2 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 12,231 | 81.1 | −3.9 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 15,084 | | |
| | Liberal gain from Conservative | Liberal gain from Conservative | Swing | +2.0 | |
General Election 1914–15:
Another General Election was required to take place before the end of 1915. The political parties had been making preparations for an election to take place and by July 1914, the following candidates had been selected;
* Liberal: Edward Beauchamp
* Unionist:
General election 1918: Lowestoft :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| C | Liberal | Edward Beauchamp | Unopposed | Unopposed | Unopposed |
| | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Liberal hold |
| C indicates candidate endorsed by the coalition government. ||||||

### Elections in the 1920s

General election 1922: Lowestoft :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Unionist | Gervais Rentoul | 14,154 | 57.0 | New |
| | National Liberal | Brograve Beauchamp | 6,205 | 24.9 | N/A |
| | Labour | Robert Arthur Mellanby | 4,511 | 18.1 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 7,949 | 32.1 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 24,870 | 71.0 | N/A |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 35,012 | | |
| | Unionist gain from Liberal | Unionist gain from Liberal | Swing | N/A | |
General election 1923: Lowestoft :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Unionist | Gervais Rentoul | 11,103 | 45.8 | −11.2 |
| | Liberal | Frederick Paterson | 8,362 | 34.5 | +9.6 |
| | Labour | Robert Arthur Mellanby | 4,788 | 19.7 | +1.6 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,741 | 11.3 | −19.8 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 24,253 | 67.6 | −3.4 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 35,881 | | |
| | Unionist hold | Unionist hold | Swing | −10.4 | |
General election 1924: Lowestoft :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Unionist | Gervais Rentoul | 13,422 | 50.6 | +4.8 |
| | Labour | Robert Arthur Mellanby | 6,570 | 24.8 | +5.1 |
| | Liberal | Frederick Paterson | 6,532 | 24.6 | −9.9 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 6,852 | 25.8 | +14.5 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 26,524 | 73.0 | +5.4 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 36,321 | | |
| | Unionist hold | Unionist hold | Swing | −0.2 | |
General election 1929: Lowestoft :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Unionist | Gervais Rentoul | 13,624 | 39.8 | −10.8 |
| | Liberal | Albert Edward Owen-Jones | 10,707 | 31.3 | +6.7 |
| | Labour | Basil Hall | 9,903 | 28.9 | +4.1 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,917 | 8.5 | −17.3 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 34,234 | 84.8 | +11.8 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 46,359 | | |
| | Unionist hold | Unionist hold | Swing | −8.8 | |

### Elections in the 1930s

General election 1931: Lowestoft :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Gervais Rentoul | 22,886 | 67.8 | +28.0 |
| | Labour | E. J. C. Neep | 10,894 | 32.2 | +3.3 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 11,992 | 35.6 | +27.1 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 33,780 | | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |
1934 Lowestoft by-election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Pierse Loftus | 15,912 | 47.9 | −19.9 |
| | Labour | Reginald Sorensen | 13,992 | 42.1 | +9.8 |
| | Liberal | William Smith | 3,304 | 10.0 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,920 | 5.8 | −29.8 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 48,900 | 67.9 | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | −14.9 | |
General election 1935: Lowestoft :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Conservative | Pierse Loftus | 21,064 | 61.21 |
| | Labour | Frederick Wise | 13,348 | 38.79 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 7,716 | 22.42 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 34,412 | 69.00 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | |
General Election 1939–40: Another General Election was required to take place before the end of 1940. The political parties had been making preparations for an election to take place from 1939 and by the end of this year, the following candidates had been selected;
* Conservative: Pierse Loftus
* Labour: A D Belden
* Liberal:

### Elections in the 1940s

General election 1945: Lowestoft :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Edward Evans | 12,759 | 42.1 | +3.3 |
| | Conservative | Pierse Loftus | 10,996 | 36.3 | −24.9 |
| | Liberal | Matthew P Crosse | 6,545 | 21.6 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,763 | 5.8 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 44,679 | 67.8 | −1.2 |
| | Labour gain from Conservative | Labour gain from Conservative | Swing | | |

### Elections in the 1950s

General election 1950: Lowestoft :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Labour | Edward Evans | 20,838 | 44.83 |
| | Conservative | Philip Geoffrey Whitefoord | 17,516 | 37.68 |
| | Liberal | Ruth Crisp English | 8,132 | 17.49 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 3,322 | 7.15 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 55,456 | 83.83 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | |
General election 1951: Lowestoft :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Labour | Edward Evans | 23,591 | 50.91 |
| | Conservative | Alfred Henry Willetts | 22,744 | 49.09 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 847 | 1.82 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 56,582 | 81.89 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | |
General election 1955: Lowestoft :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Labour | Edward Evans | 23,587 | 52.12 |
| | Conservative | J T Griffiths | 21,672 | 47.88 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,915 | 4.24 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 56,850 | 79.61 |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Swing | |
General election 1959: Lowestoft :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | James Prior | 24,324 | 51.58 | |
| | Labour | Edward Evans | 22,835 | 48.42 | |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,489 | 3.16 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 49,653 | 64.4 | −15.2 |
| | Conservative gain from Labour | Conservative gain from Labour | Swing | −3.1 | |

### Elections in the 1960s

General election 1964: Lowestoft :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Conservative | Jim Prior | 23,976 | 47.80 |
| | Labour | Ronald Atkins | 21,272 | 42.41 |
| | Liberal | Charles Gordon A. Steele | 4,911 | 9.79 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,704 | 5.39 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 60,775 | 82.53 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | |
General election 1966: Lowestoft :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Conservative | Jim Prior | 24,063 | 46.03 |
| | Labour | Michael D Cornish | 23,705 | 45.34 |
| | Liberal | David R Crome | 4,513 | 8.63 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 358 | 0.69 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 62,881 | 83.14 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | |

### Elections in the 1970s

General election 1970: Lowestoft :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Conservative | Jim Prior | 28,842 | 50.69 |
| | Labour | Douglas A Baker | 23,319 | 40.98 |
| | Liberal | David R Crome | 4,737 | 8.33 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 5,523 | 9.71 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 72,320 | 78.68 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | |
General election February 1974: Lowestoft :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Conservative | Jim Prior | 26,157 | 40.89 |
| | Labour | Douglas A Baker | 22,553 | 35.26 |
| | Liberal | P Hancock | 15,261 | 23.86 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 3,604 | 5.63 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 76,350 | 83.79 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | |
General election October 1974: Lowestoft :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Conservative | Jim Prior | 25,510 | 42.43 |
| | Labour | Douglas A Baker | 23,448 | 39.00 |
| | Liberal | P Hancock | 11,165 | 18.57 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,062 | 3.43 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 76,936 | 78.15 |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | |
General election 1979: Lowestoft :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Jim Prior | 33,376 | 50.46 | |
| | Labour | Alan Lark | 25,555 | 38.63 | |
| | Liberal | Barrie Skelcher | 6,783 | 10.25 | |
| | Ecology | T Pye | 435 | 0.66 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 7,821 | 11.83 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 82,733 | 79.95 | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | | |