Motherwell (UK Parliament constituency)

Motherwell was a burgh constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1918-1974. It was formed by the division of Lanarkshire. The name was changed in 1974 to Motherwell and Wishaw. It is famous for returning the first-ever SNP MP (Robert McIntyre in 1945) and arguably the first Communist Party MP (Walton Newbold in 1922).

Motherwell
Former Burgh constituency
for the House of Commons
Major settlementsMotherwell, Wishaw
1918–1974 (1974)
Number of membersOne
Replaced byMotherwell and Wishaw
Created fromNorth East Lanarkshire

Boundaries

From 1918 the constituency consisted of "The burghs of Motherwell and Wishaw, together with the part of the Middle Ward County District which is contained within the extraburghal portion of the parish of Dalziel."

Members of Parliament
ElectionMember Party
1918Robert NelsonUnionist
1922Walton NewboldCommunist
1923Hugh FergusonUnionist
1924James BarrLabour
1931Thomas OrmistonUnionist
1935James WalkerLabour
1945, AprilRobert McIntyreSNP
1945, JulyAlexander AndersonLabour
1954George LawsonLabour
1974, Feb. constituency renamed: see Motherwell and Wishaw

Election results

Elections in the 1970s
General election 1970: Motherwell
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour George Lawson 20,683 53.2 -7.6
Conservative S. Bell 12,509 32.2 -3.0
SNP Isobel Lindsay 3,861 9.9 New
Communist James Sneddon 1,829 4.7 +0.6
Majority 8,174 21.0 -4.6
Turnout 38,882 73.5 -0.9
Labour hold Swing

Elections in the 1960s
General election 1966: Motherwell
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour George Lawson 22,658 60.8 +2.1
Conservative John Joseph Young 13,100 35.2 -2.1
Communist James Sneddon 1,508 4.1 +0.1
Majority 9,558 25.6 +4.2
Turnout 37,266 74.4 -4.5
Labour hold Swing
General election 1964: Motherwell[1]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour George Lawson 23,281 58.7 +5.0
Unionist John Joseph Young 14,789 37.3 -5.7
Communist James Sneddon 1,565 4.0 New
Majority 8,492 21.4 +10.7
Turnout 39,635 78.9 -2.2
Labour hold Swing

Elections in the 1950s
General election 1959: Motherwell[2]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour George Lawson 22,009 53.7 -0.2
Unionist Bernard Brogan 17,613 43.0 -3.1
Independent David Murray 1,331 3.3 New
Majority 4,396 10.7 +3.0
Turnout 40,953 81.1 +4.6
Labour hold Swing
General election 1955: Motherwell
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour George Lawson 20,147 53.9 -3.4
Unionist Michael Hutchison 17,262 46.1 +3.3
Majority 2,885 7.7 -6.8
Turnout 37,409 76.5 -8.2
Labour hold Swing
1954 Motherwell by-election
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour George Lawson 19,163 56.4 -0.9
National Liberal and Conservative Norman A Sloan 13,334 39.3 -3.5
Communist John Gollan 1,457 4.3 New
Majority 5,829 17.2 +2.7
Turnout 33,954
Labour hold Swing
General election 1951: Motherwell[3]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Alexander Anderson 23,641 57.3 +3.1
National Liberal and Conservative Norman A Sloan 17,650 42.8 +8.8
Majority 5,991 14.5 -2.7
Turnout 41,291 84.7 +0.2
Labour hold Swing
General election 1950: Motherwell
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Alexander Anderson 22,608 54.2 +1.5
National Liberal and Conservative A. Robertson 14,183 34.0 +13.4
SNP Robert McIntyre 3,892 9.3 New
Communist R. Henderson 1,007 2.4 New
Majority 8,425 20.2 -5.8
Turnout 41,690 84.5 +11.7
Labour hold Swing

Elections in the 1940s
General election 1945: Motherwell
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Alexander Anderson 15,831 52.7 +2.0
SNP Robert McIntyre 8,022 26.7 N/A
Unionist J. H. Hamilton 6,197 20.6 -28.7
Majority 7,809 26.0 +24.6
Turnout 30,050 72.8 -3.1
Labour hold Swing
1945 Motherwell by-election
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
SNP Robert McIntyre 11,417 51.4 New
Labour Alexander Anderson 10,800 48.6 -1.9
Majority 617 2.8 N/A
Turnout 22,217 54.0 -22.9
SNP gain from Labour Swing

Elections in the 1930s
General election 1935: Motherwell [4]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour James Walker 14,755 50.7 +2.0
Unionist Thomas Ormiston 14,325 49.3 -2.0
Majority 430 1.4 N/A
Turnout 29,080 75.9 -6.5
Labour gain from Unionist Swing
General election 1931: Motherwell[5]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Unionist Thomas Ormiston 15,513 51.3 +25.2
Labour James Barr 14,714 48.7 -8.3
Majority 799 2.6 N/A
Turnout 30,227 82.4 +2.8
Unionist gain from Labour Swing

Elections in the 1920s
General election 1929: Motherwell
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour James Barr 16,650 58.0 +5.9
Unionist John Ford 7,502 26.1 −21.8
Liberal Henry Archibald 3,597 12.5 New
Communist Isabel Brown 984 3.4 New
Majority 9,148 31.9 +27.6
Turnout 28,733 79.6 −2.7
Registered electors 36,094
Labour hold Swing +13.9
General election 1924: Motherwell
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour James Barr 12,816 52.1 New
Unionist Hugh Ferguson 11,776 47.9 +5.9
Majority 1,040 4.2 N/A
Turnout 24,592 82.3 +4.9
Registered electors 29,871
Labour gain from Unionist Swing N/A
General election 1923: Motherwell
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Unionist Hugh Ferguson 9,793 42.0 New
Communist Walton Newbold 8,712 37.4 +4.1
Liberal John Maxwell 4,799 20.6 −1.0
Majority 1,081 4.6 N/A
Turnout 23,304 77.4 −4.1
Registered electors 30,109
Unionist gain from Communist Swing N/A
General election 1922: Motherwell
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Communist Walton Newbold 8,262 33.3 New
Independent Unionist Hugh Ferguson* 7,214 29.1 +18.3
Liberal John Maxwell 5,359 21.6 −5.2
National Liberal John Colville 3,966 16.0 New
Majority 1,048 10.2 N/A
Turnout 24,801 81.5 +17.3
Registered electors 30,443
Communist gain from Unionist Swing N/A

* Ferguson was associated with the Grand Orange Lodge of Scotland movement in Lanarkshire.

Elections in the 1910s
General election 1918: Motherwell [6]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
C Unionist Robert Nelson 6,972 39.0
Liberal James Duncan Millar 4,817 27.0
Labour Walton Newbold 4,135 23.2
Independent Unionist Hugh Ferguson* 1,923 10.8
Majority 2,155 12.0
Turnout 17,847 64.2
Registered electors 27,816
Unionist win (new seat)
C indicates candidate endorsed by the coalition government.

* Ferguson was associated with the Grand Orange Lodge of Scotland movement in Lanarkshire.

References
  3. The Times' Guide to the House of Commons. 1951.
  4. Whitaker's Almanack, 1939
  5. Whitaker's Almanack, 1934
  6. Whitaker's Almanack, 1920

See also
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