2004 West Lancashire District Council election
The 2004 West Lancashire District Council election took place on 10 June 2004 to elect members of West Lancashire District Council in Lancashire, England. One third of the council was up for election and the Conservative Party stayed in overall control of the council.[1]
After the election, the composition of the council was:
| Party | Seats | ± | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | 29 | +1 | |
| Labour | 25 | -1 | |
Campaign
Before the election the Conservatives held 28 seats compared to 26 for Labour.[3] 18 seats were contested in the election, with 9 seats being defended by each of the 2 parties.[3] As well as candidates from the Conservative and Labour parties, there were also 7 independents, 4 Greens, 1 Liberal Democrat and 1 from the new Ormskirk party.[4] Both the Liberal Democrat and Ormskirk party candidates were standing in Derby ward, which was seen as being one of the critical contests in the election.[4]
A major issue in the election was privatisation, which the Conservatives supported saying it would improve efficiency, however Labour criticised the Conservatives plans saying investment should be kept in the area.[3] The Conservatives called on voters to back their moves to establish litter free zones, create secure leisure facilities for young people and refurbish parks.[4] However Labour attacked plans to sell council housing and the handing of a local park to a private developer.[4] Other issues included crime, anti-social behaviour, CCTV and plans to move the accident and emergency department of Ormskirk hospital to Southport hospital.[5]
Election result
The results saw the Conservatives hold on to control of the council after making 1 gain from Labour.[6] This meant the Conservatives held 29 seats compared to 25 for Labour and the election was described as a "vindication of Conservative policies running West Lancs" by the Conservative leader of the council, Geoff Roberts.[6] Meanwhile, Labour's group leader on the council, Alan Bullen, only narrowly held his own seat on the council in Skelmersdale North.[6] Overall turnout in the election was up by 14% at 42.47%.[6]
| Party | Seats | Gains | Losses | Net gain/loss | Seats % | Votes % | Votes | +/− | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | 10 | 1 | 0 | +1 | 55.6 | 47.4 | 13,309 | +1.3% | |
| Labour | 8 | 0 | 1 | -1 | 44.4 | 36.9 | 10,346 | -3.0% | |
| Independent | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10.6 | 2,979 | -0.5% | |
| Green | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3.3 | 937 | +0.4% | |
| Ormskirk Party | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1.1 | 298 | +1.1% | |
| Liberal Democrats | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.7 | 190 | +0.7% | |
Ward results
Ashurst
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Donna Duffy | 911 | 57.4 | +4.3 | |
| Independent | Patrick McElhinney | 347 | 21.9 | −7.6 | |
| Conservative | David Meadows | 330 | 20.8 | +3.4 | |
| Majority | 564 | 35.5 | +11.9 | ||
| Turnout | 1,588 | 33.4 | +14.7 | ||
| Labour hold | Swing | ||||
Aughton and Downholland
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Una Atherley | 1,725 | 77.4 | +16.7 | |
| Labour | David McKay | 503 | 22.6 | −16.7 | |
| Majority | 1,222 | 54.8 | +33.4 | ||
| Turnout | 2,228 | 49.4 | +15.4 | ||
| Conservative hold | Swing | ||||
Birch Green
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Mary Pendleton | 676 | 81.0 | −3.6 | |
| Conservative | Susan Cropper | 159 | 19.0 | +3.6 | |
| Majority | 517 | 62.0 | −7.2 | ||
| Turnout | 835 | 27.8 | +14.9 | ||
| Labour hold | Swing | ||||
Burscough
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Florence Westley | 900 | 60.6 | ||
| Labour | Anne Carter | 584 | 39.4 | ||
| Majority | 316 | 21.2 | |||
| Turnout | 1,484 | 49.7 | |||
| Conservative hold | Swing | ||||
Burscough West
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Cynthia Dereli | 832 | 52.2 | ||
| Conservative | Graham Jones | 763 | 47.8 | ||
| Majority | 69 | 4.4 | |||
| Turnout | 1,595 | 41.6 | |||
| Labour hold | Swing | ||||
Derby
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Adrian Owens | 987 | 45.5 | −2.0 | |
| Labour | Alan Williams | 550 | 25.3 | −16.3 | |
| Ormskirk Party | Margaret Heslegrave | 298 | 13.7 | +13.7 | |
| Liberal Democrats | Julian Reid | 190 | 8.8 | +8.8 | |
| Green | Anne Doyle | 146 | 6.7 | −4.1 | |
| Majority | 437 | 20.2 | +14.3 | ||
| Turnout | 2,171 | 47.0 | +18.8 | ||
| Conservative hold | Swing | ||||
Digmoor
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Terence Aldridge | 710 | 72.9 | −2.6 | |
| Independent | Alan Spears | 147 | 15.1 | +0.9 | |
| Conservative | Irene O'Donnell | 117 | 12.0 | +1.7 | |
| Majority | 563 | 57.8 | −3.5 | ||
| Turnout | 974 | 31.0 | +14.6 | ||
| Labour hold | Swing | ||||
Halsall
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Doreen Stephenson | 459 | 55.4 | −18.4 | |
| Independent | Raymond Brookfield | 370 | 44.6 | +44.6 | |
| Majority | 89 | 10.8 | −36.8 | ||
| Turnout | 829 | 47.0 | |||
| Conservative hold | Swing | ||||
Hesketh-with-Becconsall
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Martin Forshaw | 820 | 63.8 | ||
| Independent | Nadine Ashcroft | 466 | 36.2 | ||
| Majority | 354 | 27.6 | |||
| Turnout | 1,286 | 42.8 | |||
| Conservative hold | Swing | ||||
Knowsley
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Peter Lea | 1,360 | 61.4 | +4.8 | |
| Labour | Francis Williams | 652 | 29.4 | −2.8 | |
| Green | John Watt | 204 | 9.2 | −2.0 | |
| Majority | 708 | 32.0 | +7.6 | ||
| Turnout | 2,216 | 49.2 | +20.8 | ||
| Conservative hold | Swing | ||||
Moorside
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Stephen Hanlon | 664 | 82.3 | ||
| Conservative | Malcolm Barron | 143 | 17.7 | ||
| Majority | 521 | 64.6 | |||
| Turnout | 807 | 29.2 | |||
| Labour hold | Swing | ||||
Rufford
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Joan Colling | 609 | 77.7 | +2.4 | |
| Labour | Shan Annis | 175 | 22.3 | −2.4 | |
| Majority | 434 | 55.4 | +4.8 | ||
| Turnout | 784 | 47.3 | |||
| Conservative hold | Swing | ||||
Scott
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Cyril Ainscough | 1,044 | 48.1 | +10.4 | |
| Labour | Noel Delaney | 820 | 37.8 | −0.5 | |
| Green | Maurice George | 305 | 14.1 | +4.6 | |
| Majority | 224 | 10.3 | |||
| Turnout | 2,169 | 47.0 | +14.5 | ||
| Conservative gain from Labour | Swing | ||||
Skelmersdale North
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Alan Bullen | 531 | 45.7 | −15.4 | |
| Independent | Joan Morrison | 473 | 40.7 | +14.2 | |
| Conservative | Joan Witter | 157 | 13.5 | +1.0 | |
| Majority | 58 | 5.0 | −29.6 | ||
| Turnout | 1,161 | 37.4 | +13.9 | ||
| Labour hold | Swing | ||||
Skelmersdale South
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Sydney Jones | 1,077 | 63.6 | −10.2 | |
| Conservative | Richard Shepherd | 334 | 19.7 | +5.5 | |
| Green | Martin Lowe | 282 | 16.7 | +4.7 | |
| Majority | 743 | 43.9 | −15.7 | ||
| Turnout | 1,693 | 33.9 | +15.3 | ||
| Labour hold | Swing | ||||
Tarleton
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | John Mee | 1,431 | 63.9 | +4.6 | |
| Independent | John Hodson | 810 | 36.1 | −4.6 | |
| Majority | 621 | 27.8 | +9.2 | ||
| Turnout | 2,241 | 50.5 | +13.5 | ||
| Conservative hold | Swing | ||||
Up Holland
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Margaret Skilling | 1,066 | 48.0 | −7.2 | |
| Conservative | Ruth Pollock | 787 | 35.5 | −9.3 | |
| Independent | Karen Horrocks | 366 | 16.5 | +16.5 | |
| Majority | 279 | 12.5 | +2.1 | ||
| Turnout | 2,219 | 45.2 | +14.9 | ||
| Labour hold | Swing | ||||
Wrightington
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Peter Gartside | 1,184 | 66.6 | +17.4 | |
| Labour | Pauline Bailey | 595 | 33.4 | −17.4 | |
| Majority | 589 | 33.2 | |||
| Turnout | 1,779 | 52.7 | +15.5 | ||
| Conservative hold | Swing | ||||
References
- ^ "West Lancashire council". BBC News Online. Retrieved 18 December 2009.
- ^ "Elections 2004: Election results". The Independent. 11 June 2004. p. 4.
- ^ a b c "Elections 2004: West Lancs". Liverpool Daily Post. 13 May 2004. p. 15.
- ^ a b c d "Labour battles to seize back West Lancs from Tories". Liverpool Daily Post. 28 May 2004. p. 17.
- ^ Murton, Nick (25 May 2004). "Vote 2004: Vital Issues for families; Nick Murton canvasses opinion from people in West Lancashire and Halton in the days leading up to the local elections". Liverpool Echo. p. 10.
- ^ a b c d "Vote 2004: West Lancs". Liverpool Echo. 11 June 2004. p. 11.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s "Election results - 10 Jun 2004". Political Science Resources. Archived from the original on 31 May 2012. Retrieved 15 April 2010.
- ^ "Ballot box". The Times. 12 June 2004. p. 26.
