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Hartlepool constituency | |||
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Location of Hartlepool within former Cleveland | |||
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The 2021 Hartlepool by-election is a by-election to be held in the UK parliamentary constituency of Hartlepool following the resignation of the sitting Member of Parliament (MP), Mike Hill. It will be held on 6 May 2021 alongside local elections.[1]
The by-election would be the second to the 58th Parliament, which was elected in 2019.[2]
Background
Constituency
Hartlepool, named after the town of the same name, has been a safe seat for the Labour Party, being held by them since 1964. The seat includes the town of Hartlepool itself and the nearby villages of Hart, Elwick, Greatham, Newton Bewley and Dalton Piercy.
In the 2016 European Union membership referendum, the Hartlepool Council area, which covers the same area as the constituency, voted 69.6% to 30.4% to leave the European Union.[3]
History
Former MPs have included Royal Navy officer John Kerans and former cabinet minister Peter Mandelson.[4]
The 2004 by-election saw a huge swing to the Liberal Democrats, while the UK Independence Party came in a close second place at the 2015 general election.
Hill is due to face an employment tribunal later in the year following allegations of sexual harassment and victimisation.[2] Hill was suspended from the Labour Party in September 2019 over allegations of sexual harassment but reinstated in October 2019.[5] In January 2020 Hill's request for anonymity was turned down in an upcoming employment tribunal related to the accusations. The alleged victim stated that she had also made a report to the Metropolitan Police at the time of the original accusations.[6] On 16 March 2021, Hill announced his resignation with immediate effect.[2]
Candidates and timetable
NHS doctor and former MP Paul Williams was selected on 18 March as the Labour candidate.[7] Williams represented the nearby constituency of Stockton South but lost his seat in the 2019 election.[8] He had been standing for the position of Cleveland Police and Crime Commissioner, to be elected in May 2021.[9]
On 17 March, the Northern Independence Party announced their intention to contest the by-election, which would see them field their first parliamentary candidate.[10] Also on 17 March, the UK Independence Party (UKIP) announced their intention to stand a candidate as well.[11]
On 18 March, Reform UK Leader Richard Tice, who contested the seat in 2019, told LBC Radio of his party's intention to stand a candidate, with himself or "some of our other Reform UK supporters and people" as candidate.[12]
On 20 March, the Social Democratic Party announced that they intend to stand in the by-election.[13]
Also on 22 March, Gemma Evans from the Women's Equality Party expressed her intention to stand.[14] Then on 24 March, the North East Party announced that former Labour MP and founding party member Hilton Dawson would be their candidate for the by-election.[15]
The following candidates and parties have announced their intentions to stand:
style="width: 2px; background-color: #0087DC;" data-sort-value="Conservative Party (UK)" | style="width: 2px; background-color: #E4003B;" data-sort-value="Labour Party (UK)" | style="width: 2px; background-color: #6D3177;" data-sort-value="United Kingdom Independence Party" | style="width: 2px; background-color: #800000;" data-sort-value="North East Party" | style="width: 2px; background-color: #D25469;" data-sort-value="Social Democratic Party (UK, 1990–present)" | style="width: 2px; background-color: #9E1C34;" data-sort-value="Northern Independence Party" | style="width: 2px; background-color: #432360;" data-sort-value="Women's Equality Party" | style="width: 2px; background-color: #12B6CF;" data-sort-value="Reform UK" |Party | Proposed candidate | |
---|---|---|
Conservative | TBA | |
Labour | Paul Williams | |
UKIP | TBA | |
North East | Hilton Dawson | |
SDP | TBA | |
NIP | TBA | |
Women's Equality | Gemma Evans | |
Reform UK | TBA |
Campaign
Paul Williams was labelled a parachute candidate and criticised for his pro-EU record in a constituency that voted to leave the European Union by an estimated 70%.[16] During the by-election campaign, he apologised for previously posting a tweet using the term "Tory MILFs" in 2011.[17] He was defended by the Labour Party leader, Keir Starmer, while Labour peer and former shadow Attorney General Shami Chakrabarti called for him to be replaced "immediately".[18]
2019 result
Mike Hill held the seat on a reduced majority at the previous election.
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Labour | Mike Hill | 15,464 | 37.7 | 14.8 | |
Conservative | Stefan Houghton | 11,869 | 28.9 | 5.3 | |
Brexit Party | Richard Tice | 10,603 | 25.8 | New | |
Liberal Democrats | Andy Hagon | 1,696 | 4.1 | 2.3 | |
Independent | Joe Bousfield | 911 | 2.2 | New | |
Socialist Labour | Kevin Cranney | 494 | 1.2 | New | |
Majority | 3,595 | 8.8 | 9.5 | ||
Turnout | 41,037 | 57.9 | 1.3 | ||
Labour hold | Swing | 4.8 |
See also
References
- ^ Rodgers, Sienna (16 March 2021). "Mike Hill quits as Labour MP for Hartlepool with immediate effect". LabourList. Retrieved 16 March 2021.
- ^ a b c "Mike Hill: Hartlepool MP quits 'with immediate effect'". BBC News. 16 March 2021. Retrieved 16 March 2021.
- ^ Singh, Matt [@MattSingh_] (16 March 2021). "#Hartlepoolbyelection fun fact: The seat is coterminous with the council area, so we know the exact EU referendum result (69.56833% Leave 30.43167% Remain)" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
- ^ Anderson, Katie (17 March 2021). "From war hero to 'Prince of darkness': Hartlepool MPs timeline". TeessideLive. Retrieved 19 March 2021.
- ^ Press Association (22 September 2019). "Labour MP Mike Hill suspended over claims of sexual harassment". The Guardian. Retrieved 22 September 2019.
- ^ Quinn, Ben (22 January 2020). "Labour MP accused of sexual assault fails in anonymity bid". The Guardian. Retrieved 22 January 2020.
- ^ Labour North [@LabourNorth] (18 March 2021). "Congratulations to Dr Paul Williams, Labour's candidate for Hartlepool" (Tweet). Retrieved 18 March 2021 – via Twitter.
- ^ Blackburne, Elaine (18 March 2021). "Former MP Dr Paul Williams will fight for Labour in by-election". TeessideLive. Retrieved 18 March 2021.
- ^ "Labour unveils ex-Stockton South MP for Hartlepool seat". 18 March 2021 – via www.bbc.co.uk.
- ^ "North of England independence party to stand in Hartlepool by-election". Nation.Cymru. 16 March 2021. Retrieved 16 March 2021.
- ^ "UKIP To Contest Hartlepool Seat After Labour MP Stands Down". politicalite. 17 March 2021. Retrieved 24 March 2021.
- ^ McNulty, Tim (18 March 2021). "Richard Tice 'actively considering' Reform UK run in Hartlepool by-election". Daily Express. Retrieved 25 March 2021.
- ^ Ledwith, Gavin (20 March 2021). "'Together we will break the stranglehold of the two-party system' says latest party to join by-election battle". The Hartlepool Mail. Retrieved 20 March 2021.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ Tidman, Zoe (22 March 2021). "'We can't let politicians get away with inaction': Hartlepool by-election candidate demands action on tackling violence against women and girls". The Independent. Retrieved 23 March 2021.
- ^ "North East Party reveals Hilton Dawson as Hartlepool By-Election Candidate". Sunderland Global Media. 24 March 2021. Retrieved 24 March 2021.
- ^ Proctor, Kate (17 March 2021). "Labour Accused Of A Candidate 'Stitch-Up' Over Hartlepool By-Election Timetable". Politics Home. Retrieved 18 March 2021.
- ^ "Paul Williams: Labour candidate sorry for 'inappropriate' tweet". 21 March 2021 – via www.bbc.com.
- ^ Sleigh, Sophia (22 March 2021). "Starmer defends Hartlepool candidate after 'inappropriate' comment". www.standard.co.uk. Retrieved 22 March 2021.
- ^ "Hartlepool Parliamentary constituency". BBC News. BBC. Retrieved 24 November 2019.