|
1997 Result:
|
|
Baker, Norman
|
LibDem
|
21,250
|
43.20%
|
|
Rathbone, Tim
|
Con
|
19,950
|
40.60%
|
|
Patton, Mark
|
Lab
|
5,232
|
10.60%
|
|
Butler, Lucille
|
Ref
|
2,481
|
5.00%
|
|
Harvey, John
|
UKIP
|
256
|
0.50%
|
|
Majority
|
1,300
|
|
|
7.4% swing from Con to LibDem
|
|
1992 Notional
Result:
|
|
|
Con
|
26,638
|
51.34%
|
|
|
LibDem
|
20,301
|
39.13%
|
|
|
Lab
|
4,270
|
8.23%
|
|
|
Others
|
677
|
1.3%
|
Notional Majority
|
6,337
|
12.21%
|
|
|
Description:
|
For nearly fifty years until 1974 the MP was a member of the Beamish family. Father until 1945 and then son, Sir Tufton Beamish until he made way for Tim Rathbone in February 1974. The picturesque town of Lewes is small but politically important - it is home to the headquarters of the county council and a Crown Court. It also houses a Norman castle. Newhaven, a thriving port, is the constituency's other main town. Seaford was a Cinque Port and before the 1832 Reform Act a notorious "rotten borough" returning 2 MPs. Representatives included William Pitt, Earl of Chatham and William Canning, both former Prime Ministers. In the shadow of the South Downs to the north west is the famous village of Ditchling with a medieval church set on the Green, timbered Tudor cottages, Georgian homes and a pond. Near the Brighton border is the village of Kingston where there has been some extensive residential development in recent years. Ringmer is another village that has been developed for residential housing. It is now the home for 5,000 and has quadrupled in size during the 20th century, although its historic town centre has been preserved. Many commute to jobs in London or Brighton from here. Large companies based in the constituency include Parker Pens and Christian Dior at Newhaven and Boehringer Mannheim at Lewes.
|