Lab held for 5 consecutive elections.
MP News Approval i
-18
Josh Simons
Labour PartyJosh Simons is the Labour MP for Makerfield, and has been an MP continually since 4 July 2024.
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Sign up freeCoverage of Makerfield has been mixed for Josh across 40 recent articles.
Positive coverage
“Council chief urges govt to pay for illegal waste dump clean up” — St Helens Star
“Wiganers in these two areas will help shape their futures” — Manchester Evening News
Critical coverage
“The Fraud author Paul Holden returns fire over BBC laundering of disgraced Labour MP” — The Canary
“BBC slammed by journalist targeted in Labour Together 'spying' scandal” — The National
Represented by Lab since 2024. Covers Hindley, Wigan and Ashton-in-Makerfield. Population 114,929. Recorded crime is 99% below the national average.
Wigan council leader David Molyneux to step down
Manchester Evening News · 9 Apr 2026
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Sign up freeMedian Income▼
£26,200
per year (HMRC 2022-23)
Mean Income▼
£30,900
per year (HMRC 2022-23)
Businesses▼
2,415
VAT/PAYE registered (ONS 2024)
Schools▼
52
33 primary, 7 secondary, 12 other
Total Income Tax▼
£207m
from 54,000 taxpayers
Median Tax▼
£2,380
per taxpayer / year
Mean Tax
£3,790
per taxpayer / year
Source: HMRC Survey of Personal Incomes, tax year 2022-23. Allocated by taxpayer residence. Covers income tax only — excludes NI, VAT, and capital gains. Sample-based estimate (~8% confidence interval).
Attainment 8▼
41.4
average score (DfE)
GCSE Pass Rate▼
58.2%
5+ GCSEs 9-4 (DfE)
1 city, 3 large towns, 3 towns, 3 villages, rural areas — 102,434 total population
Source: ONS Built-Up Areas (Census 2021) + data.police.uk — crime rates are per 1,000 population (last 3 months)
Source: data.police.uk — street-level crime data aggregated from LSOA to constituency
9 councillors across 9 wards · Last elections: May 2024
| Ward | Party | Councillor | Elected |
|---|---|---|---|
| Abram | Labour Party | Nazia Tabussam Rehman | May 2024 |
| Ashton In Makerfield South | Labour Party | Andrew John Bullen | May 2024 |
| Bryn With Ashton In Makerfield North | Independent Berwick Hills Resident | Scarlett Myler | May 2024 |
| Golborne Lowton West | Labour Party | Susan Gambles | May 2024 |
| Hindley Green | Labour Party | James Palmer | May 2024 |
| Leigh West | Labour Party | Sue Greensmith | May 2024 |
| Orrell | Labour Party | Anne Collins | May 2024 |
| Winstanley | Labour Party | Clive William Morgan | May 2024 |
| Worsley Mesnes | Labour Party | Paul David James Molyneux | May 2024 |
Source: DCLEAPIL v1.0 by Jason Leman, LEAP (Andrew Teale) & Democracy Club. CC BY-SA 4.0. Data last refreshed: 1 Apr 2026.
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lab | 18,202 | 45.2% | |
| Ref | 12,803 | 31.8% | |
| Con | 4,379 | 10.9% | |
| LD | 2,735 | 6.8% | |
| Green | 1,776 | 4.4% | |
| Ind | 368 | 0.9% |
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
✓ Won 2017 GEWon 2015 GEWon 2010 GE | Lab | 19,954 | 45.1% |
| Con | 15,214 | 34.4% | |
| Ind | 5,817 | 13.1% | |
| LD | 2,108 | 4.8% | |
| Green | 1,166 | 2.6% |
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
✓ Won 2019 GEWon 2015 GEWon 2010 GE | Lab | 28,245 | 60.2% |
| Con | 14,703 | 31.3% | |
| Ind | 2,663 | 5.7% | |
| LD | 1,322 | 2.8% |
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
✓ Won 2019 GEWon 2017 GEWon 2010 GE | Lab | 23,208 | 51.8% |
| Ind | 10,053 | 22.4% | |
| Con | 8,752 | 19.5% | |
| LD | 1,639 | 3.7% | |
| Green | 1,136 | 2.5% |
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
✓ Won 2019 GEWon 2017 GEWon 2015 GE | Lab | 20,700 | 47.3% |
| Con | 8,210 | 18.8% | |
| LD | 7,082 | 16.2% | |
| Ind | 3,424 | 7.8% | |
| Ind | 3,229 | 7.4% | |
| Ind | 1,126 | 2.6% |
Josh Simons has not appeared in national political news coverage tracked by our system. This is common for backbench MPs who focus on constituency-level work rather than national policy debates.
12 articles hidden as not sufficiently relevant to this constituency
Wigan council leader David Molyneux, who has served as a councillor for Ince ward for 44 years, is stepping down after announcing his retirement from politics due to health and family reasons. He will not contest the upcoming local elections, ending his tenure as council leader which began in May 2018.
Residents in Wigan, including Nicha Rowson, are suffering severe health and quality-of-life impacts from a 25,000-tonne illegal waste dump on Bolton House Road in Bickershaw that has attracted rats, foul odours, and fires since October 2024. The Government has announced it will fund clearance, but residents remain in distress while awaiting action, with Rowson's youngest son displaced due to sensory sensitivities and the community facing falling house prices and mental health strain.
A £50m proposal to transform Haigh Hall into a mixed-use cultural venue with art galleries, restaurants, wedding facilities, and a rooftop bar will be decided by Wigan council's planning committee within a week. The project is funded through levelling up grants, lottery funding, and council capital, though heritage groups have raised concerns about the rooftop extension's impact on the building's historic character.
Wigan Council is set to approve a £45m restoration of Haigh Hall, a grade II* listed building, into a mixed-use cultural venue with galleries, accommodation, and dining facilities. The project, described as 'nationally significant', has received support from Historic England but faces objections from heritage groups concerned about sympathetic conversion.
The Trawlerman chippy on Woodhouse Drive in Wigan suffered a devastating fire on Good Friday when a deep fat fryer caught fire during the busiest trading day of the year. All customers and staff were safely evacuated, and firefighters quickly extinguished the blaze, but the business suffered significant damage and now faces a period of rebuilding.
Wigan Council has expanded its brown bin recycling programme from today, allowing residents to recycle six additional categories of items alongside glass, cans, and plastic bottles. The change follows the council's appointment of HW Martin Waste as the new recycling operator and aims to improve declining recycling rates in the borough.
The historic 300-year-old Stork Inn in Billinge is being converted into 26 affordable social housing apartments by Torus housing association, with £7m invested including government funding. The Grade II* listed building and adjacent new construction will provide affordable homes while preserving the pub's historical and architectural significance.
Wigan and Leigh Police have issued a public appeal to locate the next of kin of Anne Scotson, a Leigh resident who has passed away. There are no suspicious circumstances, and the appeal aims to help process her affairs properly.
A 27-year-old man from Wigan was charged with stealing over £12,000 worth of weight-loss injections (Mounjaro) from his employer but failed to appear in court, resulting in a warrant for his arrest. The case highlights broader concerns about theft and illegal distribution of the increasingly popular weight-loss drug in the UK.
The Met Office has issued an 18-hour yellow weather warning for very strong winds across large parts of the UK over Easter bank holiday weekend, including parts of Wigan and Bolton boroughs in Greater Manchester. Gusts of up to 41mph are forecast for Wigan on Saturday night, with potential travel disruption and damage.
Wigan Council is recruiting neighbourhood board chairs for two areas—Platt Bridge and Spring View, and Marsh Green and Laithwaite—which have each been awarded £20m in Pride in Place funding over 10 years. The chairs will lead community-shaped regeneration and ensure spending priorities reflect local needs and aspirations.
George Monbiot reports that illegal waste dumping has become a major 'growth industry' in the UK, with 8,000-13,000 illegal waste sites across the country due to sustained cuts to regulatory funding and enforcement. The article highlights cases like Bickershaw near Wigan, where a 25,000-tonne illegal tip forced school closures and caused severe local damage, illustrating how underfunded authorities fail to prevent or stop ongoing dumping.
A 25-year-old plasterer from Wigan was jailed for two years and nine months for drug dealing after turning to cocaine following a relationship breakdown. The case highlights how quickly involvement with drugs can escalate into serious criminal activity and violence.
A 22-year-old Heinz factory worker from Wigan was jailed for three years for running a county lines drug supply operation involving heroin and crack cocaine. The case highlights local crime issues and the circumstances that led a young man from a deprived background to criminal activity.
The BBC has appointed Matt Brittin, a former Google executive with no journalism background, as its new director-general. The article criticizes this appointment and highlights controversy over the BBC's interview with Josh Simons (ex-Cabinet Office minister) regarding a Labour think tank 'spying' scandal, where journalist Paul Holden was not given right of reply despite being criticized.
Paul Holden, an investigative journalist whose work was subject to a PR firm investigation commissioned by then-Cabinet Minister Josh Simons, has criticised the BBC for giving Simons a 40-minute podcast interview without approaching Holden for comment or right of reply. Holden alleges the BBC failed basic journalistic standards by allowing Simons to make unchallenged claims about him, including false allegations about hacked Electoral Commission data, and threatens to escalate to Ofcom if corrections are not made.
A letters page featuring multiple reader contributions on topics including an anti-racist brass band concert in St Helens, book banning in a Greater Manchester school, civil service pension administration failures by Capita, and the role of art in social change. The St Helens concert is highlighted as evidence countering stereotypes about racism in post-industrial towns.
Knowsley Council's leader is urging the government to fund the cleanup of a massive 30,000-tonne illegal waste dump found near Kirkby on the M57, citing precedents where government has funded similar cleanups in other areas. The council is also dealing with persistent waste issues at local industrial estates and welcomes increased Environment Agency enforcement powers.
Josh Simons, MP for Makerfield, has explained that concerns about a book downplaying Labour's antisemitism crisis motivated his decision to hire PR firm APCO Worldwide, which ultimately led to his resignation as a Cabinet Office minister in February 2026. The investigation commissioned by Labour Together went beyond his stated intentions and included inappropriate personal information about journalists, resulting in his departure from government despite being cleared of breaching the Ministerial Code.
Wigan Council and Northern Heart Films are launching paid runner roles and work experience placements in film production for young people aged 16-30 in Leigh. The opportunities are funded through the council's Filming Fund, generated from revenue of a BBC drama filmed at Leigh Town Hall, and build on the success of earlier filmmaking bootcamps.
Josh Simons, the current MP for Makerfield, resigned from his Government role after it emerged he hired a PR firm to conduct surveillance on journalists investigating Labour Together, a think tank he directed. A targeted journalist has criticized the BBC for giving Simons airtime to defend himself without offering the journalists involved a right of reply.
A two-car crash at the junction of Netherton Way and Bridle Road in Bootle caused temporary road closures early on Monday morning, with no serious injuries reported. Emergency services attended and cleared the scene, with minimal disruption to the area.
Labour MPs, including Liverpool West Derby's Ian Byrne, have submitted Subject Access Requests to Labour Together think tank over concerns they were monitored by the organisation. Josh Simons, now Makerfield's MP, was forced to resign as Cabinet Office minister after it was revealed he headed the think tank when it commissioned a controversial report investigating journalists' backgrounds.
This article criticises BBC journalist Laura Kuenssberg for what the author characterises as sympathetically framing Josh Simons's resignation from his Cabinet Office minister role. Simons resigned over his involvement in a spying operation on journalists, but Kuenssberg allegedly suggested he was merely 'naive', which Simons then claimed as his own characterisation.
Police conducted a road safety operation on Wigan Road in Deane and St Helens Road in Daubhill, stopping over 40 vehicles and finding eight drivers not wearing seatbelts or using mobile phones. The operation follows two fatal collisions in recent years on these roads, with Councillor Ayyub Patel highlighting ongoing road safety concerns in the Rumworth ward.
Local Offer Live, a SEND support event for families and young people with special educational needs and disabilities, is returning to Leigh Sports Village on April 27. The event will feature services, workshops, and direct access to professionals from council, NHS, social care, and mental health teams.
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