Andrew Lewin

Andrew Lewin
MP
Andrew Lewin MP
	Official portrait, 2024
Member of Parliament; for Welwyn Hatfield
	Incumbent
	Assumed office ; 4 July 2024
Preceded by	Grant Shapps
Majority	3,799 (7.8%)
Personal details
Born	Andrew Alan Lewin; 7 January 1987 (age 37); Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire, England
Political party	Labour
Other political; affiliations	Liberal Democrats (2003–2010)
Children	2
Education	The Bishop's Stortford High School
Alma mater	University of York (BA)
Signature
Website	andrewlewin.co.uk

Andrew Alan Lewin (born 7 January 1987) is a British Labour Party politician who has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for Welwyn Hatfield since the 2024 general election.^[1]

Early life and education

Andrew Alan Lewin was born on 7 January 1987 at the original Queen Elizabeth II Hospital in Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire.^[2]^[3]^[4] He attended The Bishop's Stortford High School from 1998 to 2005 before graduating from the University of York with a BA in Politics in 2008.^[5]^[6]^[7]

Political career

Lewin joined the Liberal Democrats in 2003, while still at secondary school. He was selected as the Liberal Democrat parliamentary candidate for Hertford and Stortford in October 2009.^[8] In the 2010 general election, 23-year-old Lewin, the youngest Lib Dem candidate in England, lost to Mark Prisk of the Conservative Party by a margin of 15,437 votes.^[9] In November 2010, Lewin defected to the Labour Party, citing his dissatisfaction with the decisions of Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg and the coalition government, specifically the trebling of university tuition fees, as his reason.^[10]^[11]

In response to the 2016 Brexit referendum, Lewin founded the pro-European group Remain Labour in 2017 and ran the group until its dissolution in 2021.^[12] Lewin endorsed Jess Phillips in the 2020 Labour leadership election.^[13]

Lewin was selected as the Labour Party parliamentary candidate for Welwyn Hatfield by members of the constituency Labour Party in March 2023.^[14] He won the constituency in the 2024 general election, defeating the incumbent Conservative Grant Shapps by a margin of 3,799 votes.^[1] Lewin was sworn in by solemn affirmation, rather than an oath, on 10 July.^[15]^[16]

Political positions

Brexit

Lewin has previously campaigned in favour of remaining in the European Union (EU).^[5] He cited his reasons for setting up Remain Labour as being due to his belief that "Brexit would hit hardest those who have least."^[13] He also said it was the responsibility of the Labour party to stand against a project which he said would do "most damage" to the "poorest communities."^[13]

Ahead of the 2019 general election, Lewin called for a "Remain Alliance" consisting of Labour, the Liberal Democrats and the Greens to be formed in opposition to Prime Minister Boris Johnson.^[17] He said that the prospect of a No-deal Brexit was "motivation enough" to form the alliance, and called on the parties to recognise that they had "more in common" instead of exaggerating their differences "for party gain".^[17]

In an article Lewin wrote for LabourList in June 2022, he said that many wearily "read reports that prove beyond doubt that Brexit has set us back" and said that the impact was seen in communities; citing a 6% rise in food prices as being "directly attributed" to leaving the EU.^[18] He called on Labour to make an "early manifesto pledge" to not rejoin the EU in its first term in power, saying that any proposal would "consume" a first-term Labour government and potentially "play into the hands of the Conservatives", and also stated that he thought it was "inconceivable" that all EU member states would welcome the UK back into the EU.^[18] He also called on Labour to set out priority for cooperation with the EU regarding scientific research, climate change and energy security, and also to commit to a stronger trading relationship with the EU ahead of the next general election.^[18]

Personal life

Lewin lives in Welwyn Garden City with his wife and two sons.^[19]^[3] He worked at Clarion Housing Group from 2017 until his election to Parliament in 2024. At Clarion, Lewin was initially the head of external communications until his promotion in 2021 to director of communications, a role he held until becoming an MP.^[20]

Electoral history

2020s

General election 2024: Welwyn Hatfield^[21]^[22]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Andrew Lewin	19,877	41.0	+9.3
	Conservative	Grant Shapps	16,078	33.2	−19.4
	Reform UK	Jack Aaron	6,397	13.2	New
	Liberal Democrats	John Munro	3,117	6.4	−6.3
	Green	Sarah Butcher	2,986	6.2	+3.1
Majority			3,799	7.8	N/A
Turnout			48,455	64.6	−4.9
	Labour gain from Conservative		Swing	+14.4

2010s

General election 2010: Hertford and Stortford^[23]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Mark Prisk	29,810	53.8	+3.6
	Liberal Democrats	Andrew Lewin	14,373	26.0	+7.5
	Labour	Stephen Terry	7,620	13.8	–10.5
	UKIP	David Sodey	1,716	3.1	+1.0
	BNP	Roy Harris	1,297	2.3	N/A
	Independent	Loucas Xenophontos	325	0.6	N/A
	Independent	Martin Adams	236	0.4	N/A
Majority			15,437	27.8	1.4
Turnout			55,377	70.6	+4.1
	Conservative hold		Swing	–1.9