Herbert William Looker (2 December 1871 - 13 December 1951) was the Conservative MP for the South East Essex constituency from 1924 to 1929. Looker was born 2 December 1871 in St Ives, Huntingdonshire. He was educated privately before joining a London firm of solicitors; he was managing clerk from 1894 to 1895. In 1895 he moved to

Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...

to join a firm of solicitors there, becoming a partner in Deacon, Looker and Deacon. Following his retirement in 1919 he returned to England to live in

Great Baddow Great Baddow is a major village and civil parish in the Chelmsford borough of Essex, England. It is close to the city of Chelmsford and, with a population of over 13,000,Chelmsford Chelmsford () is a city in the City of Chelmsford district in the county of Essex, England. It is the county town of Essex and one of three cities in the county, along with Colchester and Southend-on-Sea. It is located north-east of London ...

and began a political career. On 6 October 1921 he was selected to fight the Hull Central constituency by the Central Hull

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...

Council. The following year he was defeated by the incumbent Labour MP

Joseph Kenworthy Joseph Montague Kenworthy, 10th Baron Strabolgi (7 March 1886 – 8 October 1953), was a Liberal Party (UK), Liberal and then a Labour Party Member of Parliament (United Kingdom), Member of Parliament in the United Kingdom. Education and naval ...

by 15,374 votes to 12,347 in the 1922 General Election. Two years later, on 12 March 1924 Looker was unanimously selected to be the Conservative Candidate for South East Essex. The

general election A general election is an electoral process to choose most or all members of a governing body at the same time. They are distinct from By-election, by-elections, which fill individual seats that have become vacant between general elections. Gener ...

was held later that year and this time Looker defeated the incumbent Labour MP

Philip Hoffman Philip Hoffman or other variants may refer to: Actors *Philip Seymour Hoffman (1967–2014), Academy Award-winning American actor *Philip Hoffman (Broadway actor) (born 1954), Broadway actor in ''Into the Woods'' Politicians *Philip Hoffman (Brit ...

by 19,731 votes to 13,820. While an MP he was a regular contributor to parliamentary debates. On 8 May 1929 Looker was again unanimously selected to be the Conservative candidate to fight the next election. This time though it was to be a three-horse race with the addition of a

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * Generally, a supporter of the political philosophy liberalism. Liberals may be politically left or right but tend to be centrist. * An adherent of a Liberal Party (See also Liberal parties by country ...

candidate which the Conservatives knew made the chance of regaining the seat more difficult. Their fears were realised when the Labour candidate,

Jack Oldfield John Richard Anthony Oldfield (5 July 189911 December 1999) was a British landowner and politician. The son of Major H.E. Oldfield of the Royal Field Artillery, his father was killed in action two days before his first birthday during the Sec ...

, won the constituency with a majority of just 626, receiving 18,756 votes. Looker received 18,130 votes, and the Liberal candidate, George Thomas Veness, 13,030 votes. Some time after his election defeat he moved to

Forest Row Forest Row is a village and a large civil parish in the Wealden District of East Sussex, England. The village is located three miles (5 km) south-east of East Grinstead. In January 2023, it ranked as Britain’s 3rd poshest village. His ...

, Sussex. Here, in April 1933, he was elected to the

Withyham Withyham is a village and large civil parish in the Wealden district of East Sussex, England. The village is situated 7 miles south west of Royal Tunbridge Wells and 3.5 miles (5.6 km) from Crowborough; the parish covers approxi ...

Division of

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. He remained there until his death on 13 December 1951.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Looker, Herbert William 1871 births 1951 deaths People from St Ives, Cambridgeshire People from Forest Row Conservative Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies Members of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for South East Essex UK MPs 1924–1929 19th-century British lawyers 20th-century British lawyers