The Politics of Aberdeen, Scotland have changed significantly in recent years. In 1996, under the Local Government etc. (Scotland) Act 1994, Grampian Regional Council was dissolved, creating the new unitary Aberdeen City Council to represent the city's council area. Aberdeen City Council no longer has any direct control over the neighbouring area of Aberdeenshire, although the headquarters of Aberdeenshire Council remain located within the city.
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Aberdeen City Council represents the Aberdeen City council area of Scotland.
The council area was created in 1996, under the Local Government etc. (Scotland) Act 1994. However, a sense of Aberdeen as a city, with its own city council, can be traced back to 1900, when the city of county of Aberdeen was created.
In 1975, under the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973, the county of city was combined with Bucksburn, Newhills, Old Machar, Stoneywood, Dyce and Peterculter areas of the county of Aberdeen and a Nigg area of the county of Kincardine (including Cove Bay) to form the Aberdeen district of the Grampian region. This district became the now existing unitary council area in 1996.
On 9 May 1995 by resolution under section 23 of the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 The City of Aberdeen Council changed the name of the local government area of "City of Aberdeen" to "Aberdeen City".
Between 2003 and 2007 the council was under the control of a Liberal Democrat and Conservative coalition, holding 23 of the 43 seats on the council. Prior to the 2003 election, the council had been considered a Labour stronghold.[1] Following the May 2007 election, contested for the first time using a system of proportional representation, the Liberal Democrats and Scottish National Party (SNP) formed a coalition to run the council, holding 27 of the 43 seats (following an SNP by election gain from the Conservatives on 16 August 2007, the Lib Dem/SNP coalition now hold 28 of the 43 seats).
Aberdeen City Council comprises forty-three councillors who represent the city's wards and is headed by the Lord Provost who is currently Provost Peter Stephen.
Current political composition: (+/- by election changes since May 2007 election)
Chief Officials:
Before May 2007, councillors represented 43 single-member wards, but since then,all seats were contested by a different electoral system. On May 5, 2007, it was the first election to use the single transferable vote system of election and multi-member wards, each ward electing three or four councillors. The Local Government Boundary Commission for Scotland completed its final recommendations for new wards for all the council areas of Scotland and for Aberdeen there will be 13 multi-member wards with a total of 43 councillors. This system was introduced as a result of the Local Governance (Scotland) Act 2004, and is designed to produce a form of proportional representation.[2]
The composition of wards have changed to:
3 councillors:
4 councillors:
The most recent results from this election were as followed:
Ward | Councillors | Party | |||||||||||
Dyce / Bucksburn / Danestone | Ron Clark | Liberal Democrat | |||||||||||
Barney Crockett | Labour | ||||||||||||
Mark McDonald | Scottish National Party | ||||||||||||
George Penny | Liberal Democrat | ||||||||||||
Bridge of Don | Muriel Jaffrey | Scottish National Party | |||||||||||
Gordon Leslie | Liberal Democrat | ||||||||||||
John Reynolds | Liberal Democrat | ||||||||||||
Willie Young | Labour | ||||||||||||
Kingswells / Sheddocksley | Len Ironside | Labour | |||||||||||
Peter Stephen | Liberal Democrat | ||||||||||||
Wendy Stuart | Scottish National Party | ||||||||||||
Northfield | Jackie Dunbar | Scottish National Party | |||||||||||
Gordon Graham | Labour | ||||||||||||
Kevin Stewart | Scottish National Party | ||||||||||||
Hilton / Stockethill | George Adam | Labour | |||||||||||
Neil Fletcher | Liberal Democrat | ||||||||||||
Kirsty West | Scottish National Party | ||||||||||||
Tillydrone / Seaton / Old Aberdeen | Norman Collie | Labour | |||||||||||
Jim Noble | Scottish National Party | ||||||||||||
Richard Robertson | Liberal Democrat | ||||||||||||
Midstocket / Rosemount | Bill Cormie | Scottish National Party | |||||||||||
Jenny Laing | Labour | ||||||||||||
John Corral | Scottish National Party | ||||||||||||
George Street / Harbour | Andy May | Scottish National Party | |||||||||||
Jim Hunter | Labour | ||||||||||||
John Stewart | Liberal Democrat | ||||||||||||
Lower Deeside | Mary Boulton | Independent | |||||||||||
Aileen Malone | Liberal Democrat | ||||||||||||
Alan Milne | Conservative | ||||||||||||
Hazlehead / Ashley / Queen's Cross | Jim Farquharson | Conservative | |||||||||||
Martin Greig | Liberal Democrat | ||||||||||||
Jennifer Stewart | Liberal Democrat | ||||||||||||
John West | Scottish National Party | ||||||||||||
Airyhall / Broomhill / Garthdee | Scott Cassie | Liberal Democrat | |||||||||||
Jillian Wisely | Conservative | ||||||||||||
Ian Yuill | Liberal Democrat | ||||||||||||
Torry / Ferryhill | Yvonne Allan | Labour | |||||||||||
Irene Cormack | Liberal Democrat | ||||||||||||
Alan Donnelly | Conservative | ||||||||||||
Jim Kiddle | Scottish National Party | ||||||||||||
Kincorth / Loirston | Neil Cooney | Labour | |||||||||||
Katherine Dean | Liberal Democrat | ||||||||||||
Callum McCaig | Scottish National Party | ||||||||||||
Source: [1] |
The previous composition of 43 wards while using the standard First Past the Post voting system. Their representative councillors and political parties were:
Party | Ward | Councillor | |||||||||||
Liberal Democrat | (34) Ashley | Martin Greig | |||||||||||
Scottish National Party | (9) Auchmill | Kevin Stewart | |||||||||||
Labour | (2) Bankhead and Stoneywood | Brian Rattary | |||||||||||
Liberal Democrat | (21) Berryden | John Stewart | |||||||||||
Liberal Democrat | (6) Bridge of Don | Millicent McLeod | |||||||||||
Liberal Democrat | (35) Broomhill | Ian Yuill | |||||||||||
Labour | (28) Castlehill | James Hunter | |||||||||||
Liberal Democrat | (32) Cults | Aileen Malone | |||||||||||
Labour | (10) Cummings Park | Gordon Graham | |||||||||||
Liberal Democrat | (3) Danestone | Raymond Hutcheon | |||||||||||
Scottish National Party | (7) Donmouth | Muriel Jaffrey | |||||||||||
Liberal Democrat | (38) Duthie | Irene Cormack | |||||||||||
Liberal Democrat | (37) Dyce | Ronald Clark | |||||||||||
Liberal Democrat | (36) Garthdee | Scott Cassie | |||||||||||
Liberal Democrat | (26) Gilcomston | Alison Smith | |||||||||||
Liberal Democrat | (29) Hazlehead | Karen Freel | |||||||||||
Labour | (15) Hilton | George Adam | |||||||||||
Liberal Democrat | (37) Holburn | David Falconer | |||||||||||
Liberal Democrat | (4) Jesmond | Gordon Leslie | |||||||||||
Labour | (42) Kincorth East | George Urquhart | |||||||||||
Independent | (41) Kincorth West | David Clyne | |||||||||||
Liberal Democrat | (19) Kittybrewster | Neil Fletcher | |||||||||||
Liberal Democrat | (27) Langstane | Steve Delaney | |||||||||||
Liberal Democrat | (43) Loirston | Katherine Dean | |||||||||||
Conservative | (33) Mannofield | Jillian Wisely | |||||||||||
Labour | (12) Mastrick | Ramsey Milne | |||||||||||
Conservative | (24 ) Midstocket | John Porter | |||||||||||
Liberal Democrat | (31) Murtle | Matthew Duncan | |||||||||||
Liberal Democrat | (8) Newhills | Peter Stephen | |||||||||||
Liberal Democrat | (5) Oldmachar | John Reynolds | |||||||||||
Liberal Democrat | (30) Peterculter | Pamela MacDonald | |||||||||||
Labour | (23) Pittodrie | Ronald Webster | |||||||||||
Conservative | (25) Queens Cross | Brenda Craig | |||||||||||
Labour | (18) Seaton | Norman Collie | |||||||||||
Labour | (13) Sheddocksley | James Lamond | |||||||||||
Scottish National Party | (11) Springhill | Karen Shirron | |||||||||||
Labour | (17) St. Machar | Sandra Macdonald | |||||||||||
Labour | (20) Stockethill | June Lamond | |||||||||||
Labour | (14) Summerhill | Leonard Ironside | |||||||||||
Scottish National Party | (22) Sunnybank | Andrew May | |||||||||||
Labour | (39) Torry | Yvonne Allan | |||||||||||
Scottish National Party | (40) Tullos | James Kiddie | |||||||||||
Scottish National Party | (16) Woodside & Tillydrone | Alan Gowers | |||||||||||
Source: Aberdeen City Council |
In the United Kingdom Parliament, the city is divided between three constituencies:
Party | Constituency | Member | |
Labour | Aberdeen North | Frank Doran | |
Labour | Aberdeen South | Anne Begg | |
Liberal Democrat | Gordon | Malcolm Bruce |
There are three Scottish Parliament constituencies that overlap the Aberdeen City Council area in the North East Scotland electoral region:
Party | Constituency | Member | |
Aberdeen Central | Kevin Stewart | ||
Scottish National Party | Aberdeen North | Brian Adam | |
Aberdeen South | Maureen Watt |
Other MSPs in the North East Scotland electoral region (but selected by the Additional Member proportional representation system, and not in constituencies overlapping Aberdeen City or the Aberdeen City Council area) are:
Party | Members | |
Labour | Richard Baker | |
Scottish National Party | Nigel Don | |
Labour | Marlyn Glen | |
Conservative | Alex Johnstone | |
Liberal Democrat | Alison McInnes | |
Conservative | Nanette Milne | |
Scottish National Party | Maureen Watt |
In the European Parliament, Scotland as a whole (and therefore Aberdeen) is represented by six MEPs:
Party | Members | |
Liberal Democrat | George Lyon | |
Scottish National Party | Ian Hudghton | |
Labour | David Martin | |
Scottish National Party | Alyn Smith | |
Conservative | Struan Stevenson | |
Labour | Catherine Stihler |
Aberdeen is twinned with several cities across Europe and throughout the rest of the world.[3] These include:
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