Combined Scottish Universities (UK Parliament constituency)

Combined Scottish Universities
Former University constituency
for the House of Commons
1918–1950
Number of members Three
Created from Glasgow & Aberdeen Universities
Edinburgh and St Andrews Universities

The Combined Scottish Universities was a university constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1918 until 1950. It was created by merging the constituencies of Glasgow and Aberdeen Universities and Edinburgh and St Andrews Universities.

Boundaries

The constituency was not a physical area but was rather elected by the graduates of the Scottish Universities of St Andrews, Edinburgh, Glasgow and Aberdeen.

The constituency returned three Members of Parliament to Westminster, elected by Single Transferable Vote. The by-elections used the first past the post voting system.

This University constituency was created by the Representation of the People Act 1918 and abolished in 1950 by the Representation of the People Act 1948.

Members of Parliament

Election1st Member1st Party2nd Member2nd Party3rd Member3rd Party
1918 Sir William Cheyne Coalition Conservative Dugald McCoig Cowan Coalition Liberal Sir Henry Craik Coalition Conservative
1922 Sir George Berry Unionist Liberal
Apr 1927 John Buchan Unionist
1931 Noel Skelton Unionist
Mar 1934 George Alexander Morrison Liberal
Jun 1935 National Liberal Sir John Kerr Unionist
Jan 1936 Ramsay MacDonald National Labour
Feb 1938 Sir John Anderson National
Apr 1945 Sir John Boyd-Orr Independent
Nov 1946 Walter Elliot Unionist
1950 University constituencies abolished

Election results

Elections in the 1910s

Dugald Cowan
General Election, November 1918: Combined Scottish Universities [1]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Coalition Conservative Green tickSir William Cheyne, 1st Baronet 3,719
Coalition Liberal Green tickDugald McCoig Cowan 3,499
Coalition Conservative Green tickSir Henry Craik 3,286
Labour Dr P. Macdonald 1,581
Independent Prof W.R. Smith 850

Elections in the 1920s

General Election, November 1922: Combined Scottish Universities
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Unionist Sir George Andreas Berry unopposed
Liberal Dugald McCoig Cowan unopposed
Unionist Sir Henry Craik unopposed
General Election, December 1923: Combined Scottish Universities
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Unionist Sir George Andreas Berry unopposed
Liberal Dugald McCoig Cowan unopposed
Unionist Sir Henry Craik unopposed
General Election, 1924: Combined Scottish Universities [2]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Unionist Sir Henry Craik 7,188
Liberal Dugald McCoig Cowan 5,011
Unionist Sir George Andreas Berry 3,781
Labour Rev J.M. Munro 1,639
Combined Scottish Universities by-election, 26–29 April 1927
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Unionist John Buchan 16,963 87.7
Labour Hugh B. Guthrie 2,378 12.3
Majority 14,585 75.4
Turnout 19,341 55.1 +0.0
Unionist hold Swing
General Election, 1929: Combined Scottish Universities [3]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Unionist John Buchan 9,959
Unionist Sir George Andreas Berry 9,262
Liberal Dugald McCoig Cowan 6,698
Labour Dr J. Kerr 2,867

Elections in the 1930s

General Election, October 1931: Combined Scottish Universities
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Unionist John Buchan unopposed
Liberal Dugald McCoig Cowan unopposed
Unionist Noel Skelton unopposed
Combined Scottish Universities by-election, 7–12 March 1934
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Liberal George Alexander Morrison 18,070 79.2
Labour Robert Gibson 4,750 20.8
Majority 13,320 58.4
Turnout 44.3
Liberal hold Swing
Combined Scottish Universities by-election, 17–22 June 1935
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Unionist Prof. John Graham Kerr 20,507 82.7 N/A
Labour Naomi Mitchison 4,293 17.3 N/A
Majority 16,214 65.4 N/A
Turnout 24,800 48.1 N/A
Unionist hold Swing N/A
General Election, November 1935: Combined Scottish Universities [4]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Unionist John Graham Kerr 8,252
Liberal National George Alexander Morrison 7,529
Unionist Noel Skelton[5] 7,479
Independent Andrew Dewar Gibb 3,865
Combined Scottish Universities by-election, 27–31 January 1936
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
National Labour Ramsay MacDonald 16,393 56.5 N/A
SNP Andrew Dewar Gibb 9,034 31.1 +16.9
Labour David Cleghorn Thompson 3,597 12.4 N/A
Majority 7,359 37.4
Turnout 54.8 +3.6
National Labour gain from Unionist Swing N/A
Combined Scottish Universities by-election, 21–25 February 1938
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
National Independent Sir John Anderson 14,042 48.8 −7.7
Independent Frances H. Melville 5,618 19.5 N/A
SNP Andrew Dewar Gibb 5,246 18.2 −12.9
Independent Progressive Sir Peter Chalmers Mitchell 3,868 13.5 N/A
Majority 8,424 29.3 +3.9
Turnout 52.1 −2.7
National hold Swing

Elections in the 1940s

General Election, 5 July 1945: Combined Scottish Universities
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
National John Anderson 16,011 48.8
Independent John Boyd Orr 10,685 32.6
Labour H. G. Sutherland 2,860 8.7
Liberal Ralph Somerville Weir 1,872 5.7
Unionist John Graham Kerr 1,361 4.2
Turnout 32,789 51.6
National hold Swing N/A
Independent hold Swing N/A
Unionist hold Swing N/A
Combined Scottish Universities by-election, 22–27 November 1946
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Unionist Walter Elliot 22,152 68.2 +64.0
Labour C. E. M. Joad 3,731 11.5 +2.8
Liberal John MacDonald Bannerman 2,593 8.0 +2.3
Independent J. G. Jameson 2,080 6.4 N/A
Liberal National Dr R. S. Stevenson 1,938 5.9 N/A
Majority 18,421 56.7
Turnout 32,494 50.7 −0.9
Unionist gain from National Swing N/A

References

  1. ↑ Whitaker's Almanack, 1920
  2. ↑ Oliver and Boyd's Edinburgh Almanack, 1927
  3. ↑ The Times, 11 June 1929
  4. ↑ The Times, 26 November 1935
  5. ↑ Skelton died on 22 November, and his election has announced posthumously
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by
Woolwich West		 Constituency represented by the Chancellor of the Exchequer
1943–1945 		Succeeded by
Bishop Auckland