East Dunbartonshire (UK Parliament constituency)

Coordinates: 55°58′34″N 4°12′40″W / 55.976°N 4.211°W

East Dunbartonshire
County constituency
for the House of Commons

Outline map

Boundary of East Dunbartonshire in Scotland.
Local government in EastDunbartonshire East Dunbartonshire
Current constituency
Created 2005
Member of parliament Jo Swinson (Liberal Democrat)
Number of members One
Created from Strathkelvin & Bearsden
Clydebank & Milngavie
Coatbridge & Chryston
1950–1983
Number of members One
Type of constituency County constituency
Created from Dunbartonshire
Dumbarton Burghs
Overlaps
European Parliament constituency Scotland

East Dunbartonshire is a county constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom (Westminster). It elects one Member of Parliament (MP) by the first past the post system of election.

The current constituency was first used in the 2005 general election. There was also an earlier East Dunbartonshire constituency, from 1950 to 1983.

Boundaries

Council areas
grouped by the Fifth Periodical Review
East Dunbartonshire and North Lanarkshire

Current

The existing constituency was created as a result of the Fifth Periodical Review of the Boundary Commission for Scotland, as one of two covering the East Dunbartonshire council area and one of five covering the East Dunbartonshire council area and the North Lanarkshire council area.[1]

The East Dunbartonshire constituency is entirely within the East Dunbartonshire council area, and the rest of the council area is covered by the Cumbernauld, Kilsyth and Kirkintilloch East constituency, which also covers part of the North Lanarkshire council area. The rest of the North Lanarkshire area is covered by the Airdrie and Shotts, Coatbridge, Chryston and Bellshill, and Motherwell and Wishaw constituencies.[1]

The East Dunbartonshire constituency replaced most of the Strathkelvin and Bearsden constituency and some of the Clydebank and Milngavie constituency and some of the Coatbridge and Chryston constituency.[1]

The Fifth Periodical Review did not affect the boundaries of Scottish Parliament constituencies, which retain the boundaries of Westminster constituencies prior to implementation of the results of the review.

Historic

The historic constituency was created under the House of Commons (Redistribution of Seats) Act 1949, and first used in the 1950 general election.[2]

As created in 1950, the constituency was one of two covering the county of Dunbarton. The other was West Dunbartonshire. The two new constituencies replaced the earlier constituencies of Dunbartonshire and Dumbarton Burghs.[2]

East Dunbartonshire covered the Cumbernauld, Kirkintilloch, and New Kilpatrick districts of the county and the burghs of Clydebank, Kirkintilloch, and Milngavie.[2]

For the 1951 general election the constituency boundaries were adjusted to take account of a change to the boundaries of the burgh of Clydebank.[2]

The results of the First Periodical Review of the Boundary Commission were implemented for the 1955 general election, but there was no change to the boundaries of East Dunbartonshire, and the boundaries of 1951 and 1955 were used also in the general elections of 1959, 1964, 1966 and 1970.[2]

The results of the Second Periodical Review were implemented for the February 1974 general election. The review took account of population growth in the county of Dunbarton, caused by overspill from the city of Glasgow into the new town of Cumbernauld and elsewhere, and East Dunbartonshire became one of three constituencies covering the county. East Dunbartonshire now covered the Kirkintilloch and Cumbernauld districts of the county and the burghs of Bearsden, Cumbernauld, and Kirkintilloch, but it lost Clydebank and Milngavie to the new constituency of Central Dunbartonshire. These boundaries were used also for the general elections of October 1974 and 1979.

In 1975, under the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973, Scottish counties were abolished in favour of regions and districts and islands council areas, and the county of Dunbarton was divided between several districts of the new region of Strathclyde. The Third Periodical Review took account of new local government boundaries, and the results were implemented for the 1983 general election.

Members of Parliament

MPs 1950–1983

ElectionMember[3] Party
1950 David Kirkwood Labour
1951 Cyril Bence Labour
1970 Hugh McCartney Labour
Feb 1974 Barry Henderson Conservative
Oct 1974 Margaret Bain SNP
1979 Norman Hogg Labour
1983 constituency abolished

MPs since 2005

ElectionMember[3] Party
2005 constituency recreated
2005 Jo Swinson Liberal Democrat

Election results

Elections in the 2010s

General Election 2015: East Dunbartonshire
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
UKIP Wilfred Arasaratnam[4]
Scottish Green Ross Greer[5]
Labour Amanjit Jhund[6]
SNP John Nicolson
Conservative Andrew Polson
Liberal Democrat Jo Swinson[7]
General Election 2010: East Dunbartonshire
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Liberal Democrat Jo Swinson 18,551 38.7 −3.1
Labour Mary Galbraith 16,367 34.1 +1.0
Conservative Mark Nolan 7,431 15.5 −1.0
SNP Iain White 5,054 10.5 +4.7
UKIP James Beeley 545 1.1 +1.1
Majority 2,184 4.6
Turnout 47,948 75.2 +2.1
Liberal Democrat hold Swing −2.1

Elections in the 2000s

General Election 2005: East Dunbartonshire
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Liberal Democrat Jo Swinson 19,533 41.8 +14.7
Labour John Lyons 15,472 33.1 −0.2
Conservative David Jack 7,708 16.5 −6.0
SNP Chris Sagan 2,716 5.8 −8.9
Scottish Green Stuart Callison 876 1.9 +1.9
Scottish Socialist Pamela Page 419 0.9 −1.5
Majority 4,061 8.7
Turnout 46,724 73.1 +10.1
Liberal Democrat gain from Labour Swing +7.4

The constituency of 1950 to 1983 has an unusual electoral history, in that in two consecutive general elections it was gained by the party in third place at the previous election. In October 1974 the SNP leapfrogged Labour to defeat the Tories, and in 1979 Labour leapfrogged the Tories to beat the SNP. Furthermore, the constituency went the opposite way to the nation in two consecutive changes of government. In February 1974, the Tories gained it from Labour, though losing nationally, while in 1979 Labour regained the seat from the SNP, though losing nationally. Apart from Ynys Mon in Wales, East Dunbartonshire is the only seat to have been be represented by the three main parties and the nationalists.

Elections in the 1970s

General Election 1979: East Dunbartonshire[8]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Norman Hogg 23,268 37.9 +7.6
Conservative Michael William Hirst 20,944 34.1 +1.9
SNP Margaret Anne Bain 12,654 20.6 −10.6
Liberal R Waddell 4,600 7.5 +0.2
Majority 2,324 3.8
Turnout 61,466 83.9
Labour gain from SNP Swing

The October 1974 result was particularly unusual since it produced both the smallest majority in the country at that election, and the closest three-way result since 1945.

General Election October 1974: East Dunbartonshire[9]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
SNP Margaret Anne Bain 15,551 31.2 +8.9
Conservative James Stewart Barry Henderson 15,529 31.2 −5.5
Labour E.F. McGarry 15,122 30.3 +0.7
Liberal J.A. Thompson 3,636 7.3 −4.1
Majority 22 0.0
Turnout 49,838 80.6 −4.4
SNP gain from Conservative Swing
General Election February 1974: East Dunbartonshire
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative James Stewart Barry Henderson 19,092 36.7 −0.3
Labour E.F. McGarry 15,416 29.6 −15.0
SNP Margaret Anne Bain 11,635 22.3 +11.0
Liberal J. Cameron 5,936 11.4 +6.6
Majority 3,676 7.1
Turnout 52,079 85.0
Conservative gain from Labour Swing
General Election 1970: Dunbartonshire East
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Hugh McCartney 32,527 44.6
Conservative James Stewart Barry Henderson 26,972 37.0
SNP Gordon Murray 8,257 11.3
Liberal James G Brown 3,460 4.8
Communist James Reid 1,656 2.3
Majority 5,555 7.6
Turnout 72,872 77.6
Labour hold Swing

Elections in the 1960s

General Election 1966: Dunbartonshire East
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Cyril Raymond Bence 32,988 52.15
Conservative Kenneth B Miller 23,001 36.36
SNP William Johnston 5,715 9.04
Communist James Reid 1,548 2.45
Majority 9,987 15.79
Turnout 80.62
Labour hold Swing
General Election 1964: Dunbartonshire East
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Cyril Raymond Bence 32,948 55.60
Conservative T Warren Strachan 25,137 42.42
Communist James Reid 1,171 1.98
Majority 7,811 13.18
Turnout 81.70
Labour hold Swing

Elections in the 1950s

General Election 1959: Dunbartonshire East[10]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Cyril Raymond Bence 27,942 51.05
Conservative David Colville Anderson 24,593 44.93
Communist Arnold E Henderson 2,200 4.02
Majority 3,349 6.12
Turnout 84.26
Labour hold Swing
General Election 1955: Dunbartonshire East
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Cyril Raymond Bence 24,216 48.68
Conservative Norman Macleod Glen 23,086 46.40
Communist Arnold E Henderson 2,448 4.92
Majority 1,130 2.27
Turnout 81.55
Labour hold Swing
General Election 1951: Dunbartonshire East
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Cyril Raymond Bence 26,678 51.22
Conservative William Stephen Ian Whitelaw 23,252 44.64
Communist Arnold E Henderson 2,158 4.14
Majority 3,426 6.58
Turnout 86.83
Labour hold Swing
General Election 1950: Dunbartonshire East
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour David Kirkwood 25,943 52.7 N/A
Conservative William Stephen Ian Whitelaw 21,367 43.4 N/A
Liberal Charles E Forrester 1,952 4.0 N/A
Majority 4,576 9.3 N/A
Turnout 49,262 86.0 N/A
Labour win (new seat)

Notes and references