- Dunfermline West (Scottish Parliament constituency)
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Dunfermline West Scottish Parliament
burgh constituencyDunfermline West shown within the Mid Scotland and Fife electoral region and the region shown within Scotland Created 1999 Abolished 2011 Council area Fife Dunfermline West was a constituency of the Scottish Parliament (Holyrood). It elected one Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) by the plurality (first past the post) method of election. From the 2011 Scottish Parliament election, parts of the Dunfermline East constituency were merged with Dunfermline West to form a single Dunfermline constituency.
Contents
Electoral region
- See also Mid Scotland and Fife Scottish Parliament region
The region covered all of the Clackmannanshire council area, all of the Fife council area, all of the Perth and Kinross council area, all of the Stirling council area and parts of the Angus council area.
Constituency boundaries and council area
The constituency was created at the same time as the Scottish Parliament, in 1999, with the name and boundaries of a pre-existing Westminster (House of Commons) constituency. In 2005, however, Scottish Westminster constituencies were mostly replaced with new constituencies[1]. The Dunfermline West Westminster constituency was merged into Dunfermline and West Fife.
The Holyrood constituency of Dunfermline West was one of five Mid Scotland and Fife constituencies covering the Fife council area, the others being Dunfermline East, Fife Central, Fife North East and Kirkcaldy. All were entirely within the council area.
Dunfermline West covered a south-western portion of the council area, west of Dunfermline East.
Description of the constituency
The constituency includes all of the town of Dunfermline and some land on the north bank of the Firth of Forth.
Historically, the town was once Scotland's capital city. Eight kings are buried there, amongst them Robert the Bruce. Today, textiles, engineering and synthetic material manufacturing are the primary industries. The constituency also contains rural areas.
Like its neighbour, Dunfermline East, the constituency was one of Labour’s safest seats in Scotland. In Westminster elections voters in the area elected Labour Members of Parliament (MPs) continuously from 1935 until 2006. In a 2006 by-election, however, the Liberal Democrats won the equivalent Westminster seat, and they proceeded to win the Holyrood seat in 2007 as well, calling into question Labour's future as a dominant party in the area.
Member of the Scottish Parliament
Election Member Party 1999 Scott Barrie Labour 2003 2007 Jim Tolson Liberal Democrats 2011 Constituency abolished; see Dunfermline Election results
Scottish Parliament election, 2007: Dunfermline West Party Candidate Votes % ±% Liberal Democrats Jim Tolson 9,952 33.7 +19.3 Labour Scott Barrie 9,476 32.1 -2.2 SNP Len Woods 7,296 24.7 +7.3 Conservative Peter Lyburn 2,363 8.0 +0.6 Scottish Voice Susan Archibald 238 1.5 +1.5 Majority 476 1.6 Turnout 29,252 51.8 +5.0 Liberal Democrats gain from Labour Swing 10.8 Scottish Parliament election, 2003: Dunfermline West Party Candidate Votes % ±% Labour Scott Barrie 8,644 34.3 -9.9 Independent Campaign for Local Hospital Services David Wishart 4,584 18.2 +18.2 SNP Brian Goodall 4,372 17.4 -10.4 Liberal Democrats Jim Tolson 3,636 14.4 -3.8 Conservative Jim Mackie 1,868 7.4 -2.3 Scottish Socialist Andy Jackson 923 3.7 +3.7 Independent Alastair Harper 714 2.8 +2.8 Independent Damien Quigg 459 1.8 +1.8 Majority 4,080 16.2 Turnout 25,240 46.8 Labour hold Swing Scottish Parliament election, 1999: Dunfermline West Party Candidate Votes % ±% Labour Scott Barrie 13,560 44.21 N/A SNP Douglas Chapman 8,539 27.84 N/A Liberal Democrats Elizabeth Harris 5,591 18.23 N/A Conservative James Mackie 2,981 9.72 N/A Majority 5,021 16.37 Turnout 30,671 Labour hold Swing Footnotes
Electoral regions and Constituencies of the Scottish Parliament 1999–2011 » 2011– »
Central Scotland Glasgow Highlands and Islands Lothians Mid Scotland and Fife Central Fife · Dunfermline East · Dunfermline West · Kirkcaldy · North East Fife · North Tayside · Ochil · Perth · StirlingNorth East Scotland South of Scotland West of Scotland Categories:- Scottish Parliamentary constituencies
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