Edinburgh North and Leith (UK Parliament constituency)

UK constituency infobox alt
Name = Edinburgh North and Leith


Type = Burgh
Entity = Scotland
DivisionType = Council areas
Division = City of Edinburgh
Year = 1997
MP = Mark Lazarowicz
Party = Labour Co-operative
EP = Scotland

Edinburgh North and Leith is a constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom (Westminster), first used in the 1997 general election. It elects one Member of Parliament (MP) by the first past the post system of election.

In 1999, a Scottish Parliament constituency was created with the same name and boundaries. See "Edinburgh North and Leith (Scottish Parliament constituency)". The boundaries of the Westminster constituency were altered, however, in 2005, and the Scottish Parliament constituency retains the older boundaries.

Boundaries

When created in 1997, Edinburgh North and Leith was largely a replacement for the Edinburgh Leith constituency, and was one of six constituencies covering the City of Edinburgh council area. One of those six, Edinburgh East and Musselburgh straddled the boundary with the East Lothian council area, to take in Musselburgh. In terms of wards used in elections to the City of Edinburgh Council between 1995 and 2007, the constituency included the wards of Broughton, Calton, Granton, Harbour, Lorne, New Town, Newhaven, Pilton, Stockbridge and Trinity.

Constituency boundaries in Scotland were revised for the 2005 election. The number of constituencies within the city was reduced from six to five, each now entirely within the city area, and Musselburgh was re-united with the remainder of East Lothian. [ [http://www.bcomm-scotland.gov.uk/ "Fifth Periodical Review", Boundary Commission for Scotland] ] A new Edinburgh North and Leith constituency was created, including the whole of the former one, but also taking in the Dean ward from the Edinburgh Central and Craigleith ward from Edinburgh West.

As a result of the Local Governance (Scotland) Act 2004, these wards were replaced with new, larger wards for the Council Elections on 3 May 2007. The constituency now includes parts of the new wards of Leith, Leith Walk, Forth, Inverleith and City Centre, but none of these exclusively. As of 29 February 2008, these wards consist of 5 Liberal Democrat councillors, 4 SNP, 4 Labour, 2 Conservatives and 1 Green.

The constituency is urban, and covers several northern communities of the city, as well as most of the former burgh of Leith, which merged with Edinburgh in 1920. It also includes Calton Hill, the shops and offices on the northern side of Princes Street, Bute House, the official residence of the First Minister of Scotland, the Edinburgh Playhouse, the Edinburgh Waterfront, the stretch of the Water of Leith from Dean Village to Leith Harbour, the Royal Botanical Gardens, the Western General Hospital and the private schools of Fettes College, the Edinburgh Academy, The Mary Erskine School and Stewart's Melville College and Telford College.

The constituency is expected to experience rapid population growth and demographic change over the next six years, mostly at the Waterfront. Large-scale housing developments are planned both at Newhaven (Western Harbour) and Granton, giving rise to around 35,000 additional residents, often compared to adding the equivalent of a town the size of Falkirk or Dunfermline. This would inevitably lead to further constituency changes in future.

Member of Parliament

Election results

Election box candidate with party link
party = Scottish National Party
candidate = Calum Cashley
votes =
percentage =
change = Election box candidate with party link
party = Liberal Democrats (UK)
candidate = Kevin Lang
votes =
percentage =
change = Election box candidate with party link
party = Labour Party (UK)
candidate = Mark Lazarowicz
votes =
percentage =
change = Election box candidate with party link
party = Conservative Party (UK)
candidate = Iain McGill
votes =
percentage =
change =

Election box candidate with party link
party = Labour Co-operative
candidate = Mark Lazarowicz
votes = 14,597
percentage = 34.2%
change = -7.7Election box candidate with party link
party = Liberal Democrats (UK)
candidate = Mike Crockart
votes = 12,444
percentage = 29.2%
change = +8.9Election box candidate with party link
party = Conservative Party (UK)
candidate = Iain Whyte
votes = 7,969
percentage = 18.7%
change = 0.0Election box candidate with party link
party = Scottish National Party
candidate = Davie Hutchison
votes = 4,344
percentage = 10.2%
change = -4.2Election box candidate with party link
party = Scottish Green Party
candidate = Mark Sydenham
votes = 2,482
percentage = 5.8%
change = +5.8Election box candidate with party link
party = Scottish Socialist Party
candidate = Bill Scott
votes = 804
percentage = 1.9%
change = -1.7Election box majority
votes = 2,153
percentage = 5.0%
change = Election box turnout
votes = 42,640
percentage = 62.7
change = +8.8Election box hold with party link
winner = Labour Co-operative
swing = -8.3

Election box begin
title=General Election 2001: Edinburgh North & LeithElection box candidate with party link
party = Labour Co-operative
candidate = Mark Lazarowicz
votes = 15,271
percentage = 45.9
change = -1.0Election box candidate with party link
party = Liberal Democrats (UK)
candidate = Sebastian Tombs
votes = 6,454
percentage = 19.4
change = +6.4Election box candidate with party link
party = Scottish National Party
candidate = Kaukab Stewart
votes = 5,290
percentage = 15.9
change = -4.2Election box candidate with party link
party = Conservative Party (UK)
candidate = Iain Mitchell
votes = 4,626
percentage = 13.9
change = -3.9Election box candidate with party link
party = Scottish Socialist Party
candidate = Catriona Grant
votes = 1,334
percentage = 4.0
change = "N/A"Election box candidate with party link
party = Socialist Labour Party (UK)
candidate = Don Jacobsen
votes = 259
percentage = 0.8
change = "N/A"Election box majority
votes = 8,817
percentage = 26.5
change = Election box turnout
votes = 33,234
percentage = 53.0
change = -13.5Election box hold with party link
winner = Labour Co-operative
swing =

Election box begin
title=General Election 1997: Edinburgh North & LeithElection box candidate with party link
party = Labour Co-operative
candidate = Malcolm Chisholm
votes = 19,209
percentage = 46.9
change = "N/A"Election box candidate with party link
party = Scottish National Party
candidate = Anne Dana
votes = 8,231
percentage = 20.1
change = "N/A"Election box candidate with party link
party = Conservative Party (UK)
candidate = Ewen Stewart
votes = 7,312
percentage = 17.9
change = "N/A"Election box candidate with party link
party = Liberal Democrats (UK)
candidate = Hillary Campbell
votes = 5,335
percentage = 13.0
change = "N/A"Election box candidate with party link
party = Referendum Party
candidate = Sandy Graham
votes = 441
percentage = 1.1
change = "N/A"Election box candidate with party link
party = Scottish Socialist Alliance
candidate = Gavin Browne
votes = 320
percentage = 0.8
change = "N/A"Election box candidate with party link
party = Natural Law Party
candidate = Paul Douglas-Reid
votes = 97
percentage = 0.2
change = "N/A"Election box majority
votes = 10,978
percentage =
change = "N/A"Election box turnout
votes =
percentage = 66.5
change = "N/A"Election box hold with party link
winner = Labour Party (UK)
swing =

Notes and references

See also

* Politics of Edinburgh