Dunfermline and West Fife (UK Parliament constituency)

Coordinates: 56°03′25″N 3°25′48″W / 56.057°N 3.430°W / 56.057; -3.430

Dunfermline and West Fife County constituency
Dunfermline and West Fife shown within Scotland
Created:	2010
MP:	Thomas Docherty
Party:	Labour
Type:	House of Commons
Council areas:	Fife
EP constituency:	Scotland

Dunfermline and West Fife is a county constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It was created for the 2005 general election from all of the old Dunfermline West and parts of the old Dunfermline East constituencies. The current MP is Thomas Docherty of the Labour Party.

The Dunfermline and West Fife by-election was held in early 2006, due to the death of the sitting MP, Rachel Squire. Willie Rennie of the Liberal Democrats was the surprise winner, by some 1,800 votes, in what was seen as a safe Labour seat.^[1] However, he lost the seat to Labour's Thomas Docherty at the 2010 general election.

Boundaries

This new seat is based on the whole of the former Dunfermline West constituency. Rosyth and Inverkeithing in the southeast are the only large population centres on the coast. To the north and west of Dunfermline is more rugged and robust Fife countryside. The whole seat is up against the Firth of Forth.

Members of Parliament

Rachel Squire (Labour) was the MP for Dunfermline West constituency from 1992 until the major revision of the composition of Scottish parliamentary constituencies for the 2005 general election. Gordon Brown was MP for the neighbouring Dunfermline East constituency from which some territory was given to Dunfermline and West Fife.

Squire won the new seat in the 2005 general election and held it until her death on 5 January 2006. The subsequent by-election was held on 9 February 2006, which Liberal Democrat Willie Rennie won in a shock defeat for Labour. The Liberal Democrats also gained the Dunfermline West Scottish Parliamentary constituency from Labour in the 2007 Holyrood Parliament elections.

In the 2010 General Election, the Labour candidate Thomas Docherty won the seat back.

Election		Member [2]	Party
	2005	Rachel Squire	Labour
	2006 by-election	Willie Rennie	Liberal Democrat
	2010	Thomas Docherty	Labour

Election results

Elections in the 2010s

United Kingdom general election, 2010[3]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Thomas Docherty	22,639	46.3	-1.1
	Liberal Democrat	Willie Rennie	17,169	35.1	+14.9
	SNP	Joe McCall	5,201	10.6	-8.3
	Conservative	Belinda Hacking	3,305	6.8	-3.5
	UKIP	Otto Inglis	633	1.3	-0.2
Majority			5,470	11.2
Turnout			48,947	66.4	+6.5
	Labour gain from Liberal Democrat		Swing

Elections in the 2000s

Dunfermline and West Fife by-election, 2006
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal Democrat	Willie Rennie	12,391	35.8	+15.6
	Labour	Catherine Stihler	10,591	30.6	-16.8
	SNP	Douglas Chapman	7,261	21.0	+2.1
	Conservative	Carrie Ruxton	2,702	7.8	-2.5
	Scottish Socialist	John McAllion	537	1.6	-0.1
	Scottish Christian	George Hargreaves	411	1.2
	Abolish Forth Bridge Tolls Party	Tom Minogue	374	1.1
	UKIP	Ian Borland	208	0.6	-0.9
	Common Good	Dick Rodgers	103	0.3
Majority			1,800	5.2
Turnout			34,578	47.9	-12.0
	Liberal Democrat gain from Labour		Swing	16.5

General Election 2005: Dunfermline and Fife West
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Rachel Squire	20,111	47.4	-7.1
	Liberal Democrat	David Herbert	8,549	20.2	+5.9
	SNP	Douglas Chapman	8,026	18.9	+1.1
	Conservative	Roger Smillie	4,376	10.3	+0.6
	Scottish Socialist	Susan Archibald	689	1.6	-0.8
	UKIP	Ian Borland	643	1.5	+0.1
Majority			11,562	27.3
Turnout			42,394	59.9	+2.3
	Labour hold		Swing	-6.5

This constituency was formed in 2005 from all of the old Dunfermline West and parts of the old Dunfermline East constituencies.

Places in Dunfermline and West Fife constituency

Royal burghs

• Culross
• Dunfermline
• Inverkeithing

Small burghs and large villages

• Cairneyhill
• Kincardine on Forth
• Limekilns
• North Queensferry
• Rosyth

Electoral wards of Dunfermline and small, outlying villages

• Baldridgeburn
• Bellyeoman
• Blairhall
• Brucefield
• Carnegie
• Carnock
• Crossford
• Crossgates
• Garvock
• Gowkhall
• Halbeath
• Headwell
• High Valleyfield
• Hill of Beath
• Kingseat
• Linburn
• Low Valleyfield
• Milesmark
• Mossside
• Nethertown
• Oakley
• Pitcorthie
• Pitreavie
• Saline
• Steelend
• Torryburn
• Townhill
• Wellwood
• Woodmill

References

1. ^ http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/4695270.stm
2. ^ Leigh Rayment's Historical List of MPs – Constituencies beginning with "D" (part 4)
3. ^ Statement of Persons nominated Fife Ciouncil

See also