Scottish Constituencies and MPs

saltire shield'There is not a drop of blood in my veins which is not pure Scotch.'
William Ewart Gladstone in the Midlothian by-election campaign, 1879.		Lion Rampant

Scottish Constituencies & MPs

Riding of Parliament
The last Riding of the Scottish Parliament, 1706

These pages will be expanded to include the names and constituencies of each Scottish MP from the Union of the Parliaments in 1707 until the present day.

On the first of May 1707, according to the Acts of Union, the parliaments of Scotland and England were dissolved and a new parliament of Great Britain was established. In reality, while the Scottish parliament was dissolved, the English parliament at Westminster continued almost unchanged.

Unlike the Scottish parliament, the British parliament of 1707 consisted of two chambers:

A House of Commons consisting of:

A House of Lords consisting of: Feelings were so strong against the Union in Scotland that the government feared a massive defeat in the polls and decided to co-opt 45 Scottish members rather than holding elections, which were postponed until May 1708.

While all English peers were entiltled to sit in the House of Lords, only 16 representative Scots peers were allowed to. Despite being given the English title of Duke of Brandon, the Scottish Duke of Hamilton was barred from sitting in the House of Lords when the English majority ruled in December 1712 that no Scottish peer could sit in the House by virtue of an English title granted after the union. Scots peers continued to be barred from the House of Lords until 1963.

Constituencies: Constituency names can be confusing. Although the terms Burgh and County constituencies have fallen from common useage, they are still used, eg to determine election expenses. The convention, although not the rule, is that in Burgh constituencies, such as Aberdeen North, the compass point comes after the Burgh name, whereas in County constituencies, such as West Aberdeenshire & Kincardine, the compass point comes before the name of the County. However, some constituencies have used different formats - eg North Tayside became Tayside North in 1997. In the constituency generally referred to as Berwick and East Lothian, 'Berwick' refers to neither Berwick-Upon-Tweed, or North Berwick, but to Berwickshire - an old Scottish County whose county town is now in England. Edinburghshire referred not to the City (Burgh) of Edinburgh, but to the County of Midlothian. Political journalists sometimes stated that the Tories had held Ayr since 19206. However, Ayr, a County constituency has only existed since 1950: before that, the Ayr Burghs was, as the name suggests, a Burgh constituency. Old styles such as 'Eastern' are often modernised to 'East' and this can cause confusion between constituencies such as Eastern Aberdeenshire, which existed between 1868 and 1918, and East Aberdeenshire whose lifespan was 1950 until 1983. In the following table, compass points follow the constituency name. Although strictly speaking incorrect, and guaranteed to irritate purists, this system greatly facilitates indexing.

Constituency Created Abolished
Scotland 1 May 1707 26 May 1708
Aberdeen 26 May 1708 25 November 1885
Aberdeen Central 1 May 1997 5 May 2005
Aberdeen North 25 November 1885
Aberdeen South 25 November 1885
Aberdeenshire 1 June 1708 20 November 1868
Aberdeenshire & Kincardineshire Central 14 December 1918 23 February 1950
Aberdeenshire & Kincardineshire Eastern 14 December 1918 23 February 1950
Aberdeenshire East 23 February 1950 9 June 1983
Aberdeenshire Eastern 20 November 1868 14 December 1918
Aberdeenshire West 23 February 1950 9 June 1983
Aberdeenshire West & Kincardine 1 May 1997
Aberdeenshire Western 20 November 1868 14 December 1918
Airdrie and Shotts 1 May 1997
Angus 1 May 1997
Angus East 9 June 1983 1 May 1997
Angus North & Mearns 23 February 1950 9 June 1983
Angus South 23 February 1950 9 June 1983
Anstruther Easter Burghs 26 May 1708 21 December 1832
Argyll & Bute 9 June 1983
Argyll 23 February 1950 9 June 1983
Argyllshire 10 June 1708 23 February 1950
Ayr 23 February 1950
Ayr Burghs 10 June 1708 23 February 1950
Ayrshire (County of Ayr) 10 June 1708 24 November 1868
Ayrshire Central 23 February 1950 9 June 1983
Ayrshire Northern 24 November 1868 14 December 1918
Ayrshire Southern 24 November 1868 14 December 1918
Ayrshire South 14 December 1918 9 June 1983
Banff & Buchan 9 June 1983
Banffshire25 May 1708 9 June 1983
Berwickshire 27 May 1708 14 December 1918
Berwickshire & Haddingtonshire 14 December 1918 23 February 1950
Berwickshire & East Lothian 23 February 1950 9 June 1983
Glasgow Anniesland 1 May 1997 5 May 2005
Glasgow Baillieston 1 May 1997 5 May 2005

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