Local Byelections

'The poll tax came into force in Scotland on April 1 1989 and in England and Wales a year later.' The Election: A Voters' Guide Forth Estate Ltd 1992.

Dollar (Clackmannan) 10 th October 1996

This is the third by-election this year in Clackmannan council. In 1995, Dollar was contested by the 4 main parties. The Tory vote in Scotland slumped to 11.5% and the SNP came within 58 votes of taking the only Tory seat on the Council. The SNP's Gerald Fischer will be disappointed not to have taken this seat although he will be consoled by the fact that his vote increased by 1.7%.

In a press conference the SNP's chief executive, Mr Michael Russel said:

'In the Dollar by-election, the SNP's vote and share of the vote increased significantly, in what was a very strong performance. When the seat was last contested in April 1995, the Tories won it at their very lowest point nationally, so it is hardly surprising that they were able to hold it on a split vote.'

For Labour, on the other hand, the news is all bad. They were hoping to maximise their vote in Dollar as this by-election will be seen as a vital pointer to the result in the Labour/SNP marginal Ochil parliamentary seat which includes this ward. The fact that Labour's vote was halved will do little to reassure Labour's Martin O'Neil who hopes to represent the new Ochils seat. On this swing, the SNP's George Reid, who represented this area from 1974 to 1979, looks favourite as the new MP for Ochil.

Dollar

10 th October 1996				6 th April 1995
		716	38.7%	David Mitchell		508	32.2%
Gerald Fisher		560	30.2%	Gerald Fisher		450	28.5%
		430	23.2%	Charles Bell		375	23.8%
		145	7.8%	Graham Watt		245	15.5%
Con hold	Con maj.	145	8.5%	Con gain	Con maj.	58	3.7%