Candidates and Constituency Assessments

'Scotland doesn't want a forced choice between Michael Howard, a Tory who introduced the poll tax, or Tony Blair, a Tory who took us into an illegal war." SNP Leader Alex Salmond MP, 14 th April 2005.

Dundee East

Candidates

	Labour	Iain Luke MP
	Scottish National Party	Stewart Hosie
	Conservative & Unionist	Chris Bustin
	Liberal Democrat	Dr Clive Sneddon
	Scottish Socialist Party	Harvey Duke
	UK Independence Party	Donald Low
	Independent	David Allison

Candidates

The Labour candidate is Iain Luke, the current MP for Dundee East. Luke was born in Dundee in 1951 and educated at Dundee and Edinburgh Universities and Jordanhill College. He worked as a tax collector and then as a lecturer at Dundee College before being elected to Dundee City Council. He served on the Council from 1984 until 1996, serving as leader from 1990 until 1992, and on the new Dundee City Council from 1996 until 2001, representing Tay Bridges which he held with 48.5 % of the vote in 1999. (In 2001 the ward was won by the Lib Dems). In 2001, Luke became MP for Dundee East, succeeding John McAllion who remained MSP for Dundee East. There was a 5.4 % swing from Labour to the SNP which saw Luke was elected with a majority of 4,475, down from 9,961 in 1997. Luke has his work cut out if he wishes to hold the seat - in 2003, the popular local MSP and ex MP, John McAllion, who had won the seat from SNP Chairman Gordon Wilson in 1987, was narrowly defeated the SNP's Shona Robison. The boundary changes here add some 18,000 voters from the SNP seat of Angus and makes the new Dundee East one of the two most marginal seats in Scotland.

The SNP candidate is Stewart Hosie. Born in Dundee in 1963 Stewart was educated at Brackens PS, Invertay PS Monifieth, Carnoustie High School and Bell Street Tech, (Now Abertay University) where he gained an HD in Computer Studies. After working in IT / IS for 20 years Stewart now runs his own business. A highly experienced political campaigner, Stewart was the SNP's first Youth Convener and spent four years as the Party's National Secretary before being elected as the Organisation Convener in 2003. Married to Shona Robison MSP with a young daughter, Morag Louise, Stewart lives in the constituency, the only candidate selected so far who does! Stewart was recently endorsed by the Save the Scottish Regiments Campaign. Stewart contested Kirkcaldy at the 1992 Westminster election, doubling the SNP vote from 11.7 % to 22.6 %, taking them from fourth to second place behind Labour. He also contested Kirkcaldy at the 1997 Westminster election, coming second with 22.9 %, and at the 1999 Scottish parliamentary elections, when he increased the SNP by 9.4 % to 32.4 %, reducing Marilyn Livingston's majority to 4,475 in a previously safe Labour seat. At the 2001 Westminster election, Stewart contested Dundee East, increasing the SNP vote by 4.9 % to 31.4 % and reducing tha Labour majority from 9,961 to less than 4,475.

Tory candidate, Chris Bustin went to Dundee University and graduated in Law with languages. Chris has been very active in student politics, having previously been President and Chairman of the University Students Association and Vice President of the Scottish Conservative students. He is currently President of the Scottish students Debating Council and an active member of the Countryside Alliance. Chris is currently employed research at the University and is a member of Dundee Community Council.

Lib Dem candidate, Dr Clive Sneddon, was born in 1945 and educated at Oxford University where he graduated with a BA in French & German and a DPhil. Married with two children, he works as a lecturer in French at St Andrews University. His interests include music, playing flute & piccolo and watching films. He was a North East Fife District Councillor from 1980 until 1996 and was Chairman of the council from 1988 until 1992. He is a former member of COSLA, the Scottish Constitutional Convention and the European Union Committee of the regions. In 1999 and 2004 he stood as a candidate for the European elections, being ranked fifth and sixth respectively on the Lib Dem list. At the 2003 Scottish parliamentary election, he contested Dundee East, coming fourth with 6.0 %.

The SSP candidate is Harvey Duke. Harvey has been an active community and socialist campaigner for the last 20 years. He has lived in Dundee all his life, currently in the Hilltown area of the city, and works as a community worker. Harvey has recently played a leading role in the successful campaign against the transfer of Dundee's council housing stock. He has stood as a socialist in a number of elections in Dundee and the north-east of Scotland and was the SSP candidate at the 2001 Westminster election when he came fifth with 2.72 %.

The UK Independence Party candidate is Donald Low. He has had a variety of jobs from Merchant Navy officer to petshop owner and director of a wind turbine company. He also serves on committees for charities and trusts as well as community councils. He also supports the retention of our Scottish Regiments.

Independent candidate Savid Allison is the leader of the Scottish National Socialist Party. He came to Dundee in 1999 to study Information Management at Abertay University. Twelve years a Merchant Seaman, world traveller David spent six months in a Communist Kibbutz in Israel. Sailing, politics and photography are passions, he recently spent a week sailing in Loch Ness in the severest weather. See images here A passionate interest in historical revisionism, David's speciality is Holocaust revisionism. Vegetarian (fish eating). A member of Dundee Photographic Society David is a LRPS Licentiate of the Royal Photographic society.

Notional 2001 result

Logo	Party	Denver			Baxter
		Votes	%		Votes	%
	Labour	14,369	37.35 %		14,608	37.25 %
	Scottish National Party	13,873	36.06 %		13,968	35.62 %
	Conservative & Unionist	5,903	15.34 %		6,483	16.53 %
	Liberal Democrat	3,346	8.70 %		3,345	8.53 %
	Scottish Socialist Party	980	2.56 %		813	2.07 %
Notional Labour win	Notional Labour majority	496	1.29 %		640	1.62 %

Local Government wards in the constituency

This new constituency consists of the old Dundee East constituency with the exception of two wards wholly within the old Dundee East and another two wards shared with the old Dundee West which are transferred to the new Dundee West. In addition the new Dundee East constituency includes six of the 19 wards from the old Angus constituency.