Candidates and Constituency Assessments

'The LibDems have continually failed to put policy into practice. It has become impossible to regard the LiberalsŐ environmental commitments as anything other than a trick, to be discarded if there is any electoral advantage to be had from a contrary view.' Ex SDP and Lib Dem election candidate Stuart Callison.

East Dunbartonshire

Candidates

	Labour	John Lyons MP
	Scottish National Party	Christopher Sagan
	Conservative & Unionist	David Jack
	Liberal Democrat	Jo Swinson
	Scottish Socialist Party	Pamela Page
	Scottish Green Party	Stewart Callison

Candidates

The Labour candidate, John Lyons, has been Labour MP for Strathkelvin & Bearsden since 2001. John Lyons was born in Glasgow in 1949 and educated at Woodside Secondary School, West Middlesex Polytechnic and Stirling University. He worked as a mechanical engineer and then as a NUPE (later UNISON) union official. Upon Dr sam Galbraith's retiral due to poor health, Lyon was narrowly selected for the seat, beating Doug Maughan. After allegations of ballot rigging, the contest was re-run with Lyons the clear winner. Strathkelvin & Bearsden had become very safe for Labour during Sam Galbraith's tenure, but its solid nature was proved to be an illusion when he retired in 2001. Dr Jean Turner, campaigning to save Stobhill hospital won 18.2 % in the by-election for the Scottish parliamentary seat, and went on to win the seat in 2003. Lyons did not face a health campaigner in the Westminster seat and he held Strathkelvin & Bearsden for Labour with a majority of 11,717 over the Lib Dems in 2003. Lyons voted against the war in Iraq.

The SNP candidate is Christopher Sagan. Chris joined the SNP in 1975 in his native Saltcoats Branch. After serving in Strathclyde Police, then as an Officer in the Territorial Army and then working as a Chartered Mechanical Engineer and Engineering Manager in England, Germany and Canada he returned to Scotland and the SNP in 2001. Since then he has held several positions at Branch and CA level in Strathkelvin and Bearsden and in Glasgow West End and has stood as a candidate for Local Government in in Auchinairn. In 2001 Chris re-trained as a Physics Teacher spending two years teaching in inner city Glasgow. In August 2004 he spotted and took the opportunity to achieve a life long ambition of running his own business and bought a road haulage company. He is married with four children and in his free time enjoys spending as much time as possible out of doors with his family and dog.

The Tory candidate is David Jack. David is an executive on The Times and has worked as a national newspaper journalist for 14 years. He was previously news editor of The Scotsman and has been a reporter on a number of titles including the Daily Mail and The Sun. David, who graduated in law from Aberdeen University, is married with a three-year-old daughter. David's family are from Glasgow and he was born and raised in Edinburgh.

Lib Dem candidate Jo Swinson was born in 1980 and educated at Douglas College Milngavie. She has a BSC in management from the London School of Economics, and has worked in marketing and as a PR manager. Her interests include the environment, mental health, hiking, reading, gym, and ceilidh dancing. At the 2001 Westminster election she contested Hull East, while at the Scottish election in 2003 she was fifth on the West of Scotland list for the Lib Dems and contested Strathkelvin & Bearsden where she came third with 14.0 %.

The SSP candidate is Pamela Page, a 30 year old local teacher and Politics Graduate. Brought up in Bishopbriggs, she now lives and works in Kirkintilloch. An anti-war campaigner and community activist Pamela believes the billions spent bombing Iraq would have been better spent saving and improving vital community hospitals like Stobhill.

The Scottish Green Party candidate is Stuart Callison, the Deputy Director of one of ScotlandŐs leading local economic development companies. As an associate of two UK charities, he is involved both in research and practical grassroots work to promote active citizenship and individual well being, particularly in deprived communities. He lives in Bearsden, with his wife, son, and Partick Thistle scarf. Callison previously contested three elections for the SDP/Lib Dems but left the party in 2003 because of 'hypocrosy' of the Lib Dems concerning the envirnoment. In 1987 he contested Glasgow Garscadden for the SDP against Donald Dewar, coming fourth with 9.4 %. At the 1999 Scottish parliamentary elections, he contested Paisley South, coming third with 9.70 %, while at the 2001 Westminster election, he contested Glasgow Maryhill for the Lib Dems, coming third with 10.67 %.

Notional 2001 result

Logo	Party	Denver			Baxter
		Votes	%		Votes	%
	Labour	13,792	33.33 %		15,787	38.19 %
	Liberal Democrat	11,191	27.05 %		10,385	25.12 %
	Conservative & Unionist	9,290	22.45 %		8,246	19.95 %
	Scottish National Party	6,099	14.74 %		5,868	14.19 %
	Scottish Socialist Party	1,006	2.43 %		1,053	2.55 %
Notional Labour win	Notional Labour majority	2,601	6.29 %		5,402	13.07 %

Local Government wards in the constituency

This consists of the old Strathkelvin & Bearsden constituency minus four wards. The constituency also includes four wards from the old Clydebank & Milngavie, one predominantly in the old Clydebank & Milngavie, and one ward from the old Coatbridge & Chryston constituency. The new Westminster constituncy covers the all but five wards of the East Dunbartonshire council area.