Marginal Seats

'The Liberal Democrat UK manifesto gave English voters a taste of the half truths being peddled north of the border. 'In Scotland, where the Liberal Democrats are part of the government, we have already guaranteed free personal care,' its front page boasted. 'We have also abolished tuition fees.' Both claims are untrue. The Lib Dems in Scotland voted against free personal care - twice. A 'review' had been set up thanks to a Labour U-turn. Nothing had been 'guaranteed'. Neither had the Scottish tuition fee been 'abolished'. It was reduced to a flat £2,000, renamed and made payable on graduation.' Fraser Nelson in The Times Guide to the House of Commons, July 2001.

Most Marginal Seats in 2005

The following table indicates the most marginal seats in Scotland at the Westminster election of 5 th May 2005. The ranking in brackets is a theoretical one had the election of 7 th July 2001 been fought on the new boundaries. Constituencies that changed hand notionally in 2005 are marked with an asterisk *.

Key

Labour	Scottish National Party	Conservative & Unionist	Liberal Democrat
Speaker	Socialist Labour Party	Scottish Socialist Party	Operation Christian Vote

Most Marginal Seats

Rank	Constituency	Majority	% Majority	1st	%	2nd	%	3rd	%	4th	%
1 (15)	Edinburgh South	405	0.95 %		33.23 %		32.28 %		24.10 %		6.17 %
2 (2)	Dundee East *	383	0.97 %		37.20 %		36.23 %		12.80 %		11.38 %
a (58)	Glasgow East 2	365	1.39 %		43.01%		41.65 %		6.25 %		3.49 %
3 (4)	Ochil & South Perthshire	688	1.47 %		31.36 %		29.89 %		21.46 %		13.32 %
4 (10)	Aberdeen South	1,348	3.24 %		36.69 %		33.45 %		17.17 %		9.90 %
5 (11)	Perth & North Perthshire	1,521	3.31 %		33.68 %		30.37 %		18.73 %		16.12 %
6 (13)	Dumfriesshire, Clydesdale & Tweeddale *	1,738	3.90 %		36.18 %		32.28 %		20.28 %		9.13 %
7 (3)	Angus	1,601	4.17 %		33.65 %		29.48 %		17.95 %		17.45 %
8 (23)	Edinburgh North & Leith	2,153	5.05 %		34.23 %		29.18 %		18.69 %		10.19 %
b (51)	Dunfermline & West Fife 1	1,800	5.21 %		35.83 %		30.63 %		21.00 %		7.81 %
9 (1)	Dumfries & Galloway	2,922	5.74 %		41.12 %		35.37 %		12.15 %		8.37 %
10 (7)	East Dunbartonshire *	4,061	8.69 %		41.81 %		33.11 %		16.50 %		5.81 %
11 (5)	Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch & Strathspey *	4,148	9.37 %		40.29 %		30.92 %		13.54 %		10.35 %
12 (20)	Stirling	4,767	10.91 %		36.00 %		25.09 %		20.72 %		12.60 %
13 (8)	Na h-Eileanan An Iar *	1,441	10.41 %		44.90 %		34.49 %		7.92 %		7.57 %
14 (36)	Glasgow North	3,338	11.96 %		39.40 %		27.45 %		12.94 %		8.74 %
15 (27)	Berwickshire, Roxburgh & Selkirk	5,901	13.00 %		41.85 %		28.84 %		15.88 %		8.56 %
16 (9)	Argyll & Bute	5,636	13.04 %		36.52 %		23.48 %		22.43 %		15.54 %
17 (19)	East Renfrewshire	6,657	14.04 %		43.91 %		29.87 %		18.27 %		6.85 %
18 (24)	Dundee West	5,379	14.56 %		44.59 %		30.02 %		14.41 %		8.29 %
19 (6)	Moray	5,676	14.63 %		36.59 %		21.96 %		20.41 %		19.23 %
20 (44)	Edinburgh East	6,202	15.62 %		40.04 %		24.42 %		17.02 %		10.31 %
21 (18)	Edinburgh South West	7,242	16.49 %		39.79 %		23.30 %		21.06 %		10.60 %
22 (41)	East Lothian	7,620	16.65 %		41.47 %		24.82 %		15.98 %		13.10 %
23 (14)	West Aberdeenshire & Kincardine	7,471	17.94 %		46.30 %		28.37 %		13.13 %		11.29 %
24 (26)	Aberdeen North	6,795	18.55 %		42.47 %		23.92 %		22.30 %		9.43 %
25 (40)	Midlothian	7,265	19.26 %		45.49 %		26.23 %		16.97 %		9.38 %
26 (39)	Kilmarnock & Loudoun	8,703	19.61 %		47.26 %		27.65 %		11.32 %		11.14 %
27 (30)	Ayr, Carrick & Cumnock	9,997	22.19 %		45.36 %		23.17 %		14.08 %		13.17 %
28 (29)	Linlithgow & East Falkirk	11,202	24.15 %		47.69 %		23.54 %		15.31 %		11.83 %
29 (25)	Central Ayrshire	10,423	24.31 %		46.43 %		22.12 %		16.05 %		11.59 %
30 (17)	Gordon	11,026	24.81 %		45.02 %		20.21 %		17.65 %		15.97 %
31 (31)	North Ayrshire & Arran	11.296	25.55 %		43.92 %		18.37 %		17.96 %		16.43 %
32 (37)	Paisley & Renfrewshire North	11,001	26.91 %		45.73 %		18.82 %		18.26 %		13.61 %
33 (51)	Dunfermline & West Fife	11,562	27.27 %		47.44 %		20.17 %		18.93 %		10.32 %
34 (33)	Lanark & Hamilton East	11,947	27.41 %		46.05 %		17.77 %		12.79 %		12.79 %
35 (45)	Glasgow South	10,832	28.19 %		47.24 %		19.05 %		12.65 %		12.58 %
36 (48)	Glenrothes	10,664	28.54 %		51.91 %		23.37 %		12.65 %		7.09 %
37 (38)	Falkirk	13,475	29.45 %		50.85 %		21.40 %		16.00 %		9.92 %
38 (16)	Caithness, Sutherland & Easter Ross	8,168	29.53 %		50.45 %		20.93 %		13.32 %		10.25 %
39 (43)	Livingston	13,097	29.54 %		51.10 %		21.56 %		15.41 %		10.15 %
40 (42)	Cumbernauld, Kilsyth & Kirkintilloch East	11,562	29.58 %		51.81 %		22.23 %		14.88 %		6.95 %
41 (52)	Glasgow North West	10,093	29.63 %		49.17 %		19.54 %		13.73 %		9.58 %
42 (12)	Edinburgh West	13,600	30.05 %		49.52 %		19.48 %		18.63 %		9.11 %
43 (54)	West Dunbartonshire	12,553	30.18 %		51.94 %		21.75 %		14.42 %		6.44 %
44 (47)	Glasgow Central	8,531	30.43 %		48.21 %		17.79 %		14.79 %		6.27 %
45 (35)	East Kilbride, Strathaven & Lesmahagow	14,723	30.84 %		48.74 %		17.89 %		16.56 %		10.01 %
46 (34)	Inverclyde	11,259	31.19 %		50.75 %		19.56 %		16.96 %		10.23 %
47 (56)	Rutherglen & Hamilton West	16,112	31.24 %		55.60 %		18.36 %		13.92 %		8.37 %
48 (32)	Banff & Buchan	11,837	31.81 %		51.17 %		19.37 %		13.31 %		12.03 %
49 (28)	North East Fife	12,571	32.60 %		52.10 %		19.50 %		12.76 %		10.40 %
50 (49)	Paisley & Renfrewshire South	13,232	34.95 %		52.57 %		17.62 %		17.57 %		8.42 %
51 (46)	Glasgow North East	10,134	35.66 %		53.32 %		17.66 %		14.20 %		4.93 %
52 (21)	Orkney & Shetland	6,627	37.35 %		51.50 %		14.15 %		13.28 %		10.33 %
53 (50)	Motherwell & Wishaw	15,222	41.02 %		57.47 %		16.45 %		12.03 %		9.27 %
54 (53)	Airdrie & Shotts	14,084	42.48 %		59.01 %		16.54 %		11.44 %		9.86 %
55 (55)	Kirkcaldy & Cowdenbeath	18,216	43.58 %		58.09 %		14.50 %		13.04 %		10.31 %
56 (58)	Glasgow East	13,507	43.66 %		60.68 %		17.03 %		11.85 %		6.90 %
57 (22)	Ross, Skye & Lochaber	14.249	43.79 %		58.71 %		14.91 %		10.07 %		9.59 %
58 (57)	Glasgow South West	13,896	44.86 %		60.22 %		15.36 %		11.60 %		5.77 %
59 (59)	Coatbridge, Chryston & Bellshill	19,519	50.90 %		64.48 %		13.58 %		12.01 %		7.24 %

¹ The Lib Dems won Dumfermline & West Fife from Labour in a by-election in February 2006.
² The Scottish National Party won Glasgow East from Labour in a by-election in July 2008.