 | 'The consequence of Mr. Bush's and Blair's historic lie that the reason for invading Iraq was weapons of mass destruction, is that everything is being doubted.' Lebanese MP, Walid Jumblatt, 21 st March 2004. |  |
| 'The consequence of Mr. Bush's and Blair's historic lie that the reason for invading Iraq was weapons of mass destruction, is that everything is being doubted.' Lebanese MP, Walid Jumblatt, 21 st March 2004. | |
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Gillian Cole-Hamilton (Also number 3 on Lothians list) |
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| Liberal Democrat | ||
| Gillian Cole-Hamilton is 28 years old, grew up in Dalkieth and wstudied at Aberdeen University. She is a primary school teacher. She lives in Meadowbank with her husband, Alex Cole-Hamilton, the number one candidate on the LibDem Mid Scotland & Fife list. Recent electoral experience | ||
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Kenny MacAskill MSP (Also number 1 on Lothians list) |
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| Scottish National Party | ||
| Kenny MacAskill was born in Edinburgh on the 28 th April 1956 and educated at Linlithgow Academy and Edinburgh University where he graduated with a LLB (Hons). From 1984 until 2000 he worked as a Senior Partner in an Edinburgh law firm. Kenny has been a Lothians MSP since 1999. As Shadow Justice and Home Affairs Minister, he is a member of the Shadow Cabinet. He is a long standing member of the SNP's NEC and was National Treasurer and Vice Convener Policy when he was also the SNP's Poll Tax spokesperson, leading the party's popular 'Can Pay, Won't Pay' campaign. He stood for the Deputy leadership in 2000, polling 323 votes (41.4 %) on the second ballot, compared to 457 (58.6 %) for Roseanna Cunningham. He stood in Edinburgh East & Musselburgh in both 1999 and 2003. He is married with two sons.
Shadow Ministerial Posts: May 1999 - September 2000 - Shadow Minister for Transport & the Environment September 2000 - April 2003 - Shadow Minister for Enterprise & Lifelong Learning May 2003 - September 2004 - Shadow Minister for Tourism, Transport & Telecommunications September 2004 - Shadow Minister for Justice Recent electoral experience 2003 Scottish Parliament election, Edinburgh East & Musselburgh, 6,497 votes (22.37 %) 2003 Scottish Parliament election, First on SNP Lothians list, 43,142 votes (16.24 %) (elected) 1999 Scottish Parliament election, Edinburgh East & Musselburgh, 10,372 votes (28.04 %) 1999 Scottish Parliament election, Second on SNP Lothians list, 85,085 votes (25.74 %) (elected) 1997 Westminster election, Linlithgow, 10,631 votes (26.81 %) 1992 Westminster election, Linlithgow, 14,577 votes (30.34 %) 1990 Lothian Regional Council election, Bathgate/Armadale, 2,632 votes (40.50 %) 1989 European election, Mid Scotland & Fife, 50,089 votes (22.58 %) 1987 Westminster election, Livingston, 6,969 votes (16.62 %) 1983 Westminster election, Livingston, 5,090 votes (13.47 %) | ||
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Cllr Norman Murray (Not standing on Lothians list) |
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| Labour | ||
| Susan Deacon MSP had been reselected as the Labour candidate but on the 13th August 2006 she announced that she would be standing down. The surprise choice to replace her as the Labour candidate was Cllr Norman Murray, the unpopular leader of East Lothian council. Murray beat Edinburgh Lord Provost Lesley Hinds, Jalal Chaudry, a Muslim leader who is second on Labour's South of Scotland list, former Edinburgh council leader Keith Geddes, Liam Jarnecki, an ex-director of NUS Scotland, Mike Robb, the chair of the local Labour party, and Ann Henderson who assists Susan Deacon. The four strong short list was Lesley Hinds, Mike Robb, Norman Murray and Anne Henderson. Norman Murray is a past president of COSLA. He had decided to retire from East Lothian Council, having had his majority in Musselburgh Central slashed from a healthy 692 in 1999 to just three in 2003.
Council positions Leader of East Lothian Council Recent electoral experience 2003 East Lothian council election, Musselburgh Central, 638 votes (39.7 %) (elected with a majority of three) 1999 East Lothian council election, Musselburgh Central, 1,196 votes (57.20 %) (elected) 1995 East Lothian council election, Musselburgh Central/Inveresk, 1,120 votes (62.33 %) (elected) 1992 East Lothian District council election, Musselburgh Central, 835 votes (55.85 %) (elected) | ||
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Christine Wright (Also number 7 on Lothians list) |
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| Conservative & Unionist | ||
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Christine Wright from Leith is a 54-year-old mature student of journalism and a first-time candidate. She says: "I work in the NHS running chronic disease clinics so I know what is happening at the front line, so to speak. I believe that people need to be represented by people from ordinary walks of life in order to understand the problems facing them." Recent electoral experience. | ||
This assessment is based on the 2003 election results
Rank on Scottish National Party hit list: 30 (42 in 2003)
Swing required for Scottish National Party gain: 10.60 % from Labour to Scottish National Party
Rank on Conservative hit list: 42 (36 in 2003)
Swing required for Conservative gain: 15.14 % from Labour to Conservative
Rank on Liberal Democrat hit list: 25 (26 in 2003)
Swing required for Liberal Democrat gain: 15.62 % from Labour to Liberal Democrat
The electorate of 59,848 was split between the new Westminster constituencies of:
Edinburgh East: 47,970 (80.2 %)
East Lothian: 11,878 (19.9 %)
| Council | Ward number | Ward name | Electorate (June 2001) |
|---|---|---|---|
| City of Edinburgh | 35 | Meadowbank | 6,338 |
| 36 | Mountcastle | 6,296 | |
| 37 | Leith Links | 6,069 | |
| 38 | Restalrig | 6,826 | |
| 39 | Portobello | 6,047 | |
| 40 | Milton | 6,172 | |
| 57 | Craigmillar | 5,121 | |
| 58 | Duddingston | 6,352 | |
| East Lothian | 1 | Musselburgh West | 3,351 |
| 2 | Musselburgh South | 3,302 | |
| 3 | Musselburgh North | 2,910 | |
| 4 | Musselburgh Central | 3,244 | |
| 5 | Musselburgh East1 | 2,787 |
1 Split between Edinburgh East & Musselburgh and East Lothian
| Electorate 57,704. Turnout 29,044, 50.33 % (- 11.44 %) | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Logo | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | % change |
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Labour | Susan Deacon MSP | 12,655 | 43.57 % | - 2.62 % |
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Scottish National Party | Kenny MacAskill MSP | 6,497 | 22.37 % | - 5.67 % |
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Conservative & Unionist | John Smart | 3,863 | 13.30 % | + 0.86 % |
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Liberal Democrat | Gary Peacock | 3,582 | 12.33 % | + 1.85 % |
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Scottish Socialist Party | Derek Durkin | 2,447 | 8.43 % | + 6.55 % |
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Labour hold | Labour majority | 6,158 | 21.20 % | + 3.05 % |
| Electorate 57,704. Turnout 29,065, 50.37 % 189 rejected ballot papers | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Logo | Party | Votes | % | % change |
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Labour | 8,148 | 28.03 % | - 7.14 % |
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Scottish National Party | 4,771 | 16.41 % | - 10.74 % |
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Margo MacDonald MSP (Independent) | 3,385 | 11.65 % | (+ 11.65 %) |
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Scottish Green Party | 3,375 | 11.61 % | 5.52 % |
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Conservative & Unionist Party | 3,176 | 10.93 % | - 1.43 % |
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Liberal Democrats | 2,244 | 7.72 % | - 3.37 % |
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Scottish Socialist Party | 2,168 | 7.46 % | + 5.38 % |
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Pensioners's Party | 789 | 2.71 % | (+ 2.71 %) |
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Liberal Party In Scotland | 299 | 1.03 % | |
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Socialist Labour Party | 274 | 0.94 % | - 2.82 % |
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Scottish Peoples Alliance | 133 | 0.46 % | (+ 0.46 %) |
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UK Independence Party | 98 | 0.34 % | (+ 0.34 %) |
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Adam Lyle's Witchery Tour Party | 87 | 0.30 % | |
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Pro-Life Party | 66 | 0.23 % | - 0.13 % |
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Mary Campbell (Independent) | 25 | 0.09 % | |
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Alexander Scott (Independent) | 19 | 0.07 % | |
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Peter Gatensbury (Independent) | 8 | 0.03 % | |
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Labour majority | 3,377 | 11.62 % | + 3.60 % |
| Logo | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | % change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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Labour | Susan Deacon | 17,086 | 46.19 % | - 7.38 % |
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Scottish National Party | Kenny MacAskill | 10,372 | 28.04 % | + 8.97 % |
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Conservative &Unionist | Jeremey Balfour | 4,600 | 12.44 % | - 2.95 % |
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Liberal Democrat | Marjorie Thomas | 4,100 | 11.08 % | + 0.37 % |
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Scottish Socilaist party | Derrick White | 697 | 1.88 % | + 1.88 % |
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Independent for You | Michael Heavey | 134 | 0.36 % | + 0.36 % |
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Labour win | Labour majority | 6,714 | 18.15 % | - 16.35 % |
| Logo | Party | Votes | % |
|---|---|---|---|
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Labour | 12,990 | 35.17 % |
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Scottish National Party | 10,029 | 27.15 % |
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Conservative & Unionist Party | 4,565 | 12.36 % |
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Liberal Democrats | 4,098 | 11.09 % |
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Scottish Green Party | 2,250 | 6.09 % |
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Socialist Labour Party | 1,390 | 3.76 % |
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Scottish Socialist Party | 770 | 2.08 % |
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ProLife Alliance | 131 | 0.36 % |
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Natural Law Party | 68 | 0.18 % |
| Others: Liberal Party Witchery Tour Party Civil Rights Movement Braveheart Socialist Party of Great Britain Independent Voice for Scottish Parliament Independent Independent Anti-Corruption, Mobile Home Scandal, Roads (No breakdown available) |
649 | 1.76 % | |
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Labour majority | 2,961 | 8.02 % |
| Logo | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
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Labour | Dr Gavin Strang | 22,564 | 53.57 % |
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Scottish National Party | Derick White | 8,034 | 19.07 % |
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Conservative & Unionist | Kenneth Ward | 6,483 | 15.39 % |
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Liberal Democrat | Callum MacKellar | 4,511 | 10.71 % |
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Referendum | James Sibbet | 526 | 1.25% |
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Labour hold | Labour majority | 14,530 | 34.50 % |
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