Kirkcaldy_(UK_Parliament_constituency)
Kirkcaldy (UK Parliament constituency)
Parliamentary constituency in the United Kingdom, 1974–2005
Kirkcaldy was a county constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom in Fife, returning one Member of Parliament (MP). It existed from the February 1974 election until its abolition in 2005.
| Kirkcaldy | |
|---|---|
| Former County constituency for the House of Commons | |
Boundary of Kirkcaldy in Scotland for the 2001 general election | |
| Major settlements | Kirkcaldy |
| February 1974–2005 | |
| Seats | One |
| Created from | Kirkcaldy Burghs |
| Replaced by | Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath Glenrothes |
This was a safe Labour seat throughout its existence.
1974–1983: The burghs of Buckhaven and Methil, Burntisland, Kinghorn, and Kirkcaldy, the district of Kirkcaldy (except the electoral divisions of Markinch North and Markinch South) and the district of Wemyss (except the electoral divisions of Kennoway and Scoonie).[1]
1983–1997: The Kirkcaldy District electoral divisions of Auchtertool/Linktown/Invertiel, Bennochy/Chapel/Cluny, Bennochy/Dunearn, Buckhaven/East Wemyss, Burntisland/Kinghorn, Dunnikier, Gallatown/Dysart/Coaltown of Wemyss/Thornton, Hayfield/Kirkcaldy Central, and Smeaton/Sinclairtown.
1997–2005: The Kirkcaldy District electoral divisions of Buckhaven, Thornton and Wemyss; Burntisland and Auchtertool; Dunearn and Torbain; Dunnikier and Fair Isle; Dysart and Gallatown; Hayfield and Bennochy; Kinghorn and Linktown; Pathhead, Sinclairtown and Smeaton; and Raith and Valley.
The constituency was centred on the town of Kirkcaldy. It was created at the February 1974 election, mostly replacing Kirkcaldy Burghs. In 2005 the seat was abolished, being mostly replaced by Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath with a small portion becoming part of Glenrothes.
| Election | Member | Party | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 1974 | Harry Gourlay | Labour | Previously MP for Kirkcaldy Burghs from 1959. Deputy Chairman of Ways and Means 1968–1970. Died April 1987 | |
| 1987 | Lewis Moonie | Labour Co-operative | ||
| 2005 | constituency abolished: see Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath & Glenrothes | |||
Elections in the 1970s
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Harry Gourlay | 22,469 | 47.0 | ||
| Conservative | Arthur John Armstrong Bell | 13,087 | 27.3 | ||
| SNP | Roger Thompson Knox | 12,311 | 25.7 | ||
| Majority | 9,382 | 19.7 | |||
| Turnout | 47,867 | 79.4 | |||
| Labour win (new seat) | |||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Harry Gourlay | 20,688 | 45.4 | −1.6 | |
| SNP | Roger Thompson Knox | 14,587 | 32.0 | +6.3 | |
| Conservative | Robert Jones | 7,539 | 16.5 | −10.8 | |
| Liberal | Fergus Gray Young | 2,788 | 6.1 | New | |
| Majority | 6,101 | 13.4 | -6.3 | ||
| Turnout | 45,602 | 75.0 | −4.4 | ||
| Labour hold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Harry Gourlay | 25,449 | 53.9 | +8.5 | |
| Conservative | Jean Hazel Stewart | 12,386 | 26.2 | +9.7 | |
| SNP | Andrew Currie | 9,416 | 19.9 | −12.1 | |
| Majority | 13,063 | 27.7 | +14.3 | ||
| Turnout | 47,251 | 77.4 | +2.4 | ||
| Labour hold | Swing | ||||
Elections in the 1980s
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Harry Gourlay | 15,380 | 40.3 | −10.4 | |
| Conservative | Iain Walker | 10,049 | 26.3 | −2.8 | |
| SDP | Malcolm Black | 9,274 | 24.3 | New | |
| SNP | David Wood | 3,452 | 9.1 | −11.0 | |
| Majority | 5,331 | 14.0 | -13.7 | ||
| Turnout | 53,078 | 71.9 | −5.5 | ||
| Labour hold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour Co-op | Lewis Moonie | 20,281 | 49.6 | +9.3 | |
| Conservative | Iain Mitchell | 8,711 | 21.3 | −5.0 | |
| SDP | David Stewart | 7,118 | 17.4 | −6.9 | |
| SNP | Roger Mullin | 4,794 | 11.7 | +2.6 | |
| Majority | 11,570 | 28.3 | +14.3 | ||
| Turnout | 53,439 | 76.5 | +4.6 | ||
| Labour hold | Swing | ||||
Elections in the 1990s
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour Co-op | Lewis Moonie | 17,887 | 46.0 | −9.6 | |
| SNP | Stewart Hosie | 8,761 | 22.5 | +10.8 | |
| Conservative | Stephen Wosley | 8,476 | 21.8 | +0.5 | |
| Liberal Democrats | Sue Leslie | 3,729 | 9.6 | −7.8 | |
| Majority | 9,126 | 23.5 | −4.8 | ||
| Turnout | 38,853 | 74.8 | −1.7 | ||
| Labour hold | Swing | −7.2 | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour Co-op | Lewis Moonie | 18,730 | 53.6 | +8.0 | |
| SNP | Stewart Hosie | 8,020 | 22.9 | +0.3 | |
| Conservative | Charlotte Black | 4,779 | 13.7 | −8.4 | |
| Liberal Democrats | John Mainland | 3,031 | 8.7 | −1.0 | |
| Referendum | Victor Baxter | 413 | 1.2 | New | |
| Majority | 10,710 | 30.7 | +7.6 | ||
| Turnout | 34,973 | 66.5 | −8.3 | ||
| Labour hold | Swing | +3.8 | |||
Elections in the 2000s
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour Co-op | Lewis Moonie | 15,227 | 54.1 | +0.5 | |
| SNP | Shirley-Anne Somerville | 6,264 | 22.2 | −0.7 | |
| Conservative | Scott Campbell | 3,013 | 10.7 | −3.0 | |
| Liberal Democrats | Andrew Weston | 2,849 | 10.1 | +1.4 | |
| Scottish Socialist | Douglas Kinnear | 804 | 2.9 | New | |
| Majority | 8,963 | 31.9 | +1.2 | ||
| Turnout | 28,157 | 54.6 | −11.9 | ||
| Labour hold | Swing | +0.6 | |||
- "The Parliamentary Constituencies (Scotland) (Central Fife and Kirkcaldy) Order 1973", legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives, SI 1973/764, retrieved 26 February 2023
- Whitaker's Almanack, 1975
- Whitaker's Almanack, 1977
- "Election Data 1983". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 28 June 2017.
- "Election Data 1987". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 28 June 2017.
- "Election Data 1992". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 28 June 2017.
- "Politics Resources". Election 1992. Politics Resources. 9 April 1992. Archived from the original on 24 July 2011. Retrieved 6 December 2010.
- "Election Data 1997". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 28 June 2017.
- "Politics Resources". Election 1997. Politics Resources. 1 May 1997. Archived from the original on 14 June 2012. Retrieved 7 January 2011.
- C. Rallings & M. Thrasher, The Media Guide to the New Parliamentary Constituencies, p.106 (Plymouth: LGC Elections Centre, 1995)
- The 1997 election result is calculated relative to the notional, not the actual, 1992 result.
- "Election Data 2001". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 28 June 2017.