Dunfermline and West Fife was a county constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It was created for the 2005 general election from all of the old Dunfermline West and parts of the old Dunfermline East constituencies. The current MP is Douglas Chapman of the Scottish National Party (SNP).
| Dunfermline and West Fife | |
|---|---|
| Former county constituency for the House of Commons | |
 Boundary of Dunfermline and West Fife in Scotland | |
| Major settlements | Dunfermline, Inverkeithing, North Queensferry, Rosyth |
| 2005–2024 | |
| Created from | Dunfermline West and Dunfermline East |
The Dunfermline and West Fife by-election was held in early 2006, due to the death of the sitting MP, Rachel Squire. Willie Rennie of the Liberal Democrats was the surprise winner, by some 1,800 votes, in what was seen as a safe Labour seat.[1] However, he lost the seat to Labour's Thomas Docherty at the 2010 general election. Chapman then won the seat in the SNP's Scottish landslide in the 2015 general election.[2]
Further to the completion of the 2023 periodic review of Westminster constituencies, the seat was subject to boundary changes which will include the small town of Dollar in Clackmannanshire. As a consequence, it was renamed Dunfermline and Dollar, first contested at the 2024 general election.[3] Graeme Downie, of The Scottish Labour Party successfully was elected as the Member of Parliament for Dunfermline and Dollar on Thursday 4th July 2024.
Boundaries
edit
This constituency was formed in 2005 from all of the old Dunfermline West and parts of the old Dunfermline East constituencies.
Rosyth and Inverkeithing in the southeast are the only large population centres on the coast. To the north and west of Dunfermline is more rugged and robust Fife countryside. The whole seat was up against the Firth of Forth.
Places in Dunfermline and West Fife constituency
editRoyal burghs
edit- Dunfermline - Population: 55,000
- Inverkeithing - Population: 4,820
- Culross - Population: 395 (2006)
Burghs, towns, and large villages (Over 1,000 population)
edit- Rosyth - Population: 13,570
- Kincardine on Forth - Population: 2,940
- Crossgates - Population: 2,830
- Cairneyhill - Population: 2,510
- Crossford - Population: 2,320
- Valleyfield - Population: 2,280
- Oakley - Population: 2,240
- Limekilns - Population: 1,450
- Saline - Population: 1,370
- Townhill - Population: 1,160
- North Queensferry - Population: 1,050
- Torryburn - Population: 1,030
Electoral wards of Dunfermline and small, outlying villages
edit- Baldridgeburn (Ward of Dunfermline)
- Bellyeoman (Ward of Dunfermline)
- Brucefield (Ward of Dunfermline)
- Carnegie (Ward of Dunfermline)
- Garvock (Ward of Dunfermline
- Halbeath (Ward of Dunfermline)
- Headwell (Ward of Dunfermline)
- Linburn (Ward of Dunfermline)
- Milesmark (Ward of Dunfermline)
- Mossside (Ward of Dunfermline)
- Netherton (Ward of Dunfermline)
- Pitcorthie (Ward of Dunfermline)
- Pitreavie (Ward of Dunfermline)
- Woodmill (Ward of Dunfermline)
- Blairhall - Population: 930
- Hill of Beath - Population: 875
- Kingseat - Population: 860
- Comrie - Population: 830
- Carnock - Population: 790
- Wellwood - Population: 608
- Crombie - Population: 374
- Steelend - Population: 320
- Gowkhall - Population: 220
Members of Parliament
editRachel Squire (Labour) was the MP for Dunfermline West constituency from 1992 until the major revision of the composition of Scottish parliamentary constituencies for the 2005 general election. Gordon Brown was MP for the neighbouring Dunfermline East constituency from which some territory was given to Dunfermline and West Fife.
Squire won the new seat in the 2005 general election and held it until her death on 5 January 2006. The subsequent by-election was held on 9 February 2006, which Liberal Democrat Willie Rennie won in a shock defeat for Labour. The Liberal Democrats also gained the Dunfermline West Scottish Parliamentary constituency from Labour in the 2007 Holyrood Parliament elections.
In the 2010 general election, the Labour candidate Thomas Docherty won the seat back. In the 2015 general election the seat was won by the SNP's Douglas Chapman.
| Election | Member[4] | Party | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | Rachel Squire | Labour | |
| 2006 by-election | Willie Rennie | Liberal Democrat | |
| 2010 | Thomas Docherty | Labour | |
| 2015 | Douglas Chapman | SNP | |
Election results
editElections in the 2010s
edit| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SNP | Douglas Chapman | 23,727 | 44.4 | +8.9 | |
| Labour Co-op | Cara Hilton | 13,028 | 24.4 | −9.5 | |
| Conservative | Moira Benny | 11,207 | 21.0 | −3.7 | |
| Liberal Democrats | Rebecca Bell | 4,262 | 8.0 | +2.1 | |
| Scottish Green | Mags Hall | 1,258 | 2.4 | New | |
| Majority | 10,699 | 20.0 | +18.4 | ||
| Turnout | 53,482 | 69.8 | +2.4 | ||
| SNP hold | Swing | +9.2 | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SNP | Douglas Chapman | 18,121 | 35.5 | −14.8 | |
| Labour Co-op | Cara Hilton | 17,277 | 33.9 | +2.2 | |
| Conservative | Belinda Hacking | 12,593 | 24.7 | +12.8 | |
| Liberal Democrats | James Calder | 3,019 | 5.9 | +1.9 | |
| Majority | 844 | 1.6 | −17.0 | ||
| Turnout | 51,010 | 67.4 | −4.2 | ||
| SNP hold | Swing | -8.4 | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SNP | Douglas Chapman | 28,096 | 50.3 | +39.7 | |
| Labour | Thomas Docherty | 17,744 | 31.7 | −14.6 | |
| Conservative | James Reekie | 6,623 | 11.9 | +5.1 | |
| Liberal Democrats | Gillian Cole-Hamilton[12] | 2,232 | 4.0 | −31.1 | |
| Scottish Green | Lewis Campbell[13] | 1,195 | 2.1 | New | |
| Majority | 10,352 | 18.6 | N/A | ||
| Turnout | 55,890 | 71.6 | +5.2 | ||
| SNP gain from Labour | Swing | +27.1 | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Thomas Docherty | 22,639 | 46.3 | −1.1 | |
| Liberal Democrats | Willie Rennie | 17,169 | 35.1 | +14.9 | |
| SNP | Joe McCall | 5,201 | 10.6 | −8.3 | |
| Conservative | Belinda Hacking | 3,305 | 6.8 | −3.5 | |
| UKIP | Otto Inglis | 633 | 1.3 | −0.2 | |
| Majority | 5,470 | 11.2 | −16.0 | ||
| Turnout | 48,947 | 66.4 | +6.5 | ||
| Labour hold | Swing | ||||
Elections in the 2000s
edit| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Liberal Democrats | Willie Rennie | 12,391 | 35.8 | +15.6 | |
| Labour | Catherine Stihler | 10,591 | 30.6 | −16.8 | |
| SNP | Douglas Chapman | 7,261 | 21.0 | +2.1 | |
| Conservative | Carrie Ruxton | 2,702 | 7.8 | −2.5 | |
| Scottish Socialist | John McAllion | 537 | 1.6 | 0.0 | |
| Scottish Christian | George Hargreaves | 411 | 1.2 | New | |
| Abolish Forth Bridge Tolls Party | Tom Minogue | 374 | 1.1 | New | |
| UKIP | Ian Borland | 208 | 0.6 | −0.9 | |
| Common Good | Dick Rodgers | 103 | 0.3 | New | |
| Majority | 1,800 | 5.2 | N/A | ||
| Turnout | 34,578 | 47.9 | −12.0 | ||
| Liberal Democrats gain from Labour | Swing | +16.24 | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Rachel Squire | 20,111 | 47.4 | −7.1 | |
| Liberal Democrats | David Herbert | 8,549 | 20.2 | +5.9 | |
| SNP | Douglas Chapman | 8,026 | 18.9 | +1.1 | |
| Conservative | Roger Smillie | 4,376 | 10.3 | +0.6 | |
| Scottish Socialist | Susan Archibald | 689 | 1.6 | −0.8 | |
| UKIP | Ian Borland | 643 | 1.5 | +0.1 | |
| Majority | 11,562 | 27.2 | −13.0 | ||
| Turnout | 42,394 | 59.9 | +2.3 | ||
| Labour hold | Swing | -6.5 | |||
References
edit- ^ "Lib Dems deliver blow to Labour". BBC News. 10 February 2006.
- ^ "Everything you need to know about the Scottish National Party's 56 MPs". BT.com. 13 May 2015.
- ^ Boundary Commission Scotland 2023 Review Report
- ^ Leigh Rayment's Historical List of MPs – Constituencies beginning with "D" (part 4)
- ^ "General Election 12 December 2019". Fife Council. Archived from the original on 14 December 2019. Retrieved 15 November 2019.
- ^ "Dunfermline & West Fife parliamentary constituency - Election 2019". Retrieved 15 December 2019.
- ^ "Commons Briefing Paper 8749. General Election 2019: results and analysis" (PDF). London: House of Commons Library. 28 January 2020. Archived (PDF) from the original on 18 November 2021. Retrieved 19 January 2022.
- ^ "Dunfermline & West Fife parliamentary constituency - Election 2017". BBC News. Retrieved 12 April 2018.
- ^ "Commons Briefing Paper 7979. General Election 2017: results and analysis" (PDF) (Second ed.). House of Commons Library. 29 January 2019 [7 April 2018]. Archived (PDF) from the original on 12 November 2019.
- ^ "Election Data 2015". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 17 October 2015. Retrieved 17 October 2015.
- ^ Fife Council, Elections (7 July 2014). "Elections - The Scottish Independence Referendum Results 2014". www.fifedirect.org.uk. Archived from the original on 20 December 2016. Retrieved 10 September 2019.
- ^ "List of selected candidates". Liberal Democrats. 4 March 2015. Retrieved 14 March 2015.
- ^ "Updates".
- ^ "Election Data 2010". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 26 July 2013. Retrieved 17 October 2015.
- ^ "Election Data 2005". Electoral Calculus. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011. Retrieved 18 October 2015.
External links
edit- Boundary Commission for Scotland, UK Parliament constituencies 2005 onwards
- Dunfermline and West Fife UK Parliament constituency (boundaries April 2005 – May 2024) at MapIt UK