Edinburgh Central (Scottish Parliament constituency)

Edinburgh Central is a burgh constituency of the Scottish Parliament (Holyrood). It elects one Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) by the plurality (first past the post) method of election. Also, it is one of nine constituencies in the Lothian electoral region, which elects seven additional members, in addition to nine constituency MSPs, to produce a form of proportional representation for the region as a whole.

Not to be confused with Edinburgh Central (UK Parliament constituency).

Edinburgh Central
burgh constituency
for the Scottish Parliament
Edinburgh Central shown within the Lothian electoral region and the region shown within Scotland
Current constituency
Created1999
PartyScottish Conservative Party
MSPRuth Davidson MSP
Council areaCity of Edinburgh

The constituency was created with the name and boundaries of a constituency of the Edinburgh Central UK Parliament constituency.

Since 1999, the constituency MSP has been an ex officio member of the Board of Trustees of the National Library of Scotland. From 1925 until 1999, that role had been taken by the Member of Parliament (MP) for the Westminster constituency.

The constituency was one of the few areas to vote "Yes" in the 2011 UK Alternative Vote referendum held on the same day as the 2011 Scottish Parliament election.

Electoral region
See also: Lothian (Scottish Parliament electoral region)

The other eight constituencies of the Lothian region are Almond Valley, Edinburgh Eastern, Edinburgh Northern and Leith, Edinburgh Pentlands, Edinburgh Southern, Edinburgh Western, Linlithgow and Midlothian North and Musselburgh

The region includes all of the City of Edinburgh council area, parts of the East Lothian council area, parts of the Midlothian council area and all of the West Lothian council area.

Constituency boundaries and council area

The City of Edinburgh is represented in the Scottish Parliament by six constituencies: Edinburgh Central, Edinburgh Eastern, Edinburgh Northern and Leith, Edinburgh Pentlands, Edinburgh Southern and Edinburgh Western.

The Edinburgh Central constituency was created at the same time as the Scottish Parliament, in 1999, with the name and boundaries of an existing Westminster constituency. In 2005, however, Scottish Westminster (House of Commons) constituencies were mostly replaced with new constituencies.[1]

As part of the First Periodic Review of Scottish Parliament Boundaries the boundaries of the constituency were changed before the 2011 Scottish Parliament election. Each electoral ward used in the creation of the redrawn Central is split, shared with neighbouring constituencies.

Constituency profile and voting patterns

Constituency profile

The Edinburgh Central constituency is situated in the central-north of the City of Edinburgh. The constituency is a major tourist, financial and retail centre, covering Edinburgh's Old and New Towns, Princes Street, Haymarket, Edinburgh Castle, Holyrood Castle and the Scottish Parliament building itself.

The north and west of the constituency is very affluent, covering Victorian suburbs such as Craigleith, Murrayfield, Stockbridge and Orchard Brae, in addition Edinburgh's well-off West End. There is some deprivation towards the south and east of the constituency around Dalry, Dumbiedykes and in patches of Edinburgh's Old Town, although overall the constituency is very affluent.[2]

Voting patterns

In the 2007 City of Edinburgh local council election, the Liberal Democrats emerged as the largest party in wards covered by the Edinburgh Central constituency. In the 2012 local election, the Conservatives and Scottish National Party formed the two largest parties in the area. The Conservatives were ahead in 6 of the 8 electoral wards covering the Edinburgh Central constituency in the 2017 City of Edinburgh local council election.

Traditionally this constituency has been represented by the Labour Party, with the Liberal Democrats forming the main opposition. From the formation of the Scottish Parliament in 1999 until the 2011 Scottish Parliament election, the constituency of Edinburgh Central was represented by Labour's Sarah Boyack. With a re-arrangement of the constituency boundaries in 2011, which would have been won by the Liberal Democrats in 2007, the constituency narrowly returned the SNP's Marco Biagi, who gained the constituency with a slender majority of 237 votes. In 2016 the Leader of the Scottish Conservative Party, Ruth Davidson, gained the constituency from the SNP with a majority of 610 votes.

In the UK Parliament, the Edinburgh Central constituency was represented by the Labour Party almost continuously from the 1945 UK general election until the constituency was abolished in 2005, voting Conservative once in 1983.

Member of the Scottish Parliament
ElectionMemberParty
1999 Sarah Boyack Scottish Labour
2011 Marco Biagi Scottish National Party
2016 Ruth Davidson Scottish Conservatives

Election results

2010s
2016 Scottish Parliament election: Edinburgh Central
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Conservative Ruth Davidson 10,399 30.4 +15.4
SNP Alison Dickie 9,789 28.6 -4.1
Labour Sarah Boyack 7,546 22.1 -9.8
Scottish Green Alison Johnstone 4,644 13.6 New
Liberal Democrats Hannah Bettsworth 1,672 4.9 -15.6
Libertarian Tom Laird 119 0.3 New
Majority 610 1.8 N/A
Turnout 34,169
Conservative gain from SNP Swing

[3]

2011 Scottish Parliament election: Edinburgh Central
Party Candidate Votes % ±
SNP Marco Biagi 9,480 32.7 +10.1
Labour Sarah Boyack 9,243 31.9 +3.7
Liberal Democrats Alex Cole-Hamilton 5,937 20.5 -10.3
Conservative Iain McGill 4,354 15.0 -3.3
Majority 237 0.8 N/A
Turnout 29,014 54.5 +1.6
SNP win (new boundaries)

2000s
2007 Scottish Parliament election: Edinburgh Central
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Labour Sarah Boyack 9,155 31.1 -1.3
Liberal Democrats Siobhan Mathers 7,962 27.1 +4.3
SNP Shirley-Anne Somerville 7,496 25.5 +7.8
Conservative Fiona Houston 4,783 16.3 -0.8
Majority 1,193 4.0 -5.5
Turnout 29,396 52.9 +6.8
Labour hold Swing -2.8
2003 Scottish Parliament election: Edinburgh Central
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Labour Sarah Boyack 9,066 32.36 −5.66
Liberal Democrats Andy Myles 6,400 22.85 +6.31
SNP Kevin Pringle 4,965 17.72 −7.93
Conservative Peter Finnie 4,802 17.14 +1.05
Scottish Socialist Catriona Grant 2,552 9.11 +6.89
Scottish Peoples Alliance James O'Neill 229 0.82 New
Majority 2,666 9.52 −2.85
Turnout 28,014 46.06 −10.67
Labour hold Swing -5.99

1990s
1999 Scottish Parliament election: Edinburgh Central
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Labour Sarah Boyack 14,224 38.02 N/A
SNP Ian McKee 9,598 25.65 N/A
Liberal Democrats Andy Myles 6,187 16.54 N/A
Conservative Jacqui Low 6,018 16.09 N/A
Scottish Socialist Kevin Williamson 830 2.22 N/A
Majority 4,626 12.37 N/A
Turnout 36,857 56.73 N/A
Labour win (new seat)

Footnotes
  1. See The 5th Periodical Report of the Boundary Commission for Scotland Archived September 21, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
  2. "SIMD (Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation) 2016". Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation 2016.
  3. Statement of Persons Nominated Edinburgh Council
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References

See also
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