Central Scotland
electoral region
for the Scottish Parliament
Central Scotland shown within Scotland
Population669,424 (2019)[1]
Current electoral region
Created1999
MSPsScottish National Party 9
Conservative 3
Labour 3
Green 1
Council areasFalkirk
North Lanarkshire
South Lanarkshire (part)
ConstituenciesAirdrie and Shotts
Coatbridge and Chryston
Cumbernauld and Kilsyth
East Kilbride
Falkirk East
Falkirk West
Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse
Motherwell and Wishaw
Uddingston and Bellshill

Central Scotland (Meadhan-Alba in Gaelic) is one of the eight electoral regions of the Scottish Parliament which were created in 1999. Nine of the parliament's 73 first past the post constituencies are sub-divisions of the region and it elects seven of the 56 additional-member Members of the Scottish Parliament (MSPs). Thus it elects a total of 16 MSPs.

Constituencies and council areas 2011–

Map
Map of boundaries from 2011

As a result of the First Periodic Review of Scottish Parliament Boundaries the boundaries for the region and constituencies were redrawn for the 2011 Scottish Parliament election.

Region Constituencies
  1. Airdrie and Shotts
  2. Coatbridge and Chryston
  3. Cumbernauld and Kilsyth
  4. Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse
  5. Falkirk East
  6. Falkirk West
  7. East Kilbride
  8. Motherwell and Wishaw
  9. Uddingston and Bellshill

Constituencies and council areas 1999–2011

The constituencies were created in 1999 with the names and boundaries of Westminster constituencies, as existing in at that time.[2] They cover all of two council areas,[3] the Falkirk council area and the North Lanarkshire council area, and parts of three others, the East Ayrshire council area, the East Dumbartonshire council area and the South Lanarkshire council area.

The rest of the East Ayrshire council area is within the South of Scotland region, the rest of the East Dunbartonshire council area is within the West of Scotland region, and the rest of the South Lanarkshire council area is within the Glasgow and South of Scotland regions.

Region Constituencies
  1. Airdrie and Shotts
  2. Coatbridge and Chryston
  3. Cumbernauld and Kilsyth
  4. East Kilbride
  5. Falkirk East
  6. Falkirk West
  7. Hamilton North and Bellshill
  8. Hamilton South
  9. Kilmarnock and Loudoun
  10. Motherwell and Wishaw

Boundary changes

The Boundary Commission recommended changes to the electoral regions used to elect "list" members of the Scottish Parliament. The new "Central Scotland" region was formed from the constituencies of Airdrie and Shotts; Coatbridge and Chryston; Cumbernauld and Kilsyth; East Kilbride; Falkirk East; Falkirk West; Hamilton, Lanark and Stonehouse; Motherwell and Wishaw; and Uddingston and Bellshill.

Members of the Scottish Parliament

Constituency MSPs

Term Election Airdrie and Shotts Coatbridge and Chryston Cumbernauld and Kilsyth East Kilbride Falkirk East Falkirk West Hamilton North and Bellshill Hamilton South Motherwell and Wishaw Kilmarnock and Loudoun
1st 1999 Karen Whitefield
(Labour) 		Elaine Smith
(Labour) 		Cathy Craigie
(Labour) 		Andy Kerr
(Labour) 		Cathy Peattie
(Labour) 		Dennis Canavan
(Independent) 		Michael McMahon
(Labour) 		Tom McCabe
(Labour) 		Jack McConnell
(Labour) 		Margaret Jamieson
(Labour)
2nd 2003
3rd 2007 Michael Matheson
(SNP) 		Willie Coffey
(SNP)
Term Election Airdrie and Shotts Coatbridge and Chryston Cumbernauld and Kilsyth East Kilbride Falkirk East Falkirk West Uddingston and Bellshill Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse Motherwell and Wishaw 9 MSPs, 2011–
(area covered by former constituency moved to the South Scotland region)
4th 2011 Alex Neil
(SNP) 		Elaine Smith
(Labour) 		Jamie Hepburn
(SNP) 		Linda Fabiani
(SNP) 		Angus MacDonald
(SNP) 		Michael Matheson
(SNP) 		Michael McMahon
(Labour) 		Christina McKelvie
(SNP) 		John Pentland
(Labour)
5th 2016 Fulton MacGregor
(SNP) 		Richard Lyle
(SNP) 		Clare Adamson
(SNP)
6th 2021 Neil Gray
(SNP) 		Collette Stevenson
(SNP) 		Michelle Thomson
(SNP) 		Stephanie Callaghan
(SNP)

Regional list MSPs

N.B. This table is for presentation purposes only

Parliament Year MSP MSP MSP MSP MSP MSP MSP
1st 1999 Donald Gorrie
(Liberal Democrat) 		Andrew Wilson
(SNP) 		Alex Neil
(SNP) 		Linda Fabiani
(SNP) 		Michael Matheson
(SNP) 		Gil Paterson
(SNP) 		Lyndsay McIntosh
(Conservative)
2nd 2003 Carolyn Leckie
(SSP) 		John Swinburne
(SSCUP) 		Margaret Mitchell
(Conservative)
3rd 2007 Hugh O'Donnell
(Liberal Democrat)
(later Independent) 		Jamie Hepburn
(SNP) 		Christina McKelvie
(SNP) 		John Wilson
(SNP)
(later Independent)
4th 2011 Mark Griffin
(Labour) 		Siobhan McMahon
(Labour) 		Margaret McCulloch
(Labour) 		Richard Lyle
(SNP) 		Clare Adamson
(SNP)
2014
5th 2016 Richard Leonard
(Labour) 		Monica Lennon
(Labour) 		Elaine Smith
(Labour) 		Graham Simpson
(Conservative) 		Alison Harris
(Conservative)
6th 2021 Gillian Mackay
(Green) 		Stephen Kerr
(Conservative) 		Meghan Gallacher
(Conservative)

Election results

2021 Scottish Parliament election

In the 2021 Scottish Parliament election the region elected MSPs as follows:

Constituency results

2021 Scottish Parliament election: Central Scotland
Constituency Elected member Result
Airdrie and Shotts Neil Gray SNP hold
Coatbridge and Chryston Fulton MacGregor SNP hold
Cumbernauld and Kilsyth Jamie Hepburn SNP hold
East Kilbride Collette Stevenson SNP hold
Falkirk East Michelle Thomson SNP hold
Falkirk West Michael Matheson SNP hold
Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse Christina McKelvie SNP hold
Motherwell and Wishaw Clare Adamson SNP hold
Uddingston and Bellshill Stephanie Callaghan SNP hold

Additional Member results

2021 Scottish Parliament election: Central Scotland[4][5][6]
List Candidates Votes % ±
SNP Danish Ashraf, Christina McKelvie, Neil Gray, Michelle Thomson, Fulton MacGregor, Stephanie Callaghan, Grant Ferguson, Iain Sinclair, Paul Welsh, Josh Wilson, Cameron McManus 148,399 45.3 Decrease2.4
Labour Richard Leonard, Monica Lennon, Mark Griffin, Monique McAdams, Chris Costello, Michael McPake, Allyson Black 77,623 23.7 Decrease1.1
Conservative Stephen Kerr, Graham Simpson, Meghan Gallacher, Haroun Malik, Neil Benny, Ross Lambie, Nathan Wilson, Gordon Macdonald, Bryan Flannagan 59,896 18.3 Increase2.2
Scottish Green Gillian Mackay, Rosemary McGowan, Claire Williams, Tom McLaughlin, Patrick McAleer, Kyle Davidson, James Stuart Duffin 19,512 6.0 Increase1.3
Liberal Democrats Paul McGarry, Mark McGeever, Dawn Allan, Graham Watson, Ewan McRobert, Karen Utting, Austin Reid 6,337 1.9 Steady0.0
Alba Tasmina Ahmed-Sheikh, Lynne Anderson, Jim Walker, Margaret Lynch 5,345 1.6 Increase1.6
All for Unity Mary Devlin, Jonathan Stanley, Matt Alexander, Sandra Hill, Billy Ross, Sandy Smart, Lachlan Macneil 2,712 0.8 Increase0.8
Scottish Family Party Leo Lanahan, Josh McGrory, Helen MacEachen, Christine MacIver, Christopher Hendry 2,105 0.6 Increase0.6
Independent Green Voice John Robertson 1,854 0.6 Increase0.6
Abolish the Scottish Parliament John Mortimer, Lee McLauchlan 841 0.3 Increase0.3
Reform UK Alan Melville, Hugh Skinner, Alexander MacGregor, Ann Murray 650 0.2 Increase0.2
Libertarian Mark Meechan, Katrina Angus 626 0.2 Increase0.2
Freedom Alliance Dave Frankland, Claire McClaren, John Irvine, Louise Bannigan, Di Meechan, Colin McMillan 619 0.2 Increase0.2
Independent Paddy Hogg 488 0.2 Increase0.1
UKIP Neil Wilson, Yvonne Mackay, Steven Unwin, George Cowan 485 0.2 Decrease2.0

2016 Scottish Parliament election

In the 2016 Scottish Parliament election the region elected MSPs as follows:

Constituency results

2016 Scottish Parliament general election: Central Scotland
Constituency Elected member Result
Airdrie and Shotts Alex Neil SNP hold
Coatbridge and Chryston Fulton MacGregor SNP gain from Labour
Cumbernauld and Kilsyth Jamie Hepburn SNP hold
East Kilbride Linda Fabiani SNP hold
Falkirk East Angus MacDonald SNP hold
Falkirk West Michael Matheson SNP hold
Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse Christina McKelvie SNP hold
Motherwell and Wishaw Clare Adamson SNP gain from Labour
Uddingston and Bellshill Richard Lyle SNP gain from Labour

Additional Member results

2016 Scottish Parliament election: Central Scotland
Party Elected candidates Seats +/− Votes % +/−%
SNP 0 -3 129,082 47.7 +1.3
Labour Richard Leonard
Monica Lennon
Mark Griffin
Elaine Smith 		4 +1 67,103 24.8 -10.5
Conservative Margaret Mitchell
Graham Simpson
Alison Harris 		3 +2 43,602 16.1 +9.7
Scottish Green 0 0 12,722 4.7 +2.3
UKIP 0 0 6,088 2.2 +1.7
Liberal Democrats 0 0 5,015 1.9 +0.4
Solidarity 0 0 2,684 1.0 +0.8
Scottish Christian 0 0 2,314 0.9 -0.5
RISE 0 0 1,636 0.6 N/A
Independent 0 0 460 0.2 +0.2

2011 Scottish Parliament election

In the 2011 Scottish Parliament election the region elected MSPs as follows:

Constituency results

Scottish Parliament general election, 2011: Central Scotland
Constituency Elected member Result
Airdrie and Shotts Alex Neil SNP gain from Labour
Coatbridge and Chryston Elaine Smith Labour hold
Cumbernauld and Kilsyth Jamie Hepburn SNP gain from Labour
East Kilbride Linda Fabiani SNP gain from Labour
Falkirk East Angus MacDonald SNP gain from Labour
Falkirk West Michael Matheson SNP hold
Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse Christina McKelvie SNP gain from Labour
Motherwell and Wishaw John Pentland Labour hold
Uddingston and Bellshill Michael McMahon Labour hold

Additional Member results

2011 Scottish Parliament election: Central Scotland
Party Elected candidates Seats +/− Votes % +/−%
SNP Richard Lyle
John Wilson
Clare Adamson 		3 -2 108,261 46.4 +15.5
Labour Siobhan McMahon
Mark Griffin
Margaret McCulloch 		3 +3 82,459 35.3 -4.6
Conservative Margaret Mitchell 1 ±0 14,870 6.4 -1.0
All Scotland Pensioners Party 0 0 5,793 2.5 -0.1
Scottish Green 0 0 5,634 2.4 -0.1
Liberal Democrats 0 -1 3,318 1.4 -3.8
Scottish Christian 0 0 3,173 1.4 -0.7
Socialist Labour 0 0 2,483 1.1 +0.3
BNP 0 0 2,214 0.9 -0.5
Scottish Unionist 0 0 1,545 0.7 +0.1
UKIP 0 0 1,263 0.5 +0.3
Independent 0 0 821 0.4 N/A
Scottish Socialist 0 0 820 0.4 -0.6
Solidarity 0 0 559 0.2 -1.5
Scottish Homeland Party 0 0 337 0.1 N/A

2007 Scottish Parliament election

Party Member of the Scottish Parliament Total Members +/–
Constituency +/– Regional +/–
Labour 8 −1 0 ±0 8 −1
SNP 2 +2 5 +2 7 +4
Conservative 0 ±0 1 ±0 1 ±0
Liberal Democrats 0 ±0 1 ±0 1 ±0

Constituency results

2007 Scottish Parliament election: Central Scotland
Constituency Elected member Result
Airdrie and Shotts Karen Whitefield Labour hold
Coatbridge and Chryston Elaine Smith Labour hold
Cumbernauld and Kilsyth Cathie Craigie Labour hold
East Kilbride Andy Kerr Labour hold
Falkirk East Cathy Peattie Labour hold
Falkirk West Michael Matheson SNP gain from Independent
Hamilton North and Bellshill Michael McMahon Labour hold
Hamilton South Tom McCabe Labour hold
Kilmarnock and Loudoun Willie Coffey SNP gain from Labour
Motherwell and Wishaw Jack McConnell Labour hold

Additional member results

2007 Scottish Parliament election: Central Scotland
Party Elected candidates Seats +/− Votes % +/−%
Labour 0 0 112,596 39.6 -0.8
SNP Alex Neil
Linda Fabiani
Jamie Hepburn
Christina McKelvie
John Wilson 		5 +2 89,210 31.4 +8.8
Conservative Margaret Mitchell 1 ±0 24,253 8.5 -0.6
Liberal Democrats Hugh O'Donnell 1 ±0 14,648 5.2 -0.7
Scottish Green 0 0 7,204 2.5 -2.1
Scottish Senior Citizens 0 -1 7,060 2.5 -4.0
Scottish Christian 0 0 5,575 2.0 N/A
Solidarity 0 0 5,012 1.8 N/A
CPA 0 0 4,617 1.6 N/A
BNP 0 0 4,125 1.4 N/A
Socialist Labour 0 0 2,303 0.8 -0.7
Scottish Socialist 0 -1 2,188 0.8 -6.5
Scottish Voice 0 0 1,955 0.7 N/A
Scottish Unionist 0 0 1,544 0.5 -0.3
Publican Party 0 0 1,500 0.5 N/A
UKIP 0 0 722 0.2 -0.1

2003 Scottish Parliament election

In the 2003 Scottish Parliament election the region elected MSPs as follows:

Constituency results

2003 Scottish Parliament election: Central Scotland
Constituency Elected member Result
Airdrie and Shotts Karen Whitefield Labour hold
Coatbridge and Chryston Elaine Smith Labour hold
Cumbernauld and Kilsyth Cathie Craigie Labour hold
East Kilbride Andy Kerr Labour hold
Falkirk East Cathy Peattie Labour hold
Falkirk West Dennis Canavan Independent hold
Hamilton North and Bellshill Michael McMahon Labour hold
Hamilton South Tom McCabe Labour hold
Kilmarnock and Loudoun Margaret Jamieson Labour hold
Motherwell and Wishaw Jack McConnell Labour hold

Additional member results

2003 Scottish Parliament election: Central Scotland
Party Elected candidates Seats +/− Votes % +/−%
Labour 0 0 106,318 40.41 +1.13
SNP Alex Neil
Michael Matheson
Linda Fabiani 		3 −2 59,274 22.53 -5.25
Conservative Margaret Mitchell 1 ±0 24,121 9.17 +0.02
Scottish Socialist Carolyn Leckie 1 +1 19,016 7.23 +5.49
Scottish Senior Citizens John Swinburne 1 +1 17,146 6.52 N/A
Liberal Democrats Donald Gorrie 1 ±0 15,494 5.89 -0.31
Scottish Green 0 0 12,248 4.66 +2.87
Socialist Labour 0 0 3,855 1.47 -1.85
Scottish Unionist 0 0 2,147 0.82 -0.05
Independent 0 0 1,265 0.48 N/A
Scottish People's 0 0 1,192 0.45 N/A
UKIP 0 0 1,009 0.38 N/A

1999 Scottish Parliament election

In the 1999 Scottish Parliament election the region elected MSPs as follows:

Constituency results

1999 Scottish Parliament election: Central Scotland
Constituency Elected member Result
Airdrie and Shotts Karen Whitefield Scottish Labour Party win (new seat)
Coatbridge and Chryston Elaine Smith Scottish Labour Party win (new seat)
Cumbernauld and Kilsyth Cathie Craigie Scottish Labour Party win (new seat)
East Kilbride Andy Kerr Scottish Labour Party win (new seat)
Falkirk East Cathy Peattie Scottish Labour Party win (new seat)
Falkirk West Dennis Canavan Independent (politician) win (new seat)
Hamilton North and Bellshill Michael McMahon Scottish Labour Party win (new seat)
Hamilton South Tom McCabe Scottish Labour Party win (new seat)
Kilmarnock and Loudoun Margaret Jamieson Scottish Labour Party win (new seat)
Motherwell and Wishaw Jack McConnell Scottish Labour Party win (new seat)

Additional member results

1999 Scottish Parliament election: Central Scotland
Party Elected candidates Seats +/− Votes % +/−%
Labour 0 N/A 129,822 39.28 N/A
SNP Alex Neil
Andrew Wilson
Michael Matheson
Gil Paterson
Linda Fabiani 		5 N/A 91,802 27.78 N/A
Conservative Lyndsay McIntosh 1 N/A 30,243 9.15 N/A
Independent 0 N/A 27,700 8.38 N/A
Liberal Democrats Donald Gorrie 1 N/A 20,505 6.20 N/A
Socialist Labour 0 N/A 10,956 3.32 N/A
Scottish Green 0 N/A 5,926 3.32 N/A
Scottish Socialist 0 N/A 5,739 1.74 N/A
Scottish Unionist 0 N/A 2,888 0.87 N/A
ProLife Alliance 0 N/A 2,567 0.78 N/A
Scottish Families and Pensioners Party 0 N/A 1,373 0.42 N/A
Natural Law 0 N/A 1,373 0.42 N/A
Independent Progressive 0 N/A 248 0.08 N/A

Footnotes

  1. ^ Scottish Parliamentary Constituency (SPC) Population Estimates (2011 Data Zone based), National Records of Scotland; retrieved 6 May 2021 (accompanying summary notes)
  2. ^ Scottish Westminster constituencies were mostly replaced with new constituencies in 2005. See The 5th Periodical Report of the Boundary Commission for Scotland Archived 21 September 2007 at the Wayback Machine.
  3. ^ Council areas are as defined in 1996, and may be subject to change after the next Scottish Parliament election.
  4. ^ Murray, Des (8 May 2021). "ELECTION OF A MEMBER TO SERVE IN THE SCOTTISH PARLIAMENT FOR THE CENTRAL SCOTLAND REGION. DATE OF POLL: Thursday 6th May 2021" (PDF). North Lanarkshire Council. Archived from the original (PDF) on 8 May 2021.
  5. ^ "Scottish Parliament election 2021: Central Scotland regional candidates". BBC News. Retrieved 8 May 2021.
  6. ^ Central Scotland [region], BBC News; retrieved 8 May 2021
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