Subdivisions of Scotland Perth and Kinross Created from Perth,
North Tayside Member of parliament Pete Wishart | Created 2005 European Parliament constituency Scotland Replaced by Perth, North Tayside | |
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Perth and North Perthshire is a county constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament (MP) by the first past the post system of election.
Contents
Boundaries
As a result of the Fifth Periodical Review of the Boundary Commission for Scotland, the constituency was created to cover a northern portion of the Perth and Kinross council area, and first used in the 2005 general election. Ochil and South Perthshire was created, at the same time, to cover the rest of the Perth and Kinross council area and the Clackmannanshire council area.
Prior to the 2005 election, the council areas had been covered by the Angus, Ochil, Perth and North Tayside constituencies. The Perth constituency was entirely within the Perth and Kinross council area, the North Tayside constituency covered a northern portion of the Perth and Kinross council area and a northern portion of the Angus council area, the Angus constituency covered a small southeastern portion of the Perth and Kinross council area, a southern portion of the Angus council area, and northern portions of the Dundee City council area, and the Ochil constituency covered another southeastern portion of the Perth and Kinross council area, the whole of the Clackmannanshire council area and a southeastern portion of the Stirling council area.
Perth and North Perthshire replaced part of the North Tayside constituency and part of the Perth constituency.
Constituency profile
The Perth and North Perthshire constituency stretches across the north of the Perth and Kinross local council area in Scotland. It is an affluent, predominantly rural seat with successful livestock and fruit-growing industries. Tourism also forms a significant part of the local economy. Towards the south of the constituency, around the River Tay, lies the city of Perth and its adjacent villages. Perth includes a mix of affluent middle class suburbs to the south-west and more deprived council housing around the north of the city.
Perth and North Perthshire is a historical battleground constituency between the Conservatives and the SNP. From the establishment of the Perth and East Perthshire constituency in 1950 the area traditionally returned MP's belonging to the Unionist Party (and subsequently MP's from the Conservative and Unionist Party after the two parties merged in 1965). The seat was one of 11 constituencies in Scotland to elect an SNP MP to Parliament at the 1974 October general election. With a rearrangement of UK Parliament constituencies in 1979 the constituency's successor seat of North Tayside went on to return Conservative Bill Walker to Parliament until being gained by the SNP's John Swinney at the 1997 UK general election - from which point the seat went on to return MP's belonging to the Scottish National Party. At the Scottish Parliament the North Tayside, later replaced by the Perthshire North, constituency has been represented by the SNP's John Swinney since the establishment of the Scottish Parliament in 1999. The Conservatives narrowly missed out on gaining the Perth and North Perthshire constituency at the 2005 UK general election, with Conservative Douglas Taylor coming behind the SNP's Pete Wishart by 1,521 votes. In subsequent elections Pete Wishart has increased his majority substantially, taking the constituency with 9,641 votes ahead of the Conservatives in 2015. At the Scottish Parliament the SNP's John Swinney saw his majority slashed by two-thirds in 2016, polling ahead of Conservative Murdo Fraser by 3,336 votes.