In September 2022, Boundaries Scotland began the second review of Scottish Parliament boundaries. Boundaries Scotland is a statutory advisory non-departmental public body which is independent of the Scottish Government and local government. SPICe has previously published a blog which explains the role of Boundaries Scotland and how reviews are undertaken in more detail. This blog provides a summary of the recommendations on constituency and region boundaries made in the second review to date.
The review only affects Scottish Parliament constituencies and regions and does not affect UK Parliament constituency boundaries or those of local authority areas or ward boundaries. Reviews of these are undertaken separately by the Boundary Commission for Scotland (UK Parliament constituencies) and Boundaries Scotland (local authority areas in Scotland and ward boundaries).
What is the second review of Scottish Parliament boundaries?
The review of Scottish Parliament boundaries is required by the Scotland Act 1998 and must be completed by 1 May 2025. The review includes both constituency and region boundaries.
According to Boundaries Scotland, the review will:
recommend constituencies, and regions, of similar electorate size while also taking account of local authority areas, special geographical circumstances, maintenance of local ties and any inconveniences caused by the alteration of the existing boundaries.
The review of constituencies covers 70 primarily mainland Scottish Parliament constituencies. The island only constituencies of Orkney Islands, Shetland Islands, and Na h-Eileanan an Iar are excluded from boundary reviews by the Scotland Act 1998. However, the review of the regions will cover all regions, encompassing all 73 constituencies at the Scottish Parliament.
What has happened so far?
Proposals on constituencies
The second review of Scottish Parliament boundaries began in September 2022. From 17 May to 17 June 2023, Boundaries Scotland consulted on provisional proposals for constituencies.
Responses to this consultation were published by Boundaries Scotland and six local inquiries were subsequently held. Boundaries Scotland is required to hold a local inquiry if objections to the provisional proposals are received from an affected local authority or from 100 or more electors (those people entitled to vote in a Scottish Parliament election) from the affected constituency. Rules for local inquiries are set out in the Scotland Act 1998). Boundaries Scotland can also choose to hold a local inquiry if it determines that it would be helpful.
Local inquiries are conducted by an Assistant Commissioner appointed by Scottish Ministers. The purpose of local inquiries includes hearing local opinions, criticisms, or support for proposals, receiving counter-proposals, and enabling those who wish to comment on proposals to do so.
The below local inquiries were held in relation to the following proposed constituencies:
- Clydebank: Bearsden, Milngavie and Clydebank North; and Dumbarton and Helensburgh
- Edinburgh: Edinburgh Forth and Linlithgow
- Johnstone/ Newton Mearns: Glasgow Priesthill and Giffnock, Paisley and Renfrew, Renfrewshire South; and Renfrewshire West
- Kilmarnock: Cunninghame South; and Kilmarnock and Irvine Valley
- Musselburgh: East Lothian; and Midlothian North and Musselburgh
- Peebles: Clyde Valley and Tweeddale.
Minutes of these inquiries have been published by Boundaries Scotland.
Boundaries Scotland subsequently published revised proposals for constituencies and consulted on these from 16 April to 15 May 2024. A further local inquiry in relation to the constituencies of Cumbernauld and Kilsyth, Falkirk North, and Linlithgow and Falkirk South was held in Falkirk on 22 August 2024.
A second set of revised proposals in relation to 29 of the constituencies was published on 25 September 2024 and is being consulted on. The consultation will close on 26 October 2024.
The latest consultation announcement by Boundaries Scotland states that it has agreed to adopt the previous (revised) proposals published in April 2024 as its final recommendations “subject to satisfactory constituencies being designed in neighbouring areas” and thus is not consulting on these constituencies.
You can use the interactive map below to explore which constituency boundaries or names would change under the current proposals. You can compare current proposals with previous proposals made as part of the review or existing constituency names and boundaries.
The consultation document provides a summary of changes by council area. These include consideration of feedback from public consultations, reflection of local ties, and alignment with ward boundaries.
Proposals on regions
Boundaries Scotland published its provisional proposals for region boundaries for the Scottish Parliament on 25 September 2024 and is currently consulting on them alongside its most recent constituency proposals. The consultation will close on 26 October 2024.
There are eight Scottish Parliament regions, each returning seven regional MSPs. The last time regions were reviewed was as part of the First Review of Scottish Parliament boundaries, which reported in 2010.
Rules governing boundary setting processes for regions state that constituencies must fall wholly within a region and that the “regional electorate of a region must be as near the regional electorate of each of the other regions as is practicable, having regard (where appropriate) to special geographical considerations.”
The proposals for regions are:
- One region will remain unchanged (Mid Scotland and Fife).
- Seven regions will have changes to their boundaries. Boundaries Scotland states that for four of these, there will be ‘some changes’ (Highland and Islands, North East Scotland, Glasgow, West Scotland) whereas the remaining three will have ‘more significant changes’ to their region boundaries (Lothian, Central Scotland and South Scotland).
- The names of all eight regions will remain unchanged.
Professor Ailsa Henderson, Chair of Boundaries Scotland, stated:
The consultation covers our Provisional Proposals for regions. These boundaries are drawn by their own rules and we have tried to minimise change as much as possible while acknowledging the necessary rebalancing to reflect movements of the electorate across Scotland. Although some change is necessary to achieve regional electoral parity, we have recognised the special geographical considerations that apply in the Highlands and Islands.
What next?
The public consultation on the latest constituency and region proposals will close on 26 October 2024.
In its latest news release on the review, Boundaries Scotland states that it will consider all responses received through the consultation and, if changes are made to the proposals, a further one-month consultation will be held.
Boundaries Scotland will submit its recommendations for constituency and region boundaries in a report to Scottish Ministers. Under the Scotland Act 1998, that report must be submitted by 1 May 2025. Scottish Ministers must then lay the report before the Scottish Parliament.
This review is the first time that the Scottish Parliament has the responsibility to approve the boundaries and regions. The Scottish Elections (Reform) Act 2020 changed the approval process for Scottish Parliament constituency reviews. The process is as follows:
- The report by Boundaries Scotland and a draft Order in Council, which would give effect to the recommendations made in the report, are laid before the Scottish Parliament by Scottish Ministers.
- The Scottish Parliament can either approve or reject the draft Order. If Parliament agrees the draft Order, it is submitted to His Majesty the King for approval. If Parliament rejects the draft Order, it can request a further review of the proposals (a second report would then need to be laid before Parliament).
- If the Scottish Parliament approves the proposed changes, the new boundaries are expected to be in place at the next Scottish Parliament election, due to be held in May 2026.
Annie Bosse, SPICe Research