Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber is a
constituencyIn the United Kingdom , each of the electoral areas or divisions called constituencies elects one or more members to a parliament or assembly....
of the
Scottish ParliamentThe Scottish Parliament is the devolved national, unicameral legislature of Scotland, located in the Holyrood area of the capital, Edinburgh. The Parliament, informally referred to as "Holyrood" , is a democratically elected body comprising 129 members known as Members of the Scottish Parliament...
(
HolyroodThe Scottish Parliament Building is the home of the Scottish Parliament at Holyrood, within the UNESCO World Heritage Site in central Edinburgh. Construction of the building commenced in June 1999 and the Members of the Scottish Parliament held their first debate in the new building on Tuesday,...
). It elects one
Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP)Member of the Scottish Parliament is the title given to any one of the 129 individuals elected to serve in the Scottish Parliament.-Methods of Election:MSPs are elected in one of two ways:...
by the first past the post method of election. Also, however, it is one of eight constituencies in the Highlands and Islands
electoral regionScottish Parliament constituencies and regions were first used in 1999, in the first general election of the Scottish Parliament , created by the Scotland Act 1998....
, which elects seven additional members, in addition to eight constituency MSPs, to produce a form of
proportional representationProportional representation , sometimes referred to as full representation, is a category of electoral formula aimed at securing a close match between the percentage of votes that groups of candidates obtain in elections and the percentage of seats they receive...
for the region as a whole.
Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber covers a southern portion of the Highland council area.
- See also Highlands and Islands Scottish Parliament region
The other seven constituencies of the Highlands and Islands electoral region are
Argyll and ButeArgyll and Bute is a constituency of the Scottish Parliament . It elects one Member of the Scottish Parliament by the first past the post method of election...
,
Caithness, Sutherland and Easter RossCaithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross is a constituency of the Scottish Parliament . It elects one Member of the Scottish Parliament by the first past the post method of election...
,
MorayMoray is a constituency of the Scottish Parliament . It elects one Member of the Scottish Parliament by the first past the post method of election...
,
OrkneyOrkney is a constituency of the Scottish Parliament . It elects one Member of the Scottish Parliament by the first past the post method of election...
,
Ross, Skye and Inverness WestRoss, Skye and Inverness West is a constituency of the Scottish Parliament . It elects one Member of the Scottish Parliament by the first past the post method of election...
,
ShetlandShetland is a constituency of the Scottish Parliament . It elects one Member of the Scottish Parliament by the first past the post method of election...
and the
Western IslesThe Western Isles is a constituency of the Scottish Parliament . It elects one Member of the Scottish Parliament by the first past the post method of election...
.
The region covers most of
Argyll and Bute council areaArgyll and Bute is both one of 32 unitary council areas; and a Lieutenancy area in Scotland. The administrative centre for the council area is located in Lochgilphead....
, all of the
Highland council areaThe Highland Council area is a local government area in the Scottish Highlands and the largest local government area in both Scotland and the United Kingdom as a whole. It shares borders with the council areas of Moray, Aberdeenshire, Perth and Kinross, and Argyll and Bute...
, most of the
Moray council areaMoray is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland. It lies in the north-east of the country, with coastline on the Moray Firth, and borders the council areas of Aberdeenshire and Highland....
, all of the Orkney council area, all of the Shetland council area and all of Na h-Eileanan Siar.
The Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber constituency was created at the same time as the Scottish Parliament, in
1999The Scottish Parliament election, 1999 was the first general election of the Scottish Parliament, with voting taking place on 6 May 1999. Following the election, the Labour Party and the Scottish Liberal Democrats formed the Scottish Executive, with Labour Member of the Scottish Parliament Donald...
, with the name and boundaries of a pre-existing
WestminsterThe Palace of Westminster, also known as the Houses of Parliament, is the seat of the two houses of the Parliament of the United Kingdom—the House of Lords and the House of Commons...
(House of Commons) constituency.
Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber is a
constituencyIn the United Kingdom , each of the electoral areas or divisions called constituencies elects one or more members to a parliament or assembly....
of the
Scottish ParliamentThe Scottish Parliament is the devolved national, unicameral legislature of Scotland, located in the Holyrood area of the capital, Edinburgh. The Parliament, informally referred to as "Holyrood" , is a democratically elected body comprising 129 members known as Members of the Scottish Parliament...
(
HolyroodThe Scottish Parliament Building is the home of the Scottish Parliament at Holyrood, within the UNESCO World Heritage Site in central Edinburgh. Construction of the building commenced in June 1999 and the Members of the Scottish Parliament held their first debate in the new building on Tuesday,...
). It elects one
Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP)Member of the Scottish Parliament is the title given to any one of the 129 individuals elected to serve in the Scottish Parliament.-Methods of Election:MSPs are elected in one of two ways:...
by the first past the post method of election. Also, however, it is one of eight constituencies in the Highlands and Islands
electoral regionScottish Parliament constituencies and regions were first used in 1999, in the first general election of the Scottish Parliament , created by the Scotland Act 1998....
, which elects seven additional members, in addition to eight constituency MSPs, to produce a form of
proportional representationProportional representation , sometimes referred to as full representation, is a category of electoral formula aimed at securing a close match between the percentage of votes that groups of candidates obtain in elections and the percentage of seats they receive...
for the region as a whole.
Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber covers a southern portion of the Highland council area.
Electoral region
- See also Highlands and Islands Scottish Parliament region
The other seven constituencies of the Highlands and Islands electoral region are
Argyll and ButeArgyll and Bute is a constituency of the Scottish Parliament . It elects one Member of the Scottish Parliament by the first past the post method of election...
,
Caithness, Sutherland and Easter RossCaithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross is a constituency of the Scottish Parliament . It elects one Member of the Scottish Parliament by the first past the post method of election...
,
MorayMoray is a constituency of the Scottish Parliament . It elects one Member of the Scottish Parliament by the first past the post method of election...
,
OrkneyOrkney is a constituency of the Scottish Parliament . It elects one Member of the Scottish Parliament by the first past the post method of election...
,
Ross, Skye and Inverness WestRoss, Skye and Inverness West is a constituency of the Scottish Parliament . It elects one Member of the Scottish Parliament by the first past the post method of election...
,
ShetlandShetland is a constituency of the Scottish Parliament . It elects one Member of the Scottish Parliament by the first past the post method of election...
and the
Western IslesThe Western Isles is a constituency of the Scottish Parliament . It elects one Member of the Scottish Parliament by the first past the post method of election...
.
The region covers most of
Argyll and Bute council areaArgyll and Bute is both one of 32 unitary council areas; and a Lieutenancy area in Scotland. The administrative centre for the council area is located in Lochgilphead....
, all of the
Highland council areaThe Highland Council area is a local government area in the Scottish Highlands and the largest local government area in both Scotland and the United Kingdom as a whole. It shares borders with the council areas of Moray, Aberdeenshire, Perth and Kinross, and Argyll and Bute...
, most of the
Moray council areaMoray is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland. It lies in the north-east of the country, with coastline on the Moray Firth, and borders the council areas of Aberdeenshire and Highland....
, all of the Orkney council area, all of the Shetland council area and all of Na h-Eileanan Siar.
Constituency boundaries
The Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber constituency was created at the same time as the Scottish Parliament, in
1999The Scottish Parliament election, 1999 was the first general election of the Scottish Parliament, with voting taking place on 6 May 1999. Following the election, the Labour Party and the Scottish Liberal Democrats formed the Scottish Executive, with Labour Member of the Scottish Parliament Donald...
, with the name and boundaries of a pre-existing
WestminsterThe Palace of Westminster, also known as the Houses of Parliament, is the seat of the two houses of the Parliament of the United Kingdom—the House of Lords and the House of Commons...
(House of Commons) constituency. In
2005The United Kingdom general election of 2005 was held on Thursday, 5 May 2005 to elect members to the House of Commons.The Labour Party under Tony Blair won its third consecutive victory, but with a reduced overall majority of 66 and they failed to gain any new seats...
, however, Scottish Westminster constituencies were generally replaced with new larger constituencies. For representation at Westminster, the area of the Holyrood constituency is now divided between two constituencies: the
Ross, Skye and Lochaber Westminster constituencyRoss, Skye and Lochaber is a constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom . It elects one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election....
and the
Inverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey Westminster constituencyInverness, Nairn, Badenoch and Strathspey is a constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom . It elects one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election....
.
Council area
- See also Politics of the Highland council area
Politics of the Highland council area in Scotland are evident in the deliberations and decisions of the Highland Council, in elections to the council, and in elections to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom and the Scottish Parliament...
Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber is the most southerly of three Holyrood constituencies covering the Highland council area. The other two are
Ross, Skye and Inverness WestRoss, Skye and Inverness West is a constituency of the Scottish Parliament . It elects one Member of the Scottish Parliament by the first past the post method of election...
and
Caithness, Sutherland and Easter RossCaithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross is a constituency of the Scottish Parliament . It elects one Member of the Scottish Parliament by the first past the post method of election...
. Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber has Ross, Skye and Inverness West on its northern boundary. Inverness East, Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross is further north. All three constituencies are within the Highlands and Islands electoral region.
When created in 1999 the constituency boundaries were definable with reference to council wards which were grouped, by the Highland Council, in relation to eight council management areas. Constituency and management area names have many elements in common, and the management areas had the boundaries of former districts of the Highland
regionThe local government areas of Scotland were redefined by the Local Government Act 1973 and redefined again by the Local Government etc Act 1994....
, as abolished in 1996, namely Inverness, Nairn, Lochaber, Ross and Cromarty, Skye and Lochalsh, Badenoch and Strathspey, Caithness and Sutherland.
The management areas were abolished this year, 2007, and the council has now three new corporate management areas, defined as groups of new wards, also introduced this year, 2007. The boundaries of the corporate management areas are similar to those of Westminster constituencies created in 2005. One corporate management area, the Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross area, has boundaries, therefore, which are also similar to those of a Holyrood constituency. The boundaries of the other two corporate areas, the Ross, Skye and Lochaber area and the Inverness, Nairn, and Badenoch and Strathspey area, are quite unlike those of any Holyrood constituency.
The most recent general election of the Highland Council was this year, 2007, and its current political composition is as follows:
Member of the Scottish Parliament
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1999The Scottish Parliament election, 1999 was the first general election of the Scottish Parliament, with voting taking place on 6 May 1999. Following the election, the Labour Party and the Scottish Liberal Democrats formed the Scottish Executive, with Labour Member of the Scottish Parliament Donald...
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Fergus Ewing Fergus Ewing is a Scottish National Party politician, the Minister for Community Safety and has been an MSP for Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber since 1999.- Background and family life :...
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Scottish National Party The Scottish National Party is a centre-left political party which campaigns for Scottish independence. In the last few decades, the SNP has normally polled the second highest number of votes for a political party in Scotland. However, the 2009 European Election saw the party top the poll with...
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2003The Scottish Parliament election, 2003, was the second general election of the Scottish Parliament. It was held on 1 May 2003 and it brought no change in terms of control of the Scottish Executive...
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2007The 2007 Scottish Parliament election was held on Thursday 3 May 2007 to elect members to the Scottish Parliament. It was the third general election to the devolved Scottish Parliament since it was created in 1999...
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Election results