| Kirkcaldy | |
|---|---|
| Former County constituency for the House of Commons | |
 Boundary of Kirkcaldy in Scotlandfor the 2001 general election | |
| Major settlements | Kirkcaldy |
| February 1974–2005 | |
| Seats | One |
| Created from | Kirkcaldy Burghs |
| Replaced by | Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath Glenrothes |
Kirkcaldy was a county constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom in Fife, returning one Member of Parliament (MP). It existed from the February 1974 election until its abolition in 2005.
This was a safe Labour seat throughout its existence.
1974–1983: The burghs of Buckhaven and Methil, Burntisland, Kinghorn, and Kirkcaldy, the district of Kirkcaldy (except the electoral divisions of Markinch North and Markinch South) and the district of Wemyss (except the electoral divisions of Kennoway and Scoonie). [1]
1983–1997: The Kirkcaldy District electoral divisions of Auchtertool/Linktown/Invertiel, Bennochy/Chapel/Cluny, Bennochy/Dunearn, Buckhaven/East Wemyss, Burntisland/Kinghorn, Dunnikier, Gallatown/Dysart/Coaltown of Wemyss/Thornton, Hayfield/Kirkcaldy Central, and Smeaton/Sinclairtown.
1997–2005: The Kirkcaldy District electoral divisions of Buckhaven, Thornton and Wemyss; Burntisland and Auchtertool; Dunearn and Torbain; Dunnikier and Fair Isle; Dysart and Gallatown; Hayfield and Bennochy; Kinghorn and Linktown; Pathhead, Sinclairtown and Smeaton; and Raith and Valley.
The constituency was centred on the town of Kirkcaldy. It was created at the February 1974 election, mostly replacing Kirkcaldy Burghs. In 2005 the seat was abolished, being mostly replaced by Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath with a small portion becoming part of Glenrothes.
| Election | Member | Party | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 1974 | Harry Gourlay | Labour | Previously MP for Kirkcaldy Burghs from 1959. Deputy Chairman of Ways and Means 1968–1970. Died April 1987 | |
| 1987 | Lewis Moonie | Labour Co-operative | ||
| 2005 | constituency abolished: see Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath & Glenrothes | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Harry Gourlay | 22,469 | 47.0 | ||
| Conservative | Arthur John Armstrong Bell | 13,087 | 27.3 | ||
| SNP | Roger Thompson Knox | 12,311 | 25.7 | ||
| Majority | 9,382 | 19.7 | |||
| Turnout | 47,867 | 79.4 | |||
| Labour win (new seat) | |||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Harry Gourlay | 20,688 | 45.4 | −1.6 | |
| SNP | Roger Thompson Knox | 14,587 | 32.0 | +6.3 | |
| Conservative | Robert Jones | 7,539 | 16.5 | −10.8 | |
| Liberal | Fergus Gray Young | 2,788 | 6.1 | New | |
| Majority | 6,101 | 13.4 | -6.3 | ||
| Turnout | 45,602 | 75.0 | −4.4 | ||
| Labour hold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Harry Gourlay | 25,449 | 53.9 | +8.5 | |
| Conservative | Jean Hazel Stewart | 12,386 | 26.2 | +9.7 | |
| SNP | Andrew Currie | 9,416 | 19.9 | −12.1 | |
| Majority | 13,063 | 27.7 | +14.3 | ||
| Turnout | 47,251 | 77.4 | +2.4 | ||
| Labour hold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour | Harry Gourlay | 15,380 | 40.3 | −10.4 | |
| Conservative | Iain Walker | 10,049 | 26.3 | −2.8 | |
| SDP | Malcolm Black | 9,274 | 24.3 | New | |
| SNP | David Wood | 3,452 | 9.1 | −11.0 | |
| Majority | 5,331 | 14.0 | -13.7 | ||
| Turnout | 53,078 | 71.9 | −5.5 | ||
| Labour hold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour Co-op | Lewis Moonie | 20,281 | 49.6 | +9.3 | |
| Conservative | Iain Mitchell | 8,711 | 21.3 | −5.0 | |
| SDP | David Stewart | 7,118 | 17.4 | −6.9 | |
| SNP | Roger Mullin | 4,794 | 11.7 | +2.6 | |
| Majority | 11,570 | 28.3 | +14.3 | ||
| Turnout | 53,439 | 76.5 | +4.6 | ||
| Labour hold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour Co-op | Lewis Moonie | 17,887 | 46.0 | −9.6 | |
| SNP | Stewart Hosie | 8,761 | 22.5 | +10.8 | |
| Conservative | Stephen Wosley | 8,476 | 21.8 | +0.5 | |
| Liberal Democrats | Sue Leslie | 3,729 | 9.6 | −7.8 | |
| Majority | 9,126 | 23.5 | −4.8 | ||
| Turnout | 38,853 | 74.8 | −1.7 | ||
| Labour hold | Swing | −7.2 | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour Co-op | Lewis Moonie | 18,730 | 53.6 | +8.0 | |
| SNP | Stewart Hosie | 8,020 | 22.9 | +0.3 | |
| Conservative | Charlotte Black | 4,779 | 13.7 | −8.4 | |
| Liberal Democrats | John Mainland | 3,031 | 8.7 | −1.0 | |
| Referendum | Victor Baxter | 413 | 1.2 | New | |
| Majority | 10,710 | 30.7 | +7.6 | ||
| Turnout | 34,973 | 66.5 | −8.3 | ||
| Labour hold | Swing | +3.8 | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Labour Co-op | Lewis Moonie | 15,227 | 54.1 | +0.5 | |
| SNP | Shirley-Anne Somerville | 6,264 | 22.2 | −0.7 | |
| Conservative | Scott Campbell | 3,013 | 10.7 | −3.0 | |
| Liberal Democrats | Andrew Weston | 2,849 | 10.1 | +1.4 | |
| Scottish Socialist | Douglas Kinnear | 804 | 2.9 | New | |
| Majority | 8,963 | 31.9 | +1.2 | ||
| Turnout | 28,157 | 54.6 | −11.9 | ||
| Labour hold | Swing | +0.6 | |||
Kirkcaldy is a town and former royal burgh in Fife, on the east coast of Scotland. It is about 11.6 miles (19 km) north of Edinburgh and 27.6 miles (44 km) south-southwest of Dundee. The town had a recorded population of 49,460 in 2011, making it Fife's second-largest settlement and the 12th most populous settlement in Scotland.
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Kirkcaldy in Fife was a royal burgh that returned one commissioner to the Parliament of Scotland and to the Convention of Estates. It was represented in Parliament from at least 1571 until 1707.
Wemyss is a civil parish on the south coast of Fife, Scotland, lying on the Firth of Forth. It is bounded on the north-east by the parish of Scoonie and the south-west by the parish of Kirkcaldy and Dysart and its length from south-west to north-east is about 6 miles. Inland it is bounded by Markinch and its greatest breadth is 2+1⁄4 miles.
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