Frequently Asked Questions - Constituencies

Why do you change constituencies?
The rules for constituencies require that there should be similar numbers of voters in each constituency, and that constituency boundaries should take account of local authority boundaries. Since the population in different parts of Scotland changes over time, and also local government boundaries change, constituency boundaries have to be reviewed to reflect those changes. The website has full details of the law, including the rules for designing constituencies.

How often do you review constituencies?
We review UK Parliament constituencies every 5 years, and Scottish Parliament constituencies every 8 to 12 years. The legislation sets those timescales, and the website has full details of the law about our work. We announced the start of a review of UK Parliament constituencies in March 2011 - the previous review of UK Parliament constituencies reported in November 2004. The most recent review of Scottish Parliament constituencies reported in May 2010.

Does the Commission recommend how many MPs and MSPs there should be?
For the Scottish Parliament, the number of MSPs is fixed by legislation as 129, made up of 73 constituency MSPs and 56 region MSPs. We have no power to change this. For the United Kingdom Parliament, the current review will result in 52 MPs, down from the current 59.

Why am I in different constituencies for the Scottish Parliament and the UK Parliament?
For the Scottish Parliament, the number of constituencies is fixed by legislation as 73. For the UK Parliament, the law is different, and there are currently 59 constituencies, and will in the future be 52. Since the numbers of constituencies are so different, the 2 sets of constituencies are unrelated to each other. Details of the legislation that determines the numbers of constituencies are available on the website.

Can you tell me the current number of electors in a constituency?
We do not hold current electorate figures for constituencies. These can be obtained from the relevant page of the National Records of Scotland (formerly the General Register Office for Scotland) website: http://www.gro-scotland.gov.uk/statistics/theme/electoral-stats/index.html.

How can I find out how constituencies fit with local authority areas?
We have Information Papers about Scottish Parliament and UK Parliament constituencies in Scotland which are available on the Publications section of this website. Each one lists the constituencies that cover each local authority area, and the wards that are covered by each constituency. There are also Information Papers about past constituencies in Scotland.