Boundary Commission for Scotland BCS Paper 2016/31

2018 Review of UK Parliament Constituencies Constituency considerations for City of Edinburgh and West Lothian council areas

Action required 1. The Commission is invited to consider alternative designs of constituencies for City of Edinburgh and West Lothian council areas in furtherance of its 2018 Review of UK Parliament constituencies.

Background 2. On 24 February 2016, the Commission began its 2018 Review of UK Parliament constituencies with a view to making its recommendations by October 2018 in tandem with the other UK parliamentary boundary commissions.

3. The review is being undertaken in compliance with the Parliamentary Constituencies Act 1986, as amended. The Act stipulates a UK electoral quota of 74,769.2 electors and use of the parliamentary electorate figures from the December 2015 Electoral Register. The 5% electorate limits in the Act correspond to an electorate of no less than 71,031 and no more than 78,507.

4. The Act requires the Commission to recommend the name, extent and designation of constituencies in Scotland, of which there are to be 53 in total. 2 Scottish constituencies are prescribed in the Act: Orkney and Shetland Islands constituency and Western isles constituency.

5. The Act provides some discretion in the extent of the Commission’s regard to the size, shape and accessibility of constituencies, existing constituencies and the breaking of local ties. As this review is considered to be the first following enactment of the legislation (the 6th Review was ended before completion in 2013 following enactment of the Electoral Registration and Administration Act 2013) the Commission need not have regard to the inconveniences attendant on changes to constituencies.

6. At its meeting of 16 May 2016, the Commission adopted groupings of council areas as part of its approach to constituency design for the 2018 Review, which included a group comprising City of Edinburgh and West Lothian council areas. This paper offers some options for constituencies within that group.

7. The 2015 parliamentary electorates of the council areas in this group are as shown in Table 1 below:

Council area Parliamentary Constituency electorate entitlement City of Edinburgh 328,664 4.40 West Lothian 127,843 1.71 total 456,507 6.11 Table 1: 2015 parliamentary electorates of council areas in the group.

Document name 1 BCS2016_31_(Constituency_Design_City_of_Edinburgh_West_Lothian) Boundary Commission for Scotland BCS Paper 2016/31

8. The existing constituencies in the group, their 2015 parliamentary electorates and their constituent wards are as shown in Table 2 below:

constituency Electorate Wards Edinburgh East City of Edinburgh 10pt, 11pt, 60,452 12pt, 13pt, 14pt, 15pt, 16pt, 17pt Edinburgh North and Leith City of Edinburgh 4pt, 5pt, 6pt 72,954 11pt, 12pt, 13pt, 14pt Edinburgh South City of Edinburgh 8pt, 9pt, 10pt, 60,328 15pt, 16pt Edinburgh South West City of Edinburgh 1pt, 2pt, 3pt, 66,458 6pt, 7pt, 8pt, 9pt, 10pt, 11pt Edinburgh West City of Edinburgh 1pt, 2pt, 3pt, 68,472 4pt, 5pt, 6pt, 7pt, 11pt Linlithgow and East Falkirk Falkirk 1, 2pt, 6pt, 7pt, 8pt, 9pt 83,593 West Lothian 1pt, 2pt, 3pt, 6pt, 7pt, 8pt, 9 Livingston West Lothian 1pt, 2pt, 3pt, 4, 5, 78,737 6pt, 7pt, 8pt Table 2: 2015 parliamentary electorates of existing constituencies in the group.

9. City of Edinburgh currently has 5 constituencies wholly within the council area and West Lothian has one existing constituency wholly within the council area and one constituency that also lies in Falkirk Council area. Only one of the 7 existing constituencies has an electorate within the legislative limits: Edinburgh North and Leith constituency. A map of existing constituencies and council areas in the group can be found at Appendix A.

10. The constituency names in this paper are provisional. The Commission will have the opportunity to review all constituency names and designations prior to the publication of its Initial Proposals.

Options 11. All constituencies in the following options have electorates that lie within 5% of the electoral quota and have areas of less than 13,000 km2.

Option 1 12. Option 1 provides for 4 constituencies wholly within City of Edinburgh Council area, 1 constituency wholly within West Lothian council area and 1 constituency containing part of both council areas. A map of option 1 constituencies is at Appendix B1. An overview of option 1 constituencies relative to other electoral boundaries is at Appendix B2.

13. Edinburgh East and Leith constituency comprises City of Edinburgh wards 12 (Leith Walk), 13 (Leith), 14 (Craigentinny / Duddingston) and 17 (Portobello / Craigmillar) and part of ward 11 (City Centre) near Abbeyhill. A map of the boundary in City of Edinburgh ward 11 can be found at Appendix B3.

14. Edinburgh North constituency comprises City of Edinburgh wards 3 (Drum Brae / Gyle), 5 (inverleith) and 6 (Corstorphine / Murrayfield) and part ward 4 (Forth)

Document name 2 BCS2016_31_(Constituency_Design_City_of_Edinburgh_West_Lothian) Boundary Commission for Scotland BCS Paper 2016/31

extending from Newhaven to West Pilton. A map of the boundary in City of Edinburgh ward 4, which largely follows the existing constituency boundary and a community council area boundary, can be found at Appendix B4.

15. Edinburgh Central and South constituency comprises City of Edinburgh wards 10 (Morningside), 15 (Southside / Newington) and 16 (Liberton / Gulmerton) and part ward 11 (City Centre) from Holyrood Palace to the West End.

16. Edinburgh South West constituency comprises City of Edinburgh wards 2 (Pentland Hills), 7 (Sighthill / Gorgie), 8 (Colinton / Fairmilehead) and 9 (Fountainbridge / Craiglockhart).

17. Edinburgh West and Linlithgow constituency comprises City of Edinburgh ward 1 (Almond) and part ward 4 (Forth) as far east as Muirhouse, and West Lothian wards 1 (Linlithgow), 2 (Broxburn, Uphall and Winchburgh), 8 (Bathgate) and 9 (Armadale and Blackridge).

18. Livingston constituency comprises West Lothian wards 3 to 7, including the settlements of Livingston, Bathgate and Armadale.

19. The electorate, ward composition, designation and suggested name of each constituency in option 1 is shown in Table 3 below: constituency Electorate Wards Edinburgh Central and South BC 77,615 City of Edinburgh 10, 11pt, 15, 16 Edinburgh East and Leith BC 75,482 City of Edinburgh 11pt, 12, 13, 14, 17 Edinburgh North BC 77,203 City of Edinburgh 3, 4pt, 5, 6 Edinburgh South West BC 75,334 City of Edinburgh 2, 7, 8, 9 Edinburgh West and Linlithgow City of Edinburgh 1, 4pt 76,551 BC West Lothian 1, 2, 8, 9 Livingston BC 74,322 West Lothian 3, 4, 5, 6, 7

Table 3: 2015 parliamentary electorates of option 1 constituencies.

20. In option 1, 2 wards are divided between constituencies: they are City of Edinburgh wards 4 (Forth) and 11 (City Centre).

21. The advantages of option 1 are:  2 constituencies are comprised solely of whole wards;  Only 2 wards are divided between constituencies; and  Option 1 constituencies in the south of Edinburgh are most like existing constituencies.

22. The disadvantage of option 1 is:  New Town / Broughton community council area lies in 3 constituencies.

Option 2 23. Option 2 also provides for 4 constituencies wholly within City of Edinburgh Council area, 1 constituency wholly within West Lothian council area and 1 constituency containing part of both council areas. A map of option 2

Document name 3 BCS2016_31_(Constituency_Design_City_of_Edinburgh_West_Lothian) Boundary Commission for Scotland BCS Paper 2016/31

constituencies is at Appendix C1. An overview of option 2 constituencies relative to other electoral boundaries is at Appendix C2.

24. Edinburgh North and Leith constituency comprises City of Edinburgh wards 4, 12 and 13, as well as part of ward 5 (Inverleith) that does not contain Murrayfield community council area and extends west as far as Groathill Avenue. A map of the boundary in City of Edinburgh ward 5 can be found at Appendix C3.

25. Edinburgh West constituency comprises City of Edinburgh wards 1, 3 and 6 in their entirety, as well as part of ward 5 (Inverleith) containing Murrayfield community council area and west of Groathill Avenue in Craigleith, and part of ward 7 (Sighthill / Gorgie) to the north east of Broomhouse and Longstone. A map of the boundary in City of Edinburgh ward 7 can be found at Appendix C4.

26. Edinburgh East constituency comprises City of Edinburgh wards 14, 16 and 17 in their entirety, and part of ward 15 (Southside / Newington) to the south of Bernard Terrace near St Leonard’s. A map of the boundary in City of Edinburgh ward 15 can be found at Appendix C5.

27. Edinburgh South West and Central constituency comprises City of Edinburgh wards 8 to 11 and part of ward 15 (Southside / Newington) that lies to the north of Bernard Terrace.

28. Linlithgow constituency comprises West Lothian wards 1, 2, 7, 8 and 9 in their entirety, and part of ward 6 (Fauldhouse and Breich Valley) that excludes Polbeth community council area to the southwest of Livingston. A map of the boundary in West Lothian ward 6 can be found at Appendix C6.

29. Livingston and Pentland constituency comprises City of Edinburgh ward 2 in its entirety and part of ward 7(Sighthill / Gorgie) to the southwest of Saughton Road and the Murray Burn, and West Lothian wards 3, 4 and 5 in their entirety and part of ward 6 (Fauldhouse and the Breich Valley) that overlies Polbeth community council area.

30. The electorate, ward composition, designation and suggested name of each constituency is shown in Table 4 below: constituency Electorate Wards Edinburgh East BC 75,744 City of Edinburgh 14, 15pt, 16, 17 Edinburgh North and Leith BC 78,136 City of Edinburgh 4, 5pt, 12, 13 Edinburgh South West and City of Edinburgh 8, 9, 10, 11, 15pt 75,294 Central BC Edinburgh West BC 71,143 City of Edinburgh 1, 3, 5pt, 6, 7pt Livingston and Pentland BC City of Edinburgh 2, 7pt 78,164 West Lothian 3, 4, 5, 6pt Linlithgow BC 78,026 West Lothian 1, 2, 6pt, 7, 8, 9

Table 4: 2015 parliamentary electorates of option 2 constituencies.

31. In option 2, 4 wards are divided between constituencies: they are City of Edinburgh wards 5 (Inverleith), 7 (Sighthill / Gorgie) and 15 (Southside / Newington) and West Lothian ward 6 (Fauldhouse and Breich Valley).

Document name 4 BCS2016_31_(Constituency_Design_City_of_Edinburgh_West_Lothian) Boundary Commission for Scotland BCS Paper 2016/31

32. The advantage of option 2 is:  Option 2 constituencies in the north of Edinburgh are most like existing constituencies.

33. The disadvantages of option 2 are:  4 wards are divided between constituencies;  No constituencies are comprised solely of whole wards; and  West end community council area lies in 3 constituencies.

Option 3 34. Option 3 also provides for 4 constituencies wholly within City of Edinburgh Council area, 1 constituency wholly within West Lothian council area and 1 constituency containing part of both council areas. A map of option 3 constituencies is at Appendix D1. An overview of option 3 constituencies relative to other electoral boundaries is at Appendix D2. This option provides an alternative configuration of constituencies in City of Edinburgh Council area for the boundaries in West Lothian Council area shown in option 1.

35. Edinburgh Central and Leith constituency comprises City of Edinburgh wards 11 to 14 in their entirety as well as those parts of ward 5 (Inverleith) that overlie New Town / Broughton community council area and West End community council area, and part of wards 9 (Fountainbridge / Craiglockhart) and 10 (Morningside) that overlie Tollcross community council area. The boundary through ward 5 and wards 9 and 10 are shown in Appendices D3 and D4 respectively.

36. Edinburgh North constituency comprises City of Edinburgh wards 3, 4 and 6 in their entirety and part of ward 5 (Inverleith) that excludes Silverknowes community council area, New Town / Broughton community council area and West End community council area.

37. Edinburgh South East constituency comprises wards 15 to 17 in their entirety as well as the part of ward 9 (Fountainbridge / Craiglockhart) that overlies Merchiston community council area, and part of ward 10 (Morningside / Meadows) that overlies Merchiston and Marchmont and Sciennes community council areas.

38. Edinburgh South West constituency comprises City of Edinburgh wards 2, 7 and 8, as well as the remainder of ward 9 (Fountainbridge / Craiglockhart) and the part of ward 10 (Morningside / Meadows) that overlies Morningside community council area.

39. Edinburgh West and Linlithgow constituency comprises City of Edinburgh ward 1 and part of ward 5 (Inverleith) that overlies Silverknowes community council area. The constituency also contains west Lothian wards 1, 2, 8 and 9 in their entirety.

40. Livingston constituency is the same as shown in option 1.

41. The electorate, ward composition, designation and suggested name of each constituency in option 3 is shown in Table 5 below:

Document name 5 BCS2016_31_(Constituency_Design_City_of_Edinburgh_West_Lothian) Boundary Commission for Scotland BCS Paper 2016/31

constituency Electorate Wards Edinburgh Central and Leith BC City of Edinburgh 5pt, 9pt, 10pt, 11, 77,051 12, 13, 14 Edinburgh North BC 76,953 City of Edinburgh 3, 4, 5pt, 6 Edinburgh South East BC 76,708 City of Edinburgh 9pt, 10pt, 15, 16, 17 Edinburgh South West BC 77,211 City of Edinburgh 2, 7, 8, 9pt, 10pt Edinburgh West and Linlithgow City of Edinburgh 1, 5pt 74,262 BC West Lothian 1, 2, 8, 9 Livingston BC 74,322 West Lothian 3, 4, 5, 6, 7

Table 5: 2015 parliamentary electorates of option 3 constituencies.

42. In option 3, 3 wards are divided between constituencies: they are City of Edinburgh wards 5 (Inverleith), 9 (Fountainbridge / Craiglockhart) and 10 (Meadows / Morningside).

43. The advantages of option 3 are:  1 constituency is comprised solely of whole wards; and  Option 3 has the smallest range of constituency electorates of the 3 options.

44. The disadvantages of option 3 are:  Only one constituency is formed of whole wards; and  Ward 5 is divided between 3 constituencies.

Discussion 45. Options 1 and 3 are better than option 2 in regard to local ties in West Lothian as no wards are divided between constituencies in these options.

46. Arguably, option 1 is most similar to existing UK Parliament constituencies in the south of Edinburgh and option 2 in the north of the council area.

47. Option 1 requires the least number of divided wards of the options.

48. In all options, only one constituency contains parts of more than one council area.

49. Both options 1 and 2 contain community council areas that overlie 3 constituencies: option 3 does not.

50. In all options, there is little alignment with Scottish parliament boundaries.

51. Options 1 and 3 have smaller ranges of constituency electorates than option 2.

Conclusion 52. The Commission is invited to agree its initial proposals for public consultation, subject to satisfactory constituencies elsewhere in Scotland.

Secretariat

Document name 6 BCS2016_31_(Constituency_Design_City_of_Edinburgh_West_Lothian) Boundary Commission for Scotland BCS Paper 2016/31

July 2016

Document name 7 BCS2016_31_(Constituency_Design_City_of_Edinburgh_West_Lothian) Boundary Commission for Scotland BCS Paper 2016/31 2018 Review of UK Parliament Constituencies Appendix A City of Edinburgh and West Lothian council areas Existing Constituencies

Edinburgh North and Leith Linlithgow and East Falkirk Edinburgh West Edinburgh East

Edinburgh South

Edinburgh South West

Livingston

existing constituency council area boundary Crown Copyright and database right 0 3.5 miles 2016. All rights reserved. Ordnance Survey licence no. 100022179 ± 0 3.5 km Boundary Commission for Scotland BCS Paper 2016/31 2018 Review of UK Parliament Constituencies Appendix B1 City of Edinburgh and West Lothian council areas Initial Proposals - Option 1

Edinburgh West and Linlithgow Edinburgh North Edinburgh East and Leith Edinburgh Central and South

Edinburgh South West

Livingston

suggested constituency existing constituency boundary Crown Copyright and database right 0 3 miles 2016. All rights reserved. Ordnance Survey licence no. 100022179 ± 0 3 km Boundary Commission for Scotland BCS Paper 2016/31 2018 Review of UK Parliament Constituencies Appendix B2 City of Edinburgh and West Lothian council areas Initial Proposals - Option 1

existing council area boundary existing uk parliament constituency existing council ward boundary

existing community existing scottish parliament council boundary constituency Boundary Commission for Scotland BCS Paper 2016/31 2018 Review of UK Parliament Constituencies Appendix B3 City of Edinburgh and West Lothian council areas Initial Proposals - Option 1 - City of Edinburgh ward 11 CE13 Suggested Constituency name Electorate Edinburgh East and Leith 75,482 CE12 Edinburgh North 77,203 Edinburgh Central and South 77,615 Edinburgh South West 75,334 Edinburgh West and Linlithgow 76,551 Livingston 74,322 CE5 Edinburgh North Edinburgh East and Leith

CE11

Edinburgh Central and South

CE6

CE14

CE7suggested constituency CE15 existing constituency boundary CE9 ward boundary CE10 CE12Edinburghward number South West community council boundary Crown Copyright and database right 0 0.25 miles 2016. All rights reserved. Ordnance Survey licence no. 100022179 ± 0 0.25 km Boundary Commission for Scotland BCS Paper 2016/31 2018 Review of UK Parliament Constituencies Appendix B4 City of Edinburgh and West Lothian council areas Initial Proposals - Option 1 - City of Edinburgh ward 4 Suggested Constituency name Electorate Edinburgh East and Leith 75,482 Edinburgh North 77,203 Edinburgh Central and South 77,615 Edinburgh South West 75,334 Edinburgh West and Linlithgow 76,551 Livingston 74,322

CE4

Edinburgh West and Linlithgow

CE1 Edinburgh North

suggested constituency CE5 existing constituency boundary ward boundary CE12 ward number community council boundary Crown Copyright and database right 0 0.25 miles 2016. All rights reserved. Ordnance CE3 Survey licence no. 100022179 ± 0 0.25 km Boundary Commission for Scotland BCS Paper 2016/31 2018 Review of UK Parliament Constituencies Appendix C1 City of Edinburgh and West Lothian council areas Initial Proposals - Option 2

Edinburgh North and Leith Edinburgh West

Edinburgh East Linlithgow Edinburgh South West and Central

Livingston and Pentland

constituency electorate Edinburgh East 75,744 Edinburgh North and Leith 78,136 Edinburgh South West and Central 75,294 Edinburgh West 71,143 Linlithgow 78,026 suggested constituency Livingston and Pentland 78,164 existing constituency boundary Crown Copyright and database right 0 3 miles 2016. All rights reserved. Ordnance Survey licence no. 100022179 ± 0 3 km Boundary Commission for Scotland BCS Paper 2016/31 2018 Review of UK Parliament Constituencies Appendix C2 City of Edinburgh and West Lothian council areas Initial Proposals - Option 2

existing council area boundary existing uk parliament constituency existing council ward boundary

existing community existing scottish parliament council boundary constituency Boundary Commission for Scotland BCS Paper 2016/31 2018 Review of UK Parliament Constituencies Appendix C3 City of Edinburgh and West Lothian council areas Initial Proposals - Option 2 - City of Edinburgh ward 5

constituency electorate CE4 Edinburgh East 75,744 Edinburgh North and Leith 78,136 Edinburgh South West and Central 75,294 Edinburgh West 71,143 Linlithgow 78,026 CE1 Livingston and Pentland 78,164

Edinburgh North and Leith

Edinburgh West CE5

CE3

suggested constituency existing constituency boundary CE6 ward boundary CE11 CE12 ward number community council boundary Crown Copyright and database right 0 0.25 miles 2016. All rights reserved. Ordnance Survey licence no. 100022179 ± 0 0.25 km Boundary Commission for Scotland BCS Paper 2016/31 2018 Review of UK Parliament Constituencies Appendix C4CE11 City of Edinburgh and West Lothian council areas Initial Proposals - Option 2 - City of Edinburgh ward 7

constituency electorate Edinburgh East 75,744 Edinburgh North and Leith 78,136 CE6 Edinburgh South West and Central 75,294 Edinburgh West 71,143 Edinburgh West Linlithgow 78,026 Livingston and Pentland 78,164

CE3

CE7 CE10

CE9

Edinburgh South West and Central Livingston and Pentland

suggested constituency existing constituency boundary ward boundary ward number CE12 CE2 community council boundary Crown Copyright and database right 0 0.25 miles 2016. All rights reserved. Ordnance Survey licence no. 100022179 ± 0 0.25 km Boundary Commission for Scotland BCS Paper 2016/31 2018 Review of UK Parliament Constituencies Appendix C5 City of Edinburgh and West Lothian council areas CE11 Initial Proposals - Option 2 - City of Edinburgh ward 15

constituency electorate Edinburgh East 75,744 Edinburgh North and Leith 78,136 EdinburghCE14 South West and Central 75,294 Edinburgh West 71,143 Edinburgh South West and Central Linlithgow 78,026 Livingston and Pentland 78,164

CE10 Edinburgh East CE15

suggested constituency existing constituency boundary ward boundary CE12 ward number community council boundary Crown Copyright and database right 0 0.1 miles 2016. All rights reserved. Ordnance Survey licence no. 100022179 ± 0 0.1 km Boundary Commission for Scotland BCS Paper 2016/31 2018 Review of UK Parliament Constituencies Appendix C6 City of Edinburgh and West Lothian council areas Initial Proposals - Option 2 - West Lothian ward 6

constituency electorate Edinburgh East 75,744 Edinburgh North and Leith 78,136 Edinburgh South West and Central 75,294 WL7 Edinburgh West 71,143 Linlithgow 78,026 Livingston and Pentland 78,164

Linlithgow WL4

Livingston and Pentland

WL6 suggested constituency WL5 existing constituency boundary ward boundary WL2 ward number community council boundary Crown Copyright and database right 0 0.45 miles 2016. All rights reserved. Ordnance Survey licence no. 100022179 ± 0 0.4 km Boundary Commission for Scotland BCS Paper 2016/31 2018 Review of UK Parliament Constituencies Appendix D1 City of Edinburgh and West Lothian council areas Initial Proposals - Option 3

Edinburgh Edinburgh North Central Edinburgh West and Linlithgow and Leith

Edinburgh South East

Edinburgh South West

Livingston

Constituency Name Electorate Edinburgh West and Linlithgow 74,262 Edinburgh Central and Leith 77,051 Edinburgh South East 76,708 Edinburgh North 76,953 Edinburgh South West 77,211 suggested constituency Livingston 74,322 existing constituency boundary Crown Copyright and database right 0 3 miles 2016. All rights reserved. Ordnance Survey licence no. 100022179 ± 0 3 km Boundary Commission for Scotland BCS Paper 2016/31 2018 Review of UK Parliament Constituencies Appendix D2 City of Edinburgh and West Lothian council areas Initial Proposals - Option 3

existing council area boundary existing uk parliament constituency existing council ward boundary

existing community existing scottish parliament council boundary constituency Boundary Commission for Scotland BCS Paper 2016/31 2018 Review of UK Parliament Constituencies Appendix D3 City of Edinburgh and West Lothian council areas Initial Proposals - Option 3 : Ward 5 - Inverleith

CE4

CE1

Edinburgh West and Linlithgow

CE12

Edinburgh North CE5

CE3

CE11 Edinburgh Central and Leith

CE6

suggested constituency Constituency Name Electorate existing constituency boundary Edinburgh West and Linlithgow 74,262 Edinburgh Central and Leith 77,051 ward boundary Edinburgh South East 76,708 CE12 ward number CE9 CE15 community council boundary Edinburgh North 76,953 CE10 CE7 Crown Copyright and database right 0 0.35 miles Edinburgh South West 77,211 Edinburgh South East 2016. All rights reserved. Ordnance Edinburgh South West Survey licence no. 100022179 ± 0 0.35 km Livingston 74,322 BoundaryCE3 Commission for Scotland BCS Paper 2016/31 CE5 2018 Review of UK Parliament Constituencies Appendix D4 City of Edinburgh and West Lothian council areas Edinburgh Central and Leith CE11 Initial Proposals - Option 3 : City of Edinburgh wards 9 and 10

Edinburgh North CE6

Edinburgh South East

CE7 CE15

CE10

CE9 Edinburgh South West

suggested constituency Constituency Name Electorate Edinburgh West and Linlithgow 74,262 existing constituency boundary Edinburgh Central and Leith 77,051 ward boundary CE2 Edinburgh South East 76,708 ward number CE12 Edinburgh North 76,953 community council boundary Crown Copyright and database right 0 0.35 miles Edinburgh South West 77,211 2016. All rights reserved. Ordnance Survey licence no. 100022179 ± 0 0.35 km CE8 Livingston 74,322