Politics of Scotland - History

History

Further information: History of Scotland, Parliament of Scotland, and Treaty of Union, 1707

Until 1832 Scottish politics remained very much in the control of landowners in the country, and of small cliques of merchants in the burghs. Agitation against this position through the Friends of the People Society in the 1790s met with Lord Braxfield's explicit repression on behalf of the landed interests. The Scottish Reform Act 1832 rearranged the constituencies and increased the electorate from under 5,000 to 65,000. The Representation of the People (Scotland) Act 1868 extended the electorate to 232,000 but with "residential qualifications peculiar to Scotland". However by 1885 around 50% of the male population had the vote, the secret ballot had become established, and the modern political era had started.

From 1885 to 1918 the Liberal Party almost totally dominated Scottish politics. Only in the general election of 1955 did the Unionist Party, together with their National Liberal and Liberal Unionist allies, win a majority of votes.

In general, the Unionists achieved their best results in the Glasgow area, due to the Orange vote.

After the coupon election of 1918, 1922 saw the emergence of the Labour Party as a major force. Red Clydeside elected a number of Labour MPs. A communist gained election for Motherwell in 1924, but in essence the 1920s saw a 3-way fight between Labour, the Liberals and the Unionists. The National Party of Scotland first contested a seat in 1929. It merged with the centre-right Scottish Party in 1934 to form the Scottish National Party, but the SNP remained a peripheral force until the watershed Hamilton by-election of 1967.

The Communists won West Fife in 1935 and again in 1945 (Willie Gallacher) and several Glasgow Labour MPs joined the Independent Labour Party in the 1930s, often heavily defeating the official Labour candidates.

The National Government won the vast majority of Scottish seats in 1931 and 1935: the Liberal Party, banished to the Highlands and Islands, no longer functioned as a significant force in central Scotland.

In 1945, the SNP saw its first MP (Robert McIntyre) elected at the Motherwell by-election, but had little success during the following decade. The ILP members rejoined the Labour Party, and Scotland now had in effect a two-party system.

• 1950: The Liberals won 2 seats - Jo Grimond winning Orkney and Shetland.
• 1951: Labour and the Unionists won 35 seats each, the Liberals losing one seat.
• 1955: The Unionists won a majority of both seats and votes. The SNP managed to finish second in Perth and Kinross.
• 1959: In contrast to England, Scotland swung to Labour, which scored 4 gains at the expense of the Unionists. This marked the start of a process which in less than 40 years saw the Unionists' Scottish representation at Westminster reduced to zero. This was the last occasion when the Unionists won in Scotland: their merger with the Conservative Party of England and Wales in 1965, to become the Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party, began a long, steady decline in their support.
• 1964: A substantial swing to Labour occurred, giving them 44 of Scotland's 71 seats. The Liberals won 4 seats, all in the Highlands.
• 1965: David Steel won the Roxburgh, Selkirk and Peebles by-election for the Liberals.
• 1966: Labour gained 2 more seats and the Liberals made a net gain of 1. The SNP garnered over 100,000 votes and finished second in 3 seats.
• 1967: The SNP did well in the Glasgow Pollok by-election, but this had the effect of allowing the Conservative and Unionist candidate to win. However in the subsequent Hamilton by-election Winnie Ewing won a sensational victory.
• 1968: The SNP made substantial gains in local elections.
• 1970: The SNP performed poorly in local elections and in the Ayrshire South by-election. The general election saw a small swing to the Conservative & Unionists, but Labour won a majority of seats in Scotland. The SNP made little progress in central Scotland, but took votes from the Liberals in the Highlands and in north east Scotland, and won the Western Isles.
• 1971-1973: The SNP did well in by-elections, Margo MacDonald winning Glasgow Govan.
• 1974: In the two general elections of 1974 (in February and October) the SNP won 7 and then 11 seats, their share of the vote rising from 11% in 1970 to 22% and then 30%. With the Labour Party winning the latter election by a narrow margin the SNP appeared in a strong position.
• 1974-1979: Devolution dominated this period: the Labour government attempted to steer through devolution legislation, based on the recommendations of the Kilbrandon Commission, against strong opposition, not least from its own backbenchers. Finally a referendum, whilst producing a small majority in favour of an elected Scottish Assembly, failed to reach 40% of the total electorate, a target set in the legislation. In the 1979 general election the SNP fared poorly, falling to 17% of the vote and 2 seats. Labour did well in Scotland, but in the United Kingdom as a whole Margaret Thatcher led the Conservatives to a decisive victory.
• 1979-1983: The SNP suffered severe splits as the result of the 1979 drop in support. Labour also was riven by internal strife as the Social Democratic Party split away. Despite this, the 1983 election still saw Labour remain the majority party in Scotland, with a smaller swing to the Conservatives than in England. The SNP's vote declined further, to 11%, although it managed to win 2 seats.
• 1987: The Labour Party did well in the 1987 election, mainly at the expense of the Conservative & Unionists, who were reduced to their smallest number of Scottish seats since before World War I. The SNP made a small but significant advance.
• 1988: Jim Sillars won the Glasgow Govan by-election for the SNP.
• 1992: This election proved a disappointment for Labour and the SNP in Scotland. The SNP went from 14% to 21% of the vote but won only 3 seats. The Conservative and Unionist vote did not collapse, as had been widely predicted, leading to claims that their resolutely anti-devolution stance had paid dividends.
• 1995: Braveheart is released in the United States, greatly affecting the Scottish political landscape.
• 1997: In common with England, a Labour landslide occurred in Scotland. The SNP doubled their number of MPs to 6, but the Conservative & Unionists failed to win a single seat. Unlike 1979, Scottish voters delivered a decisive "Yes" vote in the referendum on establishing a Scottish Parliament.
• 1999: The Scottish Parliament is established. A coalition of Labour and Liberal Democrats led by Donald Dewar take power.
• 2007: The SNP become Scotland's largest party in the 2007 Scottish Parliamentary election and form a minority government.
• 2008: John Mason won the Glasgow East by-election for the SNP.
• 2008: Lindsay Roy won the Glenrothes by-election for Labour with an increased share of the vote and a 6,737 majority over the SNP.
• 2009: Willie Bain won the Glasgow North East by-election for Labour with 59.4% of the vote and an 8,111 majority over the SNP.
• 2010: United Kingdom general election, 2010: Labour won 41 out of 59 Scottish seats including Glasgow East from the SNP and receiving over 1 million votes across Scotland despite Labour losing 91 seats across Britain as a whole.
• 2011: The SNP become the first party to win an overall majority in the Scottish Parliament.