Dundee West (UK Parliament constituency)

Dundee West is a constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament (MP) by the first-past-the-post voting system.

The constituency was created for the 1950 general election, when the two-seat Dundee constituency was split into two single seat constituencies: Dundee East and Dundee West.

Boundaries

The constituency is one of two covering the City of Dundee council area, the other being Dundee East. Current boundaries were first used in the 2005 general election.

As well as covering an eastern portion of the city area, the West constituency also includes, to the north and west, part of the Angus council area. Similarly, the east constituency includes, to the north and east, another part of the Angus council area.

Prior to the 2005 election, both constituencies were entirely within the city area, and north-eastern and north-western areas of the city were within the Angus constituency. Scottish Parliament constituencies retain the older boundaries.

Politics and history of the constituency

Dundee West is a safe seat for the Labour. Its voters have traditionally been more loyal to the Labour Party than its neighbour Dundee East having elected only Labour MPs since the 1950s. Labour's majority was reduced in 2005 by the SNP's Joe Fitzpatrick despite changes to the boundaries which should have favoured Labour suggesting that the constituency might be becoming more marginal, although the gap widened again in 2010.

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