General election in Scotland 2011
The 2011 general election in Scotland was the fourth election to the Scottish Parliament and took place on May 5, 2011. Elections to the Welsh National Assembly and Northern Ireland Assembly took place on the same day, and an electoral referendum was held across the UK . The election in Scotland ended with a victory for the Scottish National Party (SNP). For the first time, a party was able to achieve an absolute majority in parliamentary seats.
The newly elected parliament was opened on July 1st by Elizabeth II .
Starting position
From the parliamentary elections in 2007 , the Scottish National Party (SNP) with 47 seats emerged from the Scottish Labor Party (46 seats) as the strongest force. The Scottish Conservative Party received 17 seats, the Scottish Liberal Democrats 16 and the Scottish Green Party two seats. As a consequence of the election, the SNP formed a minority government supported by the Greens under Alex Salmond , who was elected First Minister on May 16, 2007 .
Political positions of the main parties
The SNP promised not to increase the council tax (municipal tax ) in the event of an election victory despite the strained public budget situation. One of their main promises was to hold a referendum on the possible independence of Scotland from the United Kingdom . In terms of energy policy, she proclaimed the goal that by 2020 all electrical energy in Scotland should come from renewable energy sources . She spoke out against tuition fees for Scottish students at universities. With regard to public safety, the SNP spoke out against a reduction in the previous police force.
The Labor Party advocated the introduction of a minimum wage of £ 7.15 an hour. She wanted to focus her policy on eradicating youth unemployment and creating 250,000 new jobs by 2020. To deter public criminals, she advocated the introduction of a compulsory 6-month prison sentence for people who are illegally armed with a knife. The council tax should also not be increased for at least the next 2 years. Scottish students should be exempt from tuition fees. The plan for a rail link between Central Station and Glasgow Airport , which was abandoned in 2009, was to be reactivated.
The Conservatives also called for the Council tax to be frozen until 2013. They called for the £ 5 prescription fee to be reintroduced. The expected income of £ 37 million would be invested in the National Health Service to improve care. The Conservative Party advocated the introduction of moderate tuition fees. Convicted offenders should receive short sentences instead of social work. The party also advocated further expansion of nuclear energy, but not in new locations.
The Liberal Democrats also opposed tuition fees for Scottish students. The Scottish Water public water supply was to be privatized and the estimated £ 1.5 billion proceeds to invest in which would create 100,000 new jobs. The council tax should be reformed.
The Green Party of Scotland wanted to promote ecological projects. The council tax should be replaced by a land value tax (tax on land ownership). Scottish students should be exempt from tuition fees. The Scottish judicial system should be reformed. Another planned crossing of the Forth was not to be realized.
Result
With the SNP, a Scottish party succeeded for the first time in gaining an absolute majority of seats. With the party's election victory, the incumbent government under Alex Salmond was able to continue its work. It had announced that it would hold a referendum on the independence of Scotland in the coming legislative period in accordance with its election promise . The weak election result of the Liberal Democrats in one of their previous strongholds, which was also evident in the simultaneous elections in England and Wales, was seen as a disappointment that the party had to support a strict austerity course and numerous of its election promises since the beginning of the coalition with the Conservatives could not keep.
| Political party | Constituency votes |
In % | Constituency mandates |
List votes |
In % | List mandates |
Overall mandates |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SNP | 902.915 | 45.39% | 53 | 876.421 | 44.04% | 16 | 69 | |
| Labor | 630,461 | 31.69% | 15th | 523,559 | 26.31% | 22nd | 37 | |
| Conservative | 276,652 | 13.91% | 3 | 245.967 | 12.36% | 12 | 15th | |
| Liberal Democrats | 157.714 | 7.93% | 2 | 103,472 | 5.20% | 3 | 5 | |
| Greens | - * | - | 0 | 87,060 | 4.38% | 2 | 2 | |
| Independent | 12,357 | 0.62% | 0 | 22.306 | 1.12% | 1 | 1 | |
| Other | 9.123 | 0.46% | 0 | 131,081 | 6.58% | 0 | 0 | |
| total | 1,989,222 | 100% | 73 | 1,991,051 | 100% | 56 | 129 | |
* The Scottish Green Party did not run constituency candidates.
For a full list of MPs in this term, see List of Members of the Scottish Parliament (4th Term) .
Web links
- List of members of parliament for the fourth term. scottish.parliament.uk (English)
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b Scots become more difficult . ntv.de, May 8, 2011
- ^ The Opening of the Fourth Session of the Scottish Parliament - Friday 1 July 2011. (No longer available online.) Formerly original ; accessed on September 23, 2011 (English). ( Page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ a b c d e Scotland election: Issues guide , BBC News; April 20, 2011
- ↑ Election results 2011: Lib Dems suffer worst losses in a generation . The Guardian , May 6, 2011 (English)
