Where's Something About Mary?

The other day I took this video of them changing the sign outside the Bathgate offices of the Labour Party.


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Sadly it's not that clear but the white part of the sign that's visible announced the offices of the MSP for Linlithgow Mary Mulligan.

This evening I decided to go back past to see the completed work. After all it is only a handful of seconds longer on my trip home. I was greeted by this:



The sign is totally dedicated to Michael Connarty who I contested the seat of Linlithgow and East Falkirk against in 2005 and nothing about Mary. Now there are boundary changes coming up in 2011 at the next Scottish Parliament elections. Bathgate will become part of the Linlithgow and Bathgate seat but the rest of Mary's seat becomes part of Lanark, Shotts and Whitburn. As this is the part of the constituency that Mary lives in I suspect the change of signage indicates that she will be standing there.

New Holyrood Constituency Proposals

New Proposals for the Scottish Parliamentary constituencies for the West Lothian area are available to view as a PDF file on the Boundary Commission for Scotland website.

The rapid population expansion in the area is the principle reason why the boundaries and it means that West Lothian residents will now be in one of three constituencies when voting for Holyrood elections:

1. Livingston
2. Linlithgow and Bathgate
3. Lanark, Shotts and Whitburn

The areas proposed to move into Lanark, Shotts and Whitburn are Whitburn (obviously), East Whitburn, Greenrigg, Longridge, Fauldhouse. The new boundary of Livingston being just beyond Bents and Breich to the West. The southern boundary of the Linlithgow seat will the the Armadale and Blackridge/Whitburn and Blackburn ward boundary and the Western fringe will be at junction 4 of the M8.

Uphall, Broxburn, Dechmont and Ecclesmachen will move from Livingston into the new Linlithgow and Bathgate seat.

It will will mean that it will be possible for people in the Whitburn and Blackburn ward to have MSPs in common with either Lanark and Shotts, or Livingston and their MP in Common with either Linlithgow and Bathgate or Livingston. However, with the expansion in various areas this is the most equitable shape of the three leaving the elctorates based on 2007 as:

• Livingston 54,840
• Linlithgow and Bathgate 54,230
• Lanark, Shotts and Whitburn 54,930