1974 Strathclyde Regional Council election

Elections to Strathclyde Regional Council were held on Tuesday 7 May 1974, on the same day as the eight other Scottish regional elections. This was the first election to the regional council following the implementation of the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973.

1974 Strathclyde Regional Council election

7 May 1974 (1974-05-07) 1978 →
All 103 seats to Strathclyde Regional Council 52 seats needed for a majority
Registered	1,773,010
Turnout	51.7%
First party Second party Third party   Lab Con SNP Leader Dick Stewart Party Labour Conservative SNP Seats won 71 20 5 Popular vote 388,480 250,719 132,871 Percentage 44.0% 28.4% 15.1%
Council Leader after election Labour

The election used the 103 electoral divisions created by the Formation Electoral Arrangements in 1974. Each electoral division elected one councillor using first-past-the-post voting.^[1]

Labour took control of the regional council after winning a large majority of the seats. The party won 71 of the 103 seats and took 44% of the popular vote. The Conservatives were the second-largest party after winning 20 seats. The Scottish National Party (SNP) came third in the popular vote and took five seats. The Liberal Party took two seats while the other five were won by independent candidates.

Background

Prior to reform, local government in Scotland was made up of a system of counties and burghs. County councils controlled most of the local government functions across the country while the burghs had limited powers over smaller geographical areas. Small burghs had some control over planning as well as local taxation, building control, housing, lighting and drainage while large burghs also had further powers over the police, public health, social services, registration of births, marriages and deaths and electoral registration.^[2]

Following the recommendations in the Wheatly Report, the old system of counties and burghs – which had resulted in a mishmash of local government areas in which some small burghs had larger populations but far fewer responsibilities than some large burghs and even counties^[2] – was to be replaced by a new system of regional and district councils.

The area that was to become Strathclyde was made up of the former counties of Ayrshire, Buteshire, Dunbartonshire, Lanarkshire and Renfrewshire in full as well as the City of Glasgow, most of Argyll and part of Stirlingshire.^[2]

Results

1974 Strathclyde Regional Council election

Party		Seats	Gains	Losses	Net gain/loss	Seats %	Votes %	Votes	+/−
	Labour	71				68.9	44.0	388,480
	Conservative	20				19.4	28.4	250,719
	SNP	5				4.9	15.1	132,871
	Independent	5				4.9	4.9	43,227
	Liberal	2				1.9	4.5	39,839
	Communist	0				0.0	1.2	10,437
	Ind. Conservative	0				0.0	0.5	4,764
	Independent Labour	0				0.0	0.5	4,708
	Independent Progressive	0				0.0	0.4	3,778
	Independent Socialist	0				0.0	0.3	2,746
	Paisley Local	0				0.0	0.1	1,043
	Socialist Workers Republican	0				0.0	0.0	140
Total		103						882,752

Source:^[3]

Electoral division results

Argyll District

1. Kintyre

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Conservative	J. McCorkindale	2,520	51.6
	Labour	D. McMillan	1,550	31.7
	Liberal	C. MacEchern	817	16.7
Majority			970	19.9
Turnout			4,887	59.5
	Conservative win (new seat)

2. Mid Argyll and Islay

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Conservative	A. Jackson	1,588	31.7
	Liberal	W. Pollock	1,402	28.0
	Independent	F. Spears	1,075	21.5
	Labour	J. Stewart	946	18.9
Majority			186	3.7
Turnout			5,011	52.4
	Conservative win (new seat)

3. Lorn

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Independent	D. Webster	2,593	45.0
	Liberal	Janet Michie	2,229	38.7
	Labour	G. MacKechnie	938	16.3
Majority			364	6.3
Turnout			5,760	55.9
	Independent win (new seat)

4. Bute and West Cowal

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Conservative	J. McMillan	2,968	67.9
	Independent	D. McIntyre	762	17.4
	Labour	H. McGill	641	14.7
Majority			2,206	50.5
Turnout			4,371	50.9
	Conservative win (new seat)

5. Dunoon and East Cowal

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Conservative	L. Hinge	1,635	29.8
	Independent	T. Henderson	1,350	24.6
	Independent	T. Crompton	864	15.7
	Independent	J. Mackinnon	735	13.4
	Independent	T. Trapp	348	11.8
	Labour	Isobel Coxon	262	4.8
Majority			285	5.2
Turnout			5,494	61.7
	Conservative win (new seat)

Dumbarton District

6. Dumbarton

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Labour	I. Macduff	6,523	65.8
	Conservative	J. Miller	3,398	34.4
Majority			3,125	31.4
Turnout			9,921	54.5
	Labour win

7. Helensburgh

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Independent	W. Petrie	5,869	58.8
	Conservative	N. Glen	3,174	31.8
	Labour	Gillian Carr	934	9.4
Majority			2,695	27.0
Turnout			9,977	60.6
	Independent win

8. Vale of Leven

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Labour	M. Haran	4,867	46.1
	SNP	W. Dick	3,444	32.6
	Conservative	E. Denny	1,898	18.0
	Communist	A. Bellingham	355	3.4
Majority			1,423	13.5
Turnout			10,564	60.6
	Labour win

City of Glasgow District

9. Tollcross/ Parkhead

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Labour	G. McClure	5,111	50.7
	SNP	B. Nugent	2,498	24.8
	Conservative	A. Scott	2,343	23.2
	Communist	W. Kennedy	134	1.3
Majority			2,613	25.9
Turnout			10,564	47.3
	Labour win

10. Carntyne/ Camlachie

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Labour	D. Marshall	4,030	57.2
	SNP	N. Logan	1,725	24.5
	Conservative	R.B May	1,187	16.8
	Communist	D. McGregor	107	1.5
Majority			2,305	32.7
Turnout			7,049	41.9
	Labour win

11. Easterhouse/ Garthamlock

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Labour	T. Fulton	4,251	57.8
	SNP	T. Murray	2,331	31.7
	Conservative	R.J. Howie	468	6.4
	Communist	J. Jackson	310	4.2
Majority			1,920	26.1
Turnout			7,360	35.5
	Labour win

12. Wellhouse/ Queenslie

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Labour	A.J. Long	4,402	57.6
	SNP	W. Lindsay	2,626	34.4
	Conservative	G.R. McKay	501	6.6
	Communist	K. Haldane	110	1.4
Majority			1,776	23.2
Turnout			7,639	45.9
	Labour win

13.Riddrie/ Lethamhill

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Labour	Agnes L. Ballantyne	4,281	60.7
	SNP	G. Wotherspoon	2,167	27.3
	Conservative	G. Bryce	1,487	18.7
Majority			2,114	33.4
Turnout			7,935	45.9
	Labour win

14. City/ Townhead

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Labour	W. Lindsay	3,362	69.7
	Conservative	W.G. Mackay	734	15.2
	SNP	J. Gilmer	726	15.1
Majority			2,628	54.5
Turnout			4,822	41.0
	Labour win

15.Calton/ Dalmarnock

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Labour	T. McLaren	3,169	60.7
	SNP	H. MacQueen	744	14.3
	Conservative	A. Alexander	686	13.1
	Liberal	W. Gibson Knight	622	11.9
Majority			2,425	46.4
Turnout			5,221	38.8
	Labour win

16. Balornock/ Robroyston

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Labour	P. Trainer	4,550	53.8
	SNP	W. Morton	2,942	34.8
	Conservative	T. Herriot	819	9.7
	Communist	N. McLellan	146	1.7
Majority			1,608	19.0
Turnout			8,457	47.4
	Labour win

Ward 17. Cowlairs/ Petershill

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Labour	R. Gould	2,895	57.8
	SNP	J. Young	1,483	29.6
	Conservative	J. Miller	568	11.3
	Communist	Jean Maitland	61	1.2
Majority			1,412	28.2
Turnout			5,007	42.3
	Labour win

18. Milnbank/ Dennistoun

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Labour	P. McEachran	3,988	44.5
	Conservative	J.C. Gilbert	2,644	29.5
	SNP	J.C. Donaldson	2,229	24.9
	Communist	R. Irving	100	1.1
Majority			1,344	15.0
Turnout			8,961	49.2
	Labour win

19. Summerston/ Wyndford

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Labour	L. McGarry	4,775	66.7
	Conservative	S. Taylor	2,183	30.5
	Communist	I. Wilson	203	2.8
Majority			2,592	36.2
Turnout			7,161	44.3
	Labour win

20. Ruchill/ Milton

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Labour	G. McGrath	4,182	53.3
	SNP	A. McIntosh	2,778	35.4
	Conservative	Harriet Paterson	778	9.9
	Communist	M. Meers	105	1.3
Majority			1,404	17.9
Turnout			7,843	47.1
	Labour win

21. Possilpark/Cowcaddens

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Labour	W. Harley	4,636	59.3
	SNP	J. Brown	2,400	30.7
	Conservative	A.T. Rennie	646	8.3
	Communist	J.O. Foster	137	1.8
Majority			1,404	28.6
Turnout			7,819	42.2
	Labour win

22. Botanic Gardens/ Park

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Conservative	J.G. Rennie	3,745	58.2
	Labour	R. Higgins	2,692	41.8
Majority			1,053	16.4
Turnout			6,437	44.6
	Conservative win

23. Kelvin/Woodside

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Labour	J. Gray	2,667	49.8
	Conservative	Mary Goldie	1,968	36.8
	Independent Progressive	W.M. Hutcheson	476	8.9
	Scottish Workers Republican Party	W. Montgomery	140	2.6
	Communist	P. Noon	103	1.9
Majority			699	13.0
Turnout			4,354	45.6
	Labour win

24. Partick East/ Anderston

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Labour	M.R. Green	3,248	40.5
	Conservative	H.J. McGoldrick	2,654	33.1
	SNP	C. Mackellar	1,930	24.1
	Communist	W.S. McFall	179	2.2
Majority			594	7.4
Turnout			8,011	49.8
	Labour win

25. Anniesland/Kelvinside

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Conservative	L.M. Turple	5,127	49.1
	Liberal	Louise Steedman	3,405	32.6
	Labour	Judith Wilkinson	972	9.3
	SNP	Elizabeth A. Robinson	937	9.0
Majority			1,722	16.5
Turnout			10,441	56.8
	Conservative win

26. Scotstoun/ Partick West

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Conservative	Janet S.B. Browning	5,331	40.2
	SNP	J. Hannah	3,019	22.8
	Liberal	I. McTavish	830	6.3
Majority			1,250	17.4
Turnout			13,260	56.9
	Conservative win

27. Drumry/ Summerhill

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Labour	J. Hemphill	4,282	57,4
	SNP	I. Cameron	2,443	32.7
	Conservative	W. Aitken	574	7.7
	Communist	S. Barr	166	2.2
Majority			1,839	24.7
Turnout			7,465	41.7
	Labour win

28. Blairdardie/ Knightscliffe

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Labour	D. McColl	3,883	42.8
	SNP	A. Gorman	3,019	33.3
	Conservative	G.A. Kidd	2,036	22.5
	Communist	J. Moffat	129	1.4
Majority			864	9.5
Turnout			9,067	52.8
	Labour win

29. Yoker/ Knightswood

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Labour	W. Perry	4,866	49.1
	SNP	R. Thomson	2,890	29.1
	Conservative	A. Rogers	1,965	19.8
	Communist	P. Morton	195	2.0
Majority			1,976	20.0
Turnout			9,916	50.5
	Labour win

30. Gorbals/ Hutchesontown

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Labour	J. Wray	4,760	63.3
	SNP	G. Baird	1,523	20.2
	Conservative	A. Green	960	12.8
	Communist	J. Kray	282	3.8
Majority			3,237	43.1
Turnout			7,525	40.2
	Labour win

31. Crosshill/ Prospecthill

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Labour	G.M. Shaw	4,508	45.4
	Conservative	L. Dorfman	2,748	27.6
	SNP	D.G. MacKellar	2,546	25.6
	Communist	A. Stewart	139	1.4
Majority			1,760	17.8
Turnout			9,941	49.7
	Labour win

32. Drumoyne/ Fairfield

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Labour	R. McClement	4,056	50.2
	SNP	T.M. Wilson	2,852	35.3
	Conservative	Christine Brotherston	1,096	13.6
	Communist	R. Mitchell	79	1.0
Majority			1,204	14.9
Turnout			8,083	49.4
	Labour win

33. Ibrox/ Kingston

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Labour	D. Deans	3,368	48.0
	SNP	C. McKenna	2,519	33.3
	Conservative	D. Sinnott	1,417	18.7
Majority			1,119	14.7
Turnout			7,574	48.2
	Labour win

34. Hillington/ Bellahouston

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Labour	J.F. McLean	6,487	46.6
	Conservative	R. Anderson	4,756	34.2
	SNP	Shiela Watterson	2,510	18.0
	Communist	G. Neaven	173	1.2
Majority			1,731	12.4
Turnout			13,926	57.9
	Labour win

35. Cardonald/ Crookston

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Labour	W. Timoney	5,755	53.6
	Conservative	M. Reilly	2,608	24.3
	SNP	D. McBain	2,211	20.6
	Communist	R.M. Rigby	155	1.4
Majority			3,147	29.3
Turnout			7,525	40.2
	Labour win

36. Pollockshields/ Strathbungo

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Conservative	J. Mair	5,720	55.9
	Labour	E. Clark	2,059	21.8
	SNP	G. Leslie	1,757	18.6
	Liberal	W.C. Todd	347	3.7
Majority			3,211	34.1
Turnout			9,433	52.5
	Conservative win

37. Camphill/ Pollockshaws

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Conservative	Anna Douglas	4,576	40.9
	Labour	J.D. Cannell	3,766	33.7
	SNP	R. Hamilton	2,200	19.7
	Liberal	R. McIntyre	562	5.0
	Communist	A. Elliot	72	0.6
Majority			810	7.2
Turnout			11,176	57.5
	Conservative win

38. Nitshill/ Darnley

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Labour	Jean Craig	6,071	61.4
	SNP	D. Murchie	2,759	27.9
	Conservative	Jan Goudie	873	8.8
	Communist	G. Currie	181	1.8
Majority			3,312	33.5
Turnout			9,884	44.9
	Labour win

39. Newlands/ Mt.Florida

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Conservative	J. Hicks	6,867	73.8
	Labour	H. McEachan	2,443	26.2
Majority			4,424	47.6
Turnout			9,310	60.6
	Conservative win

40. Kings Park/ Castlemilk

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Labour	T. Muir	3,668	41.0
	Conservative	N.D. Smith	3,501	39.2
	SNP	A. Carmichael	1,339	15.0
	Liberal	Christine Forest	326	3.7
	Communist	L. Raeburn	108	1.2
Majority			167	1.8
Turnout			8,942	50.9
	Labour win

41. Linn/ Cathkin

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Labour	J. Fitch	4,148	50.8
	Conservative	Christine MacInnes	2,709	24.3
	SNP	A. Ogg	1,169	14.3
	Communist	A. Hamilton	135	1.7
Majority			1,439	17.6
Turnout			8,161	48.5
	Labour win

42. Rutherglen

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Labour	D. Walker	4,324	40.6
	Conservative	Janet W. Nairn	3,797	35.6
	SNP	Heather Ewing	2,538	23.8
Majority			527	5.0
Turnout			10,659	55.7
	Labour win

43. Baillieston

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Labour	C. McNicol	4,895	52.3
	Conservative	H. Clark	4,469	47.7
Majority			426	4.6
Turnout			9,364	52.6
	Labour win

44. Cambuslang

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Conservative	Bunty Gunn	6,404	45.4
	Labour	J. Aiton	5,211	36.9
	SNP	Christine Latta	2,502	17.7
Majority			1,193	8.5
Turnout			14,117	56.6
	Conservative win

Clydebank District

45. Clydebank & Kilpatrick South

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Labour	M. Turner	6,300	54.3
	SNP	D. McKenzie	4,700	40.5
	Communist	E. Kelly	606	5.2
Majority			1,600	13.8
Turnout			11,606	55.8
	Labour win

46. Clydebank & Kilpatrick North

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Labour	W. Worthington	5,820	49.2
	Independent Progressive	A. Lawson	3,302	27.9
	Communist	J. Reid	2,700	22.8
Majority			2,518	21.3
Turnout			11,822	60.7
	Labour win

Bearsden & Milngavie District

47. Milngavie/ Kilmardinny

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Independent	J.G. Breckenridge	3,304	42.0
	Conservative	A.I. McAlpine	2,606	33.1
	Labour	R.E. Black	1,416	18.0
	Liberal	T.C. Harvey	545	6.9
Majority			698	8.9
Turnout			7,861	66.2
	Independent win

48. Bearsden

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Conservative	W. Boyle	5,149	59.3
	Independent	J.F. Doig	2,585	29.8
	Liberal	J.A. Thompson	956	11.0
Majority			2,564	29.5
Turnout			8,690	61.1
	Conservative win

Bishopbriggs & Kirkintilloch District

49. Kirkintilloch

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	SNP	J. Lucas	4,169	36.8
	Labour	E. McGaughrin	3,502	30.9
	Conservative	D. Donovan	2,824	24.9
	Liberal	Marguerite Turcan	836	7.4
Majority			667	5.9
Turnout			11,331	64.8
	SNP win

50. Bishopbriggs

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Independent	J. Proctor	3,538	32.9
	Labour	G. Scobie	2,740	25.5
	Conservative	N. McCune	2,264	21.1
	SNP	G. Paterson	2,199	20.5
Majority			798	7.4
Turnout			10,741	61.1
	Independent win

51. Chryston & Kelvin Valley

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Labour	C. Gray	5,223	50.7
	SNP	Esther McKean	5,086	49.3
Majority			137	1.4
Turnout			10,309	63.3
	Labour win

Cumbernauld District

52. Cumbernauld South & East

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	SNP	G. Murray	5,268	56.3
	Labour	Agnes McLean	4,088	43.7
Majority			1,180	12.6
Turnout			9,356	57.6
	SNP win

Kilsyth & Cumbernauld North West

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	SNP	Janette Jones	4,651	50.5
	Labour	A. Houston	4,128	44.9
	Liberal	C. Hall	424	4.6
Majority			523	5.6
Turnout			9,203	58.9
	SNP win

Monklands District

54. Coatbridge West

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Labour	J. Whelan	5,577	55.2
	Conservative	Florence Inglis	4,529	44.8
Majority			1,048	10.4
Turnout			10,106	55.1
	Labour win

55. Coatbridge East

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Labour	Charlotte Toal	3,981	47.2
	Conservative	G. Hill	2,676	31.7
	Independent Labour	H. Hendrie	1,785	21.1
Majority			1,305	15.5
Turnout			8,442	53.4
	Labour win

56. Airdrie East

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Labour	R. Stewart	4,482	39.1
	Conservative	J. Crichton	3,512	30.7
	Independent	J. Brunton	1,986	17.3
	SNP	J. Russell	1,480	12.9
Majority			970	8.4
Turnout			11,460	60.0
	Labour win

57. Airdrie West

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Labour	J. Donnelly	5,141	54.0
	Conservative	J. Murdoch	4,378	46.0
Majority			763	8.0
Turnout			9,519	48.4
	Labour win

Motherwell District

58. Dalziel

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Labour	B. Scott	4,816	47.8
	Conservative	E.C. Houston	3,337	33.1
	Communist	J. Sneddon	1,928	19.1
Majority			1,479	14.7
Turnout			10,071	50.5
	Labour win

59. Wishaw

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Labour	J. Gibson	4,424	59.3
	Conservative	M. Morrison	3,032	40.7
Majority			1,392	18.6
Turnout			7,456	43.9
	Labour win

60. Clydevale

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Labour	J. Fyfe	4,873	63.8
	Conservative	T. Lannigan	2,760	36.2
Majority			2,113	27.6
Turnout			7,633	46.2
	Labour win

61. Fortissat

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Labour	J. Burns	Unopposed	N/A
Majority			N/A	N/A
Turnout			N/A	N/A
	Labour win

62. Bellshill & Tannochside

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Labour	R. Stewart	4,482	39.1
	Conservative	J. Crichton	3,512	30.7
	Independent	J. Brunton	1,986	17.3
	SNP	J. Russell	1,480	12.9
Majority			970	8.4
Turnout			11,460	60.0
	Labour win

63. Clydesdale

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Labour	E. Myles	4,870	54.2
	SNP	R. Hendrie	2,746	30.5
	Conservative	M. Jeffrey	966	10.7
	Communist	D. Bolton	410	4.6
Majority			2,124	23.7
Turnout			8,992	49.1
	Labour win

Kilmarnock North

Kilmarnock North

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Labour	J. Hunter	5,541	59.2
	Conservative	R. Ledgerwood	2,310	24.7
	Liberal	A. Korn	1,076	11.5
	Independent Labour	B. Mitchell	429	4.6
Majority			3,231	34.5
Turnout			9,356	45.9
Registered electors			20,616
	Labour win (new seat)

Source:^[3]

Kilmarnock South

Kilmarnock South

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Labour	W. McCulloch	4,673	47.2
	Conservative	W. Adams	4,067	41.1
	Liberal	N. Tosh	1,154	11.7
Majority			606	6.1
Turnout			9,894	50.6
Registered electors			19,746
	Labour win (new seat)

Source:^[3]

Stewarton and Irvine Valley

Stewarton and Irvine Valley

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Labour	J. McChristie	5,927	55.1
	Conservative	A. Foote	2,912	27.1
	Liberal	A. Wight	1,917	17.8
Majority			3,015	28.0
Turnout			10,756	53.5
Registered electors			20,281
	Labour win (new seat)

Source:^[3]

Cumnock

Cumnock

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Labour	W. Paterson	Unopposed
Registered electors			16,182
	Labour win (new seat)

Source:^[3]

New Cumnock and Doon Valley

New Cumnock and Doon Valley

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Labour	W. Goudie	Unopposed
Registered electors			17,684
	Labour win (new seat)

Source:^[3]

References

1. "Formation Electoral Arrangements". Local Government Boundary Commission for Scotland. Retrieved 5 January 2023.
2. "Information Paper Local government in Scotland: before 1975" (PDF). Boundaries Scotland. Retrieved 5 January 2023.
3. Botchel, J. M.; Denver, D. T. (1975). The Scottish Local Government Elections 1974: Results and Statistics (PDF). Edinburgh: Scottish Academic Press. Retrieved 5 January 2023.