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South Lanarkshire Council

Unitary authority for South Lanarkshire, Scotland

South Lanarkshire Council

Unitary authority for South Lanarkshire, Scotland

FieldValue
nameSouth Lanarkshire Council
legislatureUnitary Authority Council
coa_picCoat of arms of South Lanarkshire.svg
coa_captionCoat of arms
logo_picSouth Lanarkshire Council logo.svg
logo_captionCouncil logo
foundation1 April 1996
house_typeUnitary authority
leader1_typeProvost
leader1Margaret Cooper
party1
Independent
election118 May 2022
leader2_typeLeader
leader2Joe Fagan
party2
Labour
election218 May 2022
leader3_typeChief Executive
leader3Paul Manning
party3
election32023
members64
structure1South Lanarkshire Council 2023.svg
structure1_res280
structure1_altMakeup of the South Lanarkshire Council, including 2023 changes
:borderdarkgray}} Labour (25)
:borderdarkgray}} Liberal Democrat (3)}}
:borderdarkgray}} Independent (2)}}
:borderdarkgray}} SNP (25)
:borderdarkgray}} Conservative (5)
:borderdarkgray}} Reform UK (2)
:borderdarkgray}} Green (1)
:borderdarkgray}} Independent (1)
voting_system1Single transferable vote
last_election15 May 2022
next_election16 May 2027
meeting_placeCouncil Offices, Almada Street, Hamilton, ML30AA
session_roomSouthLanarkshireCouncilHQ.JPG
website

Independent Labour ;Administration (30) : Labour (25) : : ;Other parties (34) : SNP (25) : Conservative (5) : Reform UK (2) : Green (1) : Independent (1)

South Lanarkshire Council is the unitary authority serving the South Lanarkshire council area in Scotland. The council has its headquarters in Hamilton, has 16,000 employees, and an annual budget of almost £1bn. The large and varied geographical territory takes in rural and upland areas, market towns such as Lanark, Strathaven and Carluke, the urban burghs of Rutherglen, Cambuslang, and East Kilbride which was Scotland's first new town. The area was formed in 1996 from the areas of Clydesdale, Hamilton and East Kilbride districts, and some outer areas of Glasgow district (Rutherglen/Fernhill, Cambuslang/Halfway and part of King's Park/Toryglen); all were previously within the Strathclyde region from 1975 but in historic Lanarkshire prior to that.

Political control

The council has been under no overall control since 2017. Following the 2022 election a Labour-led partnership with the Liberal Democrats and some of the independent councillors formed to run the council.

The first election to South Lanarkshire Council was held in 1995, initially operating as a shadow authority alongside the outgoing authorities until the new system came into force on 1 April 1996. Political control of the council since 1996 has been as follows:

Party in controlYears
1996–2007
2007–2013
2013–2017
2017–

Leadership

The role of provost is largely ceremonial in South Lanarkshire. They chair full council meetings and have an ambassadorial role as the council's civic figurehead. The provost is chosen from among the councillors and is expected to be politically impartial, although they are given an additional casting vote in the event of a tie. The provosts since 1996 have been:

  • Sam Casserly (1995–1999) - previous provost of Hamilton district
  • Alan Dick (1999–2003)
  • Mushtaq Ahmad (2003–2007)
  • Russell Clearie (2007–2012)
  • Eileen Logan (2012–2017) - previous provost of Clydesdale district
  • Ian McAllan (2017–2022)
  • Margaret Cooper (2022–present)

Political leadership is provided by the leader of the council, who chairs the council's executive committee. The first leader, Tom McCabe, was previously the leader of Hamilton District Council, one of the new council's predecessors. When McCabe was elected as an MSP in 1999, the role went to his deputy Eddie McAvoy - brother of one of the region's MPs Tommy McAvoy - who held the post for the next 18 years until his retirement at the 2017 election. The leaders of South Lanarkshire Council since 1996 have been:

CouncillorPartyFromTo
Tom McCabe1 Apr 1996May 1999
Eddie McAvoyMay 1999May 2017
John Ross18 May 2017May 2022
Joe Fagan18 May 2022

Composition

Following the 2022 election and subsequent by-elections and changes of allegiance up to March 2025, the composition of the council was as follows:

PartyCouncillorsTotal64
25
25
5
3
2
1
3

Two of the independent councillors sit together as the "Independent Group", and the other does not belong to a group. The next election is due in 2027.

Elections

Main article: South Lanarkshire Council elections

Since 2007 elections have been held every five years under the single transferable vote system, introduced by the Local Governance (Scotland) Act 2004. Election results since 1995 have been as follows:

YearSeatsSNPLabourConservativeLiberal DemocratsGreenIndependent / OtherNotesScottish National Party}}; width: 3px;"Scottish Labour}}; width: 3px;"Scottish Conservatives}}; width: 3px;"Scottish Liberal Democrats}}; width: 3px;"Scottish Greens}}; width: 3px;"Independent politician}}; width: 3px;"Scottish National Party}}; width: 3px;"Scottish Labour}}; width: 3px;"Scottish Conservatives}}; width: 3px;"Scottish Liberal Democrats}}; width: 3px;"Scottish Greens}}; width: 3px;"Independent politician}}; width: 3px;"
1995738612200Labour majority
19996710542100New ward boundaries. Labour majority
20036710502203Labour majority
20076724308203New ward boundaries.
20126728333102
201764272214100New ward boundaries.
20226427247312Labour / Lib Dem minority administration

Premises

The Council Headquarters building, on Almada Street, Hamilton, was built as the Lanark County Buildings in 1963, and designed by county architect David Gordon Bannerman. The 17 storey, 200 ft tower is the tallest building in the council area, is Category A-listed, and is a highly visible landmark across this part of the Clyde Valley. The modernist design was influenced by the United Nations building in New York City. At the front of the building is the circular council chamber, and a plaza with water features. Between 1975 and 1996 the building had been used as a sub-regional office of Strathclyde Regional Council, with Hamilton District Council using Hamilton Townhouse in that time. On the creation of South Lanarkshire Council in 1996 the new council chose to base itself at the Almada Street building.

Wards

In the council's initial 12 years, individual wards (73 in 1995, adjusted down to 67 in 1999 and 2003) each electing one councillor using the First past the post method.

Since the 2007 South Lanarkshire Council election, there are 20 council wards in South Lanarkshire, each serving a population ranging from 13,000 to 20,000 and each ward represented on the council by 3 or 4 councillors elected using single transferable vote; in 2007 and 2012 this produced a total of 67 available seats, which was adjusted down to 64 in 2017 along with boundary adjustments, although the same number of wards overall.

Map of South Lanarkshire's 20 wards, using 2017 boundaries
NumberWard NameLocationSeatsPopulationTotal64320,530
1Clydesdale West[[File:Clydesdale West.svg100px]]419,124
2Clydesdale North[[File:Clydesdale North.svg100px]]314,777
3Clydesdale East[[File:Clydesdale East.svg100px]]313,065
4Clydesdale South[[File:Clydesdale South.svg100px]]314,647
5Avondale and Stonehouse[[File:Avondale and Stonehouse.svg100px]]317,089
6East Kilbride South[[File:East Kilbride South.svg100px]]316,688
7East Kilbride Central South[[File:East Kilbride Central South.svg100px]]316,177
8East Kilbride Central North[[File:East Kilbride Central North.svg100px]]316,799
9East Kilbride West[[File:East Kilbride West.svg100px]]313,695
10East Kilbride East[[File:East Kilbride East.svg100px]]314,308
11Rutherglen South[[File:Rutherglen South.svg100px]]315,448
12Rutherglen Central and North[[File:Rutherglen Central and North.svg100px]]314,489
13Cambuslang West[[File:Cambuslang West.svg100px]]314,177
14Cambuslang East[[File:Cambuslang East.svg100px]]316,915
15Blantyre[[File:Blantyre.svg100px]]316,127
16Bothwell and Uddingston[[File:Bothwell and Uddingston.svg100px]]313,187
17Hamilton North and East[[File:Hamilton North and East.svg100px]]315,036
18Hamilton West and Earnock[[File:Hamilton West and Earnock.svg100px]]418,618
19Hamilton South[[File:Hamilton South.svg100px]]421,793
20Larkhall[[File:Larkhall.svg100px]]418,444

References

References

  1. "Chief Executive".
  2. [https://www.lanark.co.uk/historical-lanark/timeline/1975/local-government-re-organisation Historical Timeline: 1975], The Lanark Website
  3. (22 October 1973). "New Local Government areas". [[Hansard]].
  4. Maver, Irene. "Modern Times: 1950s to The Present Day > Neighbourhoods".
  5. "Scotland's Landscape: City of Glasgow". [[BBC]].
  6. Dickie, Douglas. (9 April 2017). "Rutherglen residents not interested in Glasgow return".
  7. McLean, Marc. (5 September 2018). "From a pawnbrokers to Parliament - Tommy McAvoy looks back on his career".
  8. [https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/in-your-area/lanarkshire/people-power-kept-heart-burgh-23938990 People power kept the heart of a burgh beating], ''Daily Record'', 19 April 2021
  9. "Compositions Calculator". University of Exeter.
  10. "Provost".
  11. Mitchell, Robert. (30 September 2017). "Chatelherault Country Park opened to the public 30 years ago today".
  12. [https://www.pressreader.com/uk/east-kilbride-news/20190522/281840055132028 20 Years Ago], East Kilbride News, 22 May 2019, via [[PressReader]]
  13. (24 November 2010). "Ex-provost Mushtaq Ahmad appointed Lord Lieutenant of Lanarkshire".
  14. "CBC Gents Russell Clearie".
  15. (17 June 2008). "A day in the life of Russell Clearie".
  16. (23 May 2012). "Carluke councillor Eileen Logan becomes new Provost of South Lanarkshire".
  17. McNeill, Alastair. (26 November 2016). "Historical Society project to be hosted at village's library".
  18. (24 May 2017). "Things get Biggar and better for SNP as it appoints provost".
  19. "Council minutes, 18 May 2022".
  20. "Council leader".
  21. McNeill, Alastair. (23 April 2015). "Tributes to former Hamilton MSP Tom McCabe, who passed away this week aged 60".
  22. Dickie, Douglas. (30 June 2016). "South Lanarkshire Council leader Eddie McAvoy to stand down at next election".
  23. "Council minutes".
  24. (13 May 1999). "Clydesdale makes Scottish history". Carluke Gazette.
  25. (21 May 1999). "Changing faces of council's top men". Airdrie and Coatbridge World.
  26. (29 April 2017). "Going Local: Labour accused of 'not even trying' to keep control of South Lanarkshire". The National.
  27. Reformer, Rutherglen. (22 January 2020). "Former council leader praised for his "legacy" for South Lanarkshire children".
  28. "Council minutes, 18 May 2017".
  29. (16 April 2022). "South Lanarkshire election: SNP confident they will again lead council". The National.
  30. "Political composition of the council".
  31. "South Lanarkshire". Thorncliffe.
  32. "Councillors".
  33. {{cite legislation UK. (1998)
  34. {{cite legislation Scotland. (2006)
  35. {{cite legislation Scotland. (2016)
  36. (18 May 2022). "Labour-led administration takes over South Lanarkshire Council". BBC News.
  37. (7 September 1973). "County architect retires". Wishaw Press.
  38. {{usurped
  39. [https://canmore.org.uk/site/173419/hamilton-almada-street-lanark-county-buildings Hamilton, Almada Street, Lanark County Buildings], [[Canmore (database). Canmore]]
  40. [http://www.skyscrapernews.com/buildings.php?id=483 South Lanarkshire Council HQ], Skyscraper News
  41. Mitchell, Robert. (21 April 2014). "Queen Mother opens Hamilton's county buildings in 1964".
  42. [http://www.lgbc-scotland.gov.uk/Electoral/2nd_Reviews/South_Lanarkshire/2nd_Review_South_Lanarkshire_Overview.pdf Formation electoral arrangements in 1995: South Lanarkshire council area], [[Local Government Boundary Commission for Scotland]]
  43. [http://www.lgbc-scotland.gov.uk/Electoral/3rd_Reviews/South_Lanarkshire/3rd_Review_South_Lanarkshire_Overview.pdf Electoral Arrangements for Local Government Areas in Scotland: South Lanarkshire Council Area], 3rd Reviews of Electoral Arrangements Maps: Wards 1999 - 2007: Local Government Boundary Commission for Scotland
  44. (4 May 2017). "Local multi-member ward boundary maps". South Lanarkshire Council.
  45. (30 June 2016). "South Lanarkshire".
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