Local Government (Scotland) Act 1947

Election of Town Councillors.

18 Day of annual election of town councillors.

The ordinary day of election of town councillors of a burgh shall be the first Tuesday of November in each year.

19 Burgh and ward elections.

(1) Where a burgh is not divided into wards, there shall be one election of town councillors for the whole burgh.

(2) Where a burgh is divided into wards, there shall be a separate election of town councillors for each ward.

20 Division of burgh into wards.

The number, contents and boundaries of wards into which a burgh is divided shall, subject to any alteration made under this art of this Act or Part VI of this Act, remain the same as at the commencement of this Act.

21 Alteration of wards in burgh.

(1) Subject to the provisions of this Act relating to the publication of orders under this Part of this Act, the Secretary of State, on the representation of the town council of a burgh, which representation may be combined with a representation for the alteration of number of councillors under this Part of this Act, may by order—

(a) divide the burgh into wards and define the contents and boundaries of the wards; or

(b) alter the number or contents and boundaries of wards; or

(c) abolish the division of the burgh into wards;

and for the purpose of giving effect thereto may determine or alter the number of councillors to be elected for each ward or apportion the existing councillors among the wards, and in any such order the Secretary of State may determine or provide for the determination of any question arising in connection therewith :

Provided that any such order shall secure that there shall be three or a multiple of three councillors for the burgh and for each ward.

(2) In dividing a burgh into wards or in altering the number or contents and boundaries of wards, the Secretary of State shall have regard to the number of local government electors in each ward and any other circumstances which appear to him to affect the matter.

(3) Where a burgh is being divided into wards under this section or in the case of any other alteration under this section where the Secretary of State considers it proper and so directs in the order, all the members of the town council, including the provost and the honorary treasurer, shall, notwithstanding anything in this Act, retire at the first election held after the division is completed, or in accordance with the order, and a new council shall be elected.

(4) Any division of a burgh into wards or any alteration of the number or contents and boundaries of wards in a burgh or any abolition of the division of a burgh into wards under this section shall have effect for parliamentary as well as municipal purposes, but shall not affect the limits of any division of the burgh for the purpose of returning a member to serve for the division in Parliament.

(5) Any alteration of the number or contents and boundaries of wards in a burgh made under this section shall not affect the operation of the provisions of the [3 & 4 Geo. 5. c. 33.] Temperance (Scotland) Act, 1913, as respects any area to which there applies a resolution under that Act passed before the alteration under this section takes effect.

22 Electors.

(1) The electors at an election of town councillors of a burgh shall be the persons entitled, by virtue of the provisions of the Representation of the People Acts, to vote at that election.

(2) Every elector may give one vote and no more for any one candidate:

Provided that—

(a) where a burgh is not divided into wards, the total number of votes which any person may give shall not exceed the number of councillors to be elected; and

(b) where a burgh is divided into wards, no person shall be entitled to vote at an election in the burgh in more than one ward, and the total number of votes which any person may give at the election in the burgh shall be determined by the number of councillors to be elected for the ward in which he votes.

23 Polling districts.

The town council of a burgh may divide the burgh or any ward thereof into polling districts, and may alter any polling district, and may abolish polling districts in the burgh or any ward.

24 Returning officer.

(1) At an election of town councillors of a burgh, the provost shall be the returning officer, but if the office of provost is at the time vacant or if the provost is one of the councillors falling to retire at the election or his term of office expires or he resigns office as at the date of the election or he is incapacitated from acting by illness, absence or other cause or he declines or fails to act, the acting chief magistrate as hereinafter defined shall be the returning officer, and if the provost and all the bailies fall to retire at the election or are prevented from acting or fail to act as returning officer for any of the reasons aforesaid, the town clerk or any fit person appointed by him shall act as returning officer.

(2) The returning officer may by writing under his hand appoint one or more fit persons to be his depute or deputes for all or any of the purposes of the election and anything required or authorised to be done by, to or before the returning officer in relation to the election may, so far as the depute is authorised to act, be done by, to or before any depute so appointed, and any reference in this Act to a returning officer shall, where a depute returning officer is acting for the returning officer under this subsection, include a reference to the depute returning officer.

25 Conduct of election of town councillors.

Subject to the provisions of this Act, an election of town councillors of a burgh shall be conducted in accordance with the provisions of the Second Schedule to this Act.

26 Expenses of election of town councillors.

All expenses properly incurred by the returning officer or the town clerk in relation to the holding of an election of town councillors of a burgh (including expenses properly incurred by the returning officer or the town clerk in any legal proceedings arising out of the election) shall be paid by the town council and shall be defrayed out of the common" good of the burgh or as part of the general expenses of the council, or partly in the one way and partly in the other, as the council determine.

27 Provisions as to date of election in fishing burghs.

Where in any burgh many local government electors are engaged in the fishing industry and often absent from home in pursuance of their occupation at the time when the annual election of town councillors is due to take place under this Act (which burgh is in this Act referred to as a "fishing burgh "), the Secretary of State, on the representation of the town council of the fishing burgh and after such inquiry, if any, as he shall deem proper, may, subject to the provisions of this Act relating to the publication of orders under this Part of this Act, make an order appointing the annual retirement and election of town councillors to take place on a day other than the first Tuesday of November to be specified in the order, not being earlier than the first Tuesday of November or later than the first Tuesday of February, and making such consequential alterations in the dates or months mentioned in this Act or the dates mentioned in any other enactment or any statutory order as appear to him to be dependent on the date of the annual election (including the date for the election of county councillors representing the fishing burgh), and thereupon the date of retirement and election and other dates as aforesaid shall be altered accordingly.