TRANENT and Elphinstone will almost certainly no longer be part of the Scottish Parliament's East Lothian constituency, despite widespread opposition to plans to move them.

That comes after controversial proposals to lump them in with the east of Edinburgh were adopted today (Thursday) as a ‘final recommendation’ by Boundaries Scotland, as it reviews changes to constituency boundaries across the country.

But another much-criticised proposal to lose the East Lothian name at Holyrood and instead replace it with 'Lothian Eastern' has been scrapped.

The existing 'East Lothian' constituency at Holyrood encompasses the majority of the county and is represented by the SNP’s Paul McLennan MSP, while Musselburgh, Wallyford and Whitecraig currently fall under the 'Midlothian North and Musselburgh' constituency, where Colin Beattie (SNP) is the MSP.

Boundaries Scotland is currently reviewing all constituency and region boundaries for future Scottish Parliament Elections and this morning published its 'further proposals' for constituency boundaries and 'provisional proposals' for new region boundaries, ahead of a month-long consultation which also begins today.

After its original proposals – which suggested moving Prestonpans out of the East Lothian constituency and into an expanded Midlothian North and Musselburgh constituency – were widely criticised, it published revised proposals in April which kept Prestonpans within the county for Scottish Parliament Elections but instead proposed placing Tranent and Elphinstone in a new ‘Edinburgh Eastern, Musselburgh and Tranent’ constituency alongside Musselburgh, Wallyford and Whitecraig, as well as Portobello and Craigmillar.

READ MORE: New Scottish Parliament East Lothian constituency proposals revealed

Those proposals also had the East Lothian constituency being given a new name of ‘Lothian Eastern’ – but the “bonkers” plans faced intense criticism in the county from across the political spectrum during the consultation that followed.

Today’s ‘further proposals’ see the proposed ‘Lothian Eastern’ name scrapped and a new name of ‘East Lothian Coast and Lammermuirs’ suggested.

The proposed boundaries of the new 'East Lothian Coast and Lammermuirs' Scottish Parliament constituency. Tranent and Elphinstone have been 'cut out' from the previous constituency. (Image: Boundaries Scotland) Boundaries Scotland says it has made this change as “this name was suggested as an alternative during the consultation and adopted as it helps maintain East Lothian in the title”.

The commission is also proposing to move the East Lothian constituency out of the South Scotland electoral region – which it has been a part of ever since the Scottish Parliament was established – and place it within the Lothian region instead, ensuring that all communities in the county will fall within the same electoral region.

However, attempts to save Tranent and Elphinstone from being moved out of the constituency have been unsuccessful, as today’s announcement sees the proposed boundaries for the new ‘Edinburgh Eastern, Musselburgh and Tranent’ seat kept unchanged from those in the previous proposals.

The proposed boundaries of the new 'Edinburgh Eastern, Musselburgh and Tranent' Scottish Parliament constituency. The boundaries are unchanged from when the proposed constituency was unveiled in April. (Image: Boundaries Scotland) And while a consultation on the ‘East Lothian Coast and Lammermuirs’ name and on the proposed change of electoral region is now open until October 26, East Lothian residents will not be able to suggest any changes to the ‘Edinburgh Eastern, Musselburgh and Tranent’ constituency as this has now been officially adopted as Boundaries Scotland’s ‘final recommendation’, “subject to satisfactory constituencies being designed in neighbouring areas”.

That constituency is now set to be submitted to Scottish Ministers for formal approval.

Across Scotland, there are 73 Scottish Parliament constituencies. Three – Na h-Eileanan an Iar, Orkney and Shetland – are protected by legislation and not subject to review. The remaining 70 are reviewed in a bid ensure that all constituencies and regions are of a similar electoral size. This is the second such review since the creation of the Parliament.

Under the current proposals, ‘East Lothian Coast and Lammermuirs’ would have an electorate of 57,511, while ‘Edinburgh Eastern, Musselburgh and Tranent’ would have 57,320.

The new constituency boundaries are due to be in place ahead of the next Scottish Parliament Election in 2026.

The proposed boundary changes come a year after similarly controversial proposals were adopted to change the county’s constituency boundaries at Westminster.

READ MORE: East Lothian name to disappear at Westminster

Those saw the majority of Musselburgh moved into a new ‘Edinburgh East and Musselburgh’ seat, with the remainder of the former East Lothian constituency renamed ‘Lothian East’.

July’s General Election was the first to take place under the new boundaries.

Commenting on today’s announcement, Professor Ailsa Henderson, chair of Boundaries Scotland said: “We would like to thank everyone who made submissions to the consultation on revised proposals.

“This engagement is a vital part of the review process. It helps to ensure that electoral representation is fair across Scotland, but also that the boundaries reflect natural communities as best as possible within the rules that govern our work.

“In some areas, these suggestions have helped us to identify additional improvements, which appear here as further proposals for constituencies.

“We look forward to receiving submissions on the further proposals as we prepare for the final submission of our recommendations in May 2025.”

Go to consult.boundaries.scot to share your views on the proposals.