Perth and Kinross
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|---|---|
 Coat of arms | |
 Perth and Kinross shown withinScotland | |
| Coordinates:56°23′45″N03°26′00″W / 56.39583°N 3.43333°W /56.39583; -3.43333 | |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Country | Scotland |
| Unitary authority | 1 April 1996 |
| Administrative HQ | 2 High Street, Perth |
| Government | |
| • Type | Council |
| • Body | Perth and Kinross Council |
| • Control | No overall control |
| • MPs | 2 MPs |
| • MSPs | 2 MSPs |
| Area | |
• Total | 2,041 sq mi (5,286 km2) |
| • Rank | 5th |
| Population (2024)[2] | |
• Total | 154,420 |
| • Rank | 12th |
| • Density | 75/sq mi (29/km2) |
| Time zone | UTC+0 (GMT) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+1 (BST) |
| ISO 3166 code | GB-PKN |
| GSS code | S12000048 |
| Website | www |
Perth and Kinross (Scots:Pairth an Kinross;Scottish Gaelic:Peairt agus Ceann Rois) is one of the 32council areas of Scotland, and alieutenancy area. It is bordered byHighland andAberdeenshire to the north,Angus,Dundee, andFife to the east,Clackmannanshire to the south, andStirling andArgyll and Bute to the west.
Geographically the area is split by theHighland Boundary Fault into a more mountainous northern part and a flatter southern part. The northern area is a popular tourist spot, while agriculture makes an important contribution to the southern part of the area.
The area is run byPerth and Kinross Council, which is based inPerth.
The area takes its name from the two historicalshires ofPerthshire andKinross-shire. Each was administered by asheriff from medieval times, supplemented bycommissioners of supply from 1667 and then by acounty council from 1890.[3][4]
Perthshire was one of the largest counties, whereas Kinross-shire was one of the smallest; it was the least populous Scottish county in the1921 census.[5] In 1930 the county councils for Perthshire and Kinross-shire were combined for most purposes. The two councils continued to be elected as separate bodies, but operated together as the 'Perth and Kinross Joint County Council', serving the combined area of the two counties.[6][7]
Local government was reformed in Scotland in 1975 under theLocal Government (Scotland) Act 1973. Mainland Scotland's counties,burghs andlandward districts were replaced with a two-tier structure of upper-tier regions and lower-tier districts. Perth and Kinross was created as one of the districts within theTayside region. As established in 1975, Perth and Kinross covered the whole of Kinross-shire, and the majority of the pre-1975 Perthshire, with three exceptions: a large area in the south-west of the county which went to the newStirling district,Muckhart which went toClackmannan district, andLongforgan which went to the city ofDundee. Perth and Kinross also included the parish ofKettins fromAngus.[8] Alieutenancy area covering the same area as the new district was created at the same time.[9]
In 1996, local government in Scotland was reformed again under theLocal Government etc. (Scotland) Act 1994. The regions and districts were abolished and replaced by unitary council areas. One such area was named by the 1994 Act as 'Perthshire and Kinross', covering the area of the 1975–1996 district of Perth and Kinross, plus an area transferred from Dundee roughly matching the pre-1975 parish of Longforgan.[10][11][12] The shadow authority elected in 1995 to oversee the transition requested a change of name from 'Perthshire and Kinross' to 'Perth and Kinross' in December 1995, which was agreed by the government before the new council area came into force on 1 April 1996.[13] The Perth and Kinross lieutenancy area was adjusted to match the new council area in 1996.[14]
TheHighland Boundary Fault runs across the region from the northeast to the southwest. This roughly divides the area between highland Perthshire, including part of theGrampian Mountains, to the north, and lowland Perthshire and Kinross to the south. The highland area is intersected withglacial valleys, often containingribbon lakes, includingLoch Tay andLoch Earn. The lowland area is a fertile region lying within theCentral Lowlands.[15]
River Tay, the longest river in Scotland, flows through the mountainous terrains of Perthshire and Kinross. Emerging fromLoch Tay, it flows eastward and, after joining theRiver Isla, it turns south and runs throughPerth, before entering theFirth of Tay.
The 2022 Scottish Census reported that out of 147,257 residents aged three and over, 46,713 (31.7%) considered themselves able to speak or read theScots language.[16]
The 2022 Scottish Census reported that out of 147,254 residents aged three and over, 1,974 (1.3%) considered themselves able to speak or readGaelic.[17]
In the southern part of Perth and Kinross agriculture plays an important part of the local economy.[18] This includes the cultivation of fruits, fodder, wheat and seed potatoes.[15]
The scenic nature of the northern part of Perth and Kinross makes tourism an important part of the economy.[18] TheForestry Commission controls large parts of the area, which is also home to a number ofhydroelectric dams.[15]
| Settlement | Population (2020)[19] |
|---|---|
| Perth | 47,350 |
| Blairgowrie and Rattray | 9,240 |
| Crieff | 7,280 |
| Auchterarder | 5,840 |
| Kinross | 5,610 |
| Scone | 5,030 |
| Bridge of Earn | 2,920 |
| Pitlochry | 2,880 |
| Alyth | 2,370 |
| Coupar Angus | 2,220 |
| Milnathort | 1,950 |
| Aberfeldy | 1,940 |
| Comrie | 1,900 |
| Invergowrie | 1,750 |
| Luncarty | 1,630 |
| Stanley | 1,500 |
| Errol | 1,490 |
| Inchture | 1,420 |
| Abernethy | 1,390 |
| Almondbank | 1,370 |
Thelocal authority is Perth and Kinross Council, which meets at2 High Street, Perth.
Perth and Kinross is covered by twoScottish Parliament constituencies and one electoral region.[20] Following the2021 Scottish Parliament election these two constituencies—Perthshire South and Kinross-shire andPerthshire North—are held respectively byJim Fairlie andJohn Swinney, both members of theScottish National Party.[21][22] Following the same election the electoral region—Mid Scotland and Fife—is represented by four members of theScottish Conservatives, two members ofScottish Labour, and one member of theScottish Greens.[23]
Perth and Kinross is covered by threeUnited Kingdom Parliament constituencies;Perth and Kinross-shire,Angus and Perthshire Glens andStirling and Strathallan.[24] Following the2024 UK Parliamentary General Election these seats are respectively held byPete Wishart (Scottish National Party),Dave Doogan (Scottish National Party) andChris Kane (Labour Party).[24][25][26]
On 18 September 2014, Perth and Kinross voted strongly "No" in theScottish Independence Referendum, with a majority of 60.2% on a record turnout of 86.9%.[27]
On 23 June 2016, Perth and Kinross voted in favour of remain in theBrexit referendum, with a majority of 61.1% on a turnout of 73.7%.[28]
Definitions from Wiktionary
Media from Commons
Travel information from WikivoyageLocal government areas ofScotland, in use 1975 to 1996 | ||
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| Borders |  | |
| Central | ||
| Dumfries and Galloway | ||
| Fife | ||
| Grampian | ||
| Highland | ||
| Lothian | ||
| Strathclyde | ||
| Tayside | ||
| Island areas1 | ||
| International | |
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| National | |
| Geographic | |
| Other | |
