Gordon Brown may have to look for a new seat

The proposals for reorganisation are to be announced by the Boundary Commission for Scotland.

The commission said the Fife Council area should hold four rather than five seats and the Chancellor's Dunfermline East constituency was the main loser.

The electoral body announced plans last year to cut the number of Scottish constituencies from 72 to 59.

The idea was to bring Scottish constituencies more into line with the size of English seats, which include an average 69,000 electors.

Fewer seats

But that raised the prospect of a bitter battle of political musical chairs in Scotland with the same number of MPs, mainly Labour, chasing fewer seats.

The final recommendations for Fife Council area confirmed provisional proposals announced in February which attracted two letters of support, three objections and two requests for constituency name changes.

Apart from Dunfermline East, the area currently includes Central Fife, Dunfermline West and Kirkcaldy - all held by Labour - and East Fife, represented by Liberal Democrat Menzies Campbell.

Under the proposed changes the seats would be Dunfermline and West Fife, Glenrothes, Kirkcaldy and Cowdenbeath and North East Fife.

Scottish MPs would be cut to 59

The commission also confirmed an earlier proposal for an East Lothian seat, to include Musselburgh.

With the number of seats in Edinburgh being cut by one that would mark the end of the Edinburgh East and Musselburgh constituency, currently held by Labour's Gavin Strang.

The electoral body also confirmed its suggestion for a Moray constituency to cover the whole of the Moray Council area.

And it announced that Orkney and Shetland constituency, currently held by the Lib Dems, would remain unchanged.

The Boundary Commission must submit all of its final proposals to the Secretary of State for Scotland by the end of 2006.

If both Houses of Parliament agreed to the proposals they would take effect at the following general election.