The seat fell vacant when the constituency's Labour Member of Parliament (MP), James Dempsey (6 February 1917 – 12 May 1982) died.

Scottish political journalist William Clark, writing in the following day's edition of the Glasgow Herald, stated that the "major upset from the poll" was the fact that the SNP and Liberal candidates both lost their deposits.

In the same article Clark called the result "a disastrous blow" for the SDP–Liberal Alliance, particular as it came soon after Roy Jenkins victory for the SDP in the Glasgow Hillhead by-election.

[2] This was the SNP's second lost deposit in two by-elections, following a similar result in Hillhead earlier in the year.

Clark considered it a poor result and predicted it could lead to divisions between the Party's right and left-wings.