The seat was represented by Labour's Margaret Curran from the inception of the Scottish Parliament in 1999 until her retirement in 2011.

Rutherglen straddles the boundary between the Glasgow City and South Lanarkshire council areas.

The Garrowhill, Bailliston, Swinton, and Barlanark areas of the Baillieston electoral area were combined with Calton and Shettleston, to form an enlarged Glasgow Shettleston constituency, whilst the East Centre, North East, and remaining areas of the Baillieston ward form a newly created Glasgow Provan constituency.

The constituency included the areas of Ballieston, Mount Vernon, Easterhouse, Barlanark and Gartloch.

It is industrial in character and has high levels of unemployment, one-parent families and drug abuse.