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Evening Standard
Evening Standard
World
Nicholas Cecil and Sami Quadri

Ex-SNP MP Margaret Ferrier set to face by-election after being suspended from Commons over Covid rule breach

Former Scottish National Party MP Margaret Ferrier has been suspended from the House of Commons for 30 days for breaching coronavirus rules.

The move will pile pressure on Ms Ferrier, now an independent, to stand down as an MP.

She could also face a recall petition which would trigger a by-election in her Rutherglen and Hamilton West seat.

Labour would be expected to have a good chance of winning the by-election with a financial scandal swirling around the SNP.

The Commons voted 185 to 40, majority 145, to approve the motion to suspend Ms Ferrier.

Ms Ferrier was in the Commons chamber as MPs approved her suspension.

Any MP who misses 10 sitting days due to suspension is at risk of a by-election – but 10 per cent of voters in their constituency must sign a recall petition.

SNP by-election campaign coordinator David Linden MP said: “There must now be a by-election, which the SNP has been calling for since Ms Ferrier’s Covid rule-breach first came to light in 2020.

“People in Rutherglen and Hamilton West are paying an unacceptable price for the damaging policies of the Tories and pro-Brexit Labour Party, as the cost of living soars.

“The SNP is the only party offering a real alternative. We will put the cost of living, NHS and independence at the heart of our campaign – and we’ll work hard for every vote to ensure the people of Rutherglen and Hamilton West can elect a strong SNP MP to stand up for them.”

Ms Ferrier was found guilty of culpably and recklessly exposing the public “to the risk of infection, illness and death” by breaching Covid restrictions in 2020.

She lost her appeal against the standards committee’s ruling last month. Ms Ferrier lost the SNP whip and received a criminal conviction after travelling from London to Glasgow by train while infected with Covid in October 2020.

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