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Rutherglen and Hamilton West by-election to be held on 5 October

Getty Images ballot boxGetty Images
The vote in South Lanarkshire was triggered after MP Margaret Ferrier was recalled by her constituents following a Covid breach

Scotland's first recall by-election will be held in Rutherglen and Hamilton West on 5 October, it has been confirmed.

Former SNP MP Margaret Ferrier was removed by her constituents after she broke Covid lockdown rules.

MPs passed an SNP motion to the Commons on Monday requesting a by-election in a process known as moving the writ.

The proposed polling day of 5 October has now been confirmed by South Lanarkshire's returning officer.

SNP chief whip Owen Thompson moved the writ on Monday on the first day of Parliament following the summer recess.

The vote will be held between 07:00 and 22:00 on 5 October, the earliest possible date for the by-election.Voters will need to be registered by Tuesday 19 September.It will be the first election in Scotland in which voters will require an accepted form of photographic identification.

Ms Ferrier, who had the SNP whip removed in 2020, lost her seat after almost 12,000 of her constituents signed a recall petition.

UK Parliament The MP Margaret Ferrier, who has lost her seatUK Parliament
Margaret Ferrier was elected MP for Rutherglen and Hamilton West in 2019 having previously held the seat from 2015 to 2017

She was given 270 hours of community service in August 2022 after being convicted of breaching Covid regulations almost two years earlier.

Ms Ferrier travelled to London and spoke in the Commons while awaiting the result of a Covid test, then got a train home after testing positive.

She will not seek re-election in the upcoming vote.

The SNP are hoping to retain the Rutherglen and Hamilton West seat, but polls have suggested that they will face a strong challenge from Labour.

The constituency has changed hands between the parties at each of the past three general elections.

Who is standing?

The candidates who have declared they are standing in the by-election are (in alphabetical order):

  • Gloria Adebo (Scottish Liberal Democrats)
  • Bill Bonnar (Scottish Socialist Party)
  • Cameron Eadie (Scottish Greens)
  • Ewan Hoyle (Volt UK)
  • Thomas Kerr (Scottish Conservatives)
  • Katy Loudon (SNP)
  • Chris Sermanni (Scottish Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition)
  • Michael Shanks (Scottish Labour)
  • David Stark (Reform UK)
  • Colette Walker (Independence for Scotland Party)