SNP MP Joanna Cherry has said she will not stand for Holyrood after blasting a party rule change that could make her unemployed.
The SNP’s governing body reportedly ruled that any MP who contests a Holyrood seat will have to resign before the election, a decision branded “unprecedented” and “unreasonable” by Cherry.
Cherry, who was interested in standing for the Edinburgh Central seat, said: “I am not prepared to do it and so unless circumstances change, I won’t be seeking nomination for Holyrood in this election.”
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Former MP Angus Robertson is trying to become a candidate for Edinburgh Central for next year’s Holyrood election and was expected to be joined in the race by Cherry.
The pair are not close, as Robertson is an ally of Nicola Sturgeon and Cherry is closer to ex-leader Alex Salmond.
At a meeting of the SNP’s national executive committee, party figures addressed the issue of MPs who are selected to stand for Holyrood.
It has been reported they backed “Option D”, which means MPs would need to resign their seats in enough time to allow a by-election to take place on the same day as the Scottish Parliament elections.
In practice, this would mean Cherry or any other MP having to stand down from Westminster before the Holyrood poll, effectively becoming unemployed.
Cherry said: "I have not had the courtesy of any official confirmation of this decision and would not normally comment on leaks of internal party matters, however private discussions by the current SNP NEC seem to regularly reach the press and I understand that the information which has been leaked is correct."
She said: "It is unprecedented in our party’s history of dual mandates to demand that a parliamentarian make themselves and their constituency staff unemployed in order to be eligible to be a candidate. It is particularly unreasonable to demand this in the middle of a pandemic.
"I have been overwhelmed by the messages of support from party members and members of the public. I believe I stood a very good chance to be selected to fight the seat where I have lived for most of my life and I want to thank everyone who has emailed, written or stopped me in the street to offer their support.”
An SNP spokesman said: “The NEC backed an approach that will guarantee constituents a full-time commitment from day one, and minimise the disruption to voters."
