MP Margaret Ferrier Faces 30 Day Suspension From Commons For Covid Rule Breach
MP Margaret Ferrier should be suspended from the Commons for 30 days after travelling across the country despite knowing she had Covid, a parliamentary standards watchdog has said.
In a report published on Thursday, parliament’s committee on standards said the Rutherglen and Hamilton West MP had “knowingly and recklessly” exposed people to the virus.
“Ferrier acted selfishly in her personal interest and in defiance of the public interest,” the committee said.
If approved by MPs, the length of the suspension means a recall petition could be triggered leading to a by-election in the seat.
It would be an early test for new SNP leader Humza Yousaf. Ferrier won the seat for the party at the last election, but had the party whip removed following her Covid breach and has since sat as an independent.
Ferrier pleaded guilty last year to putting people at “risk of infection, illness and death” by going on a train between Scotland and London in September 2020 after taking a test for the virus.
While awaiting the results, she also visited elsewhere in London and read to a congregation of about 45 people at a mass in St Mungo’s Church, Glasgow.
In September, Ferrier was sentenced to 270 hours of community service following a trial at Glasgow Sheriff Court.
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