Covid rule-breaking MP faces one month Commons ban
Margaret Ferrier is accused of putting her interests above the public
Lanarkshire MP Margaret Ferrier could be facing a by-election because the House of Commons Standards watchdog is recommending she be suspended from Parliament for 30 days for breaching Covid-19 rules.
The Rutherglen and Hamilton West MP was found to have damaged the reputation of the Commons and put people at risk after taking a train from Glasgow to London, and then sitting in on a debate, while waiting for the result of a test which turned out to be positive in September 2020.
The 62-year-old was sentenced to a 270 hour community payback order at Glasgow Sheriff Court in September 2022 after pleading guilty to putting people at risk.
Public interest came second
Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards Daniel Greenberg said Ms Ferrier had breached code of conduct for MPs "by placing her own personal interest of not wishing to self-isolate immediately or in London over the public interest of avoiding possible risk of harm to health and life".
She also breached the code because "her actions commencing from when she first took a Covid-19 test to when she finally begins self-isolation have caused significant damage to the reputation and integrity of the House of Commons as a whole, and of its Members generally".
The Commons Standards Committee recommended she should face a 30 day suspension, which MPs will be asked to approve.
It passes the threshold for a recall petition it could result in a by-election being called.