MPS get the nod to contest election
Ferrier and Crawley are re-selected for poll
The incumbent MPS for Hamilton’s two Westminster constituencies this week announced they will contest the June 8 poll.
Rutherglen and Hamilton East MP Margaret Ferrier took the seat for the SNP from Labour with a 9975 majority in the May 2015 general election, while Angela Crawley captured Lanark and Hamilton West for the SNP from Labour with a majority of 10,100.
Both candidates were selected following a meeting of the party’s National Executive Committee last Saturday.
Ms Ferrier said she will continue to hold the Government to account at Westminster.
She said: “Representing Rutherglen and Hamilton West in London has been an enormous privilege, and I look forward to asking voters to once again place their trust in me so that I can continue my strong track record of holding the Tories to account at Westminster.
“I have been the strong voice that I promised during my 2015 election campaign – contributing more than any other Scottish MP at Parliament – and a champion for the diverse and distinct communities across Rutherglen, Cambuslang, Halfway, Blantyre, and Hamilton West.”
Ms Crawley, the SNP’S Westminster spokesperson for equalities, women and children, said: “I have loved representing my home constituency of Lanark and Hamilton East since 2015, and I am very pleased to have been named as the SNP candidate.
“In the past two years my priority has been to make sure the people of Lanark and Hamilton East have a strong voice in Westminster, opposing the worst of the Tory Government’s policies. I have spoken in over 100 debates, highlighting concerns I have discussed with constituents and issues faced by people, including changes to benefits, immigration, domestic violence, and state pension inequality.
“As a member of the women and equalities committee I have also been able to help shape laws in areas such as LGBT rights, maternity discrimination, and the gender pay gap. I have used my position for local campaigns, including the excessive parking charges that have caused Hamilton town centre to decline, the proposed Whitehall incinerator, and the closure of the Coalyard Tearoom in Larkhall, as well as fronting the national campaign on the UK Government’s tax on child support for domestic abuse survivors.
“I promised in 2015 that I would be the hardest-working MP Lanark and Hamilton East has ever had. If re-elected I promise to keep up the pace for the next five years.”