Latest news with #FalkirkWest
The National
14-05-2025
- Politics
- The National
SNP members launch bid to re-run Falkirk West selection contest
The Falkirk West selection battle has been at the centre of controversy after one of the four candidates – former SNP policy convener Toni Giuliano – was removed from the ballot at the last minute after an allegation of misconduct. The contest was won by councillor Gary Bouse, but a petition has now been launched among local members with a view to having the contest re-run. One local SNP member, who asked not to be named, said there was 'no question that this vote must be re-run – with or without Toni Giugliano' due to the impact that removing him will have had on how people voted. READ MORE: Kate Forbes 'must face MSPs over SNP Government arms firm funding' 'If Toni's name wasn't on the ballot to begin with, members may have chosen to coalesce behind a totally different candidate,' they said. 'The result lacks any credibility. 'The party needs to understand it has got this badly wrong. This issue is not going away and we will continue to gather signatures until democracy has been restored.' The petition calling for the contest to be re-run garnered 50 signatures on the day it opened, The National was told. 'At this pace, we'll surpass the total number of votes cast for the declared candidate,' the member added. 'Where did my vote go? That's what I want to know. I only cast a first-preference vote for a candidate who the party decided to remove after a shabby backroom deal was done.' Toni Giugliano was suspended from the Falkirk West selection contestAllegations made in The Herald on Tuesday said that former health secretary Michael Matheson, who currently holds the Falkirk West seat, had only agreed to step aside if Giugliano was blocked from replacing him. The SNP called the claims 'nonsense'. The text of the petition to re-run the contest to replace Matheson reads: 'Petition: Re-run the SNP Falkirk West selection contest. 'The SNP is built on democracy and the active participation of its members. That principle was undermined when a vetted candidate was removed from the Falkirk selection ballot just days before the result. 'This petition does not favour any individual candidate – it is about upholding the integrity of the democratic rights of members.' READ MORE: Scottish firm goes bust after over 40 years with dozens of jobs lost The National was told that the plan is to share the results with the SNP once the petition has accrued a significant number of members in Falkirk West – where this paper understands there are around 750 SNP members. No details of the number of votes involved in the selection ballot have been made public. Announcing his own bid for the Falkirk West nomination, Bouse said he would not have run against Matheson for the selection 'under any circumstances'. He went on: 'I was part of the 2024 Westminster selection process and that left its own scars. I never give up on what I believe in, and I joined the SNP because of my belief in independence. 'This gets stronger by the day when I see what the Labour party as the last hope for the Union are doing to our people and our country.' After winning the SNP nomination in Falkirk West, Bouse said he wanted to thank 'the other candidates for the positive campaigns they ran in this process; I wish them well for the future'. He added: 'It is now time to get to work, to build a strong team across the constituency and do the hard work to win this seat for the SNP.' The SNP did not respond to a request for comment on the petition to re-run the contest. Previously, in response to allegations of a 'stitch up' because the complaint against Giugliano had not been detailed in public, the party said: 'Any internal disciplinary matters are dealt with in a manner that is confidential to the parties concerned.'
The National
09-05-2025
- Politics
- The National
SNP chief 'threatens' members amid 'stitch up' claims
Toni Giugliano's departure from the Falkirk West selection contest was triggered at the eleventh hour after he was accused of misconduct, believed to be an accusation of bullying. His rival Gary Bouse will contest the seat at next year's Scottish Parliament election. But Giugliano's expulsion from the race has sparked claims he was pushed out by SNP chiefs. Now, the party's national secretary Alex Kerr (below, right) has written to members urging them not to speculate on the circumstances of the case – warning that doing so could make them fall foul of internal rules. (Image: Supplied) In an email first reported by The Scottish Sun, Kerr said that he would not get into the reasons for Giugliano, who has ran unsuccessfully for a number of SNP seats in the past, saying only that a 'process was followed'. He noted that there were local rumours that a campaign had been orchestrated to frustrate Giugliano's campaign but said this was 'a blatant misrepresentation of the facts'. Kerr said: 'Anyone perpetrating this myth, and seeking to apportion 'blame' on any individual for the outcome of a disciplinary hearing has most likely breached the member code of conduct themselves." READ MORE: Gillian Mackay launches Scottish Greens leadership bid The top SNP officer said that 'rules and procedures will not always lead to conclusions we like", and added: 'If anyone cannot accept them then perhaps they need to reconsider whether they can be a member of an organisation that acts for all of its members, and not just for those that we have personal regard.' A Falkirk SNP source told The Scottish Sun: 'Alex Kerr is lashing out at local members because we won't accept his kangaroo court ruling. "He's now threatening us with disciplinary action if we don't accept his decision. What on earth has the SNP turned into? "Kerr's contempt for local members is astounding – this is the sort of stuff we expect from the Tories, not the SNP. "What on earth was HQ thinking, excluding a candidate who was about to win – did they think we'd all go along with it? (Image: Toni Giugliano) "This selection result carries no legal or political weight and it will be challenged. "They've made a situation a hundred times worse – Alex Kerr needs to recognise this and offer his resignation.' A source close to Giugliano added: 'Toni was booted out for having a conversation - witnessed by three other people - where he expressed a different point of view. If he'd chosen not to stand this complaint would never have seen the light of day.' The SNP said: 'Any internal disciplinary matters are dealt with in a manner that is confidential to the parties concerned.'
