SNP MP Margaret Ferrier has said she will not resign despite backlash for travelling to parliament after developing coronavirus symptoms, saying the virus made her act ‘out of character’.
Ms Ferrier admitted to travelling to London from Glasgow after taking a coronavirus test last month, and said once she had received a positive result, took the train back to her Scottish constituency – a breach of coronavirus rules in Scotland and England.
She has now told the Scottish Sun that she had no intention of standing down from her position of MP for Rutherglen and Hamilton West, despite pressure from the SNP party leadership.
Journey taken by MP Margaret Ferrier while she had coronavirus – to London from Glasgow and back again
Speaking on Sophy Ridge On Sunday, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon reiterated her call for Ms Ferrier to step down.
She said the MP’s “lapse of judgement” was “so significant and so unacceptable” after “flagrantly” disobeying the rules.
Ms Sturgeon said: “I cannot be clearer: She should step down from parliament.
“The lapse of judgement in travelling hundreds of miles, knowing she had tested positive for Covid was so significant and so unacceptable that I’d have to say I don’t think there is any other acceptable course of action for her.
“I hope she will do the right thing.”
SNP Westminster leader Ian Blackford has also called for Ms Ferrier to resign and removed the party whip from her.
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Speaking to the Scottish Sun, Ms Ferrier said: “This has been an awful experience, but I’ll keep fighting for my constituents because that’s who I am.”
She added she had “owned up and apologised profusely”.
The reason she travelled to Westminster despite developing coronavirus symptoms, she said, was because she wanted to “represent her constituents” and take part in a debate in parliament, which she could not do virtually.
“You feel you are getting a lot of criticism from people you thought were your colleagues or friends who’d understand it was an error of judgement. I’m not denying that,” she added.
“People may be saying, ‘you should have known better, you’re a public figure’. But at the end of the day it still hurts. You then think about all that hard work and dedication – is that just wiped away?”
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Ferrier resists calls to resign
Ms Ferrier also said: “A lot of people say COVID makes you do things out of character. You are not thinking straight. I’m not making an excuse.
“At that moment when I thought it would come back negative and it was positive I was utterly shocked. You could have knocked me over.”
Metropolitan Police previously said it was investigating Ms Ferrier.