Party ditches controversial Labour MP

ONE of Labour's most controversial Scottish MPs has been effectively deselected by her local party following concerns about her erratic behaviour and anger over her travelling expenses.

Scotland on Sunday can reveal that activists have voted overwhelmingly to unseat Anne Moffat as MP for East Lothian and are seeking a candidate to replace her before the general election.

Their decision will now go to Labour's National Executive Committee as a matter of urgency, where it is expected to be rubber-stamped before Gordon Brown goes to the polls later this year.

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Assuming the decision is ratified by the NEC, Moffat will become the second sitting Scottish Labour MP to be deselected in the run-up to the election.

Jim Devine, the Livingston MP, was deselected after his expenses were criticised for submitting invoices for electrical work worth 2,157 from a firm with an allegedly fake address and an invalid VAT number.

The move to oust Moffat comes after a long-running battle within the East Lothian Constituency Labour Party.

The wrangling over the seat, to which Moffat was elected in 2001 as Anne Picking, will throw the spotlight on Labour's internal machinations – a state of affairs that will dismay the Labour leadership as the party gears up for the election.

There is the added embarrassment that East Lothian is a constituency shared with the Scottish Labour leader Iain Gray, who represents it at Holyrood.

A meeting of the East Lothian Constituency Party was held on Friday night in Prestonpans Labour Club. Representatives of branches voted 25 to five in favour of a motion calling for her deselection.

Yesterday, a Scottish Labour spokesman said: "Members are entitled, under the Labour party rules, to request the NEC to recommence the selection of the prospective parliamentary candidate. The motion was passed by local members and will be considered by the NEC at the next opportunity."

Moffat has endured a torrid time as an MP with a number of local activists fighting to get her deselected. Her critics claimed Moffat was not performing as effectively as expected as a Labour MP. Until this weekend she had managed to stave off deselection with the help of trade union support.

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She has accused her detractors of "bullying" and suggested she was being targeted because she was a woman in a male environment. In the past she has survived a no-confidence motion and had promised to work closely with the local party to resolve their differences.

Earlier in her political career, she sacked three of her staff, provoking anger in the constituency. Then she faced accusations – dismissed by the authorities – that she abused her Commons expenses.

In 2007 it was revealed that her travelling expenses were the equivalent of driving round the world in a year.

Moffat billed taxpayers for the 24,000-mile claim despite also claiming an air fare a week between London and Edinburgh over the same 12-month period. The parliamentarian also claimed 82 train fares each averaging 119 a ticket, bringing her annual travel costs to more than 45,000.

Michael Veitch, Conservative candidate for East Lothian, said: "This is more evidence of a Labour party in disarray. When the British general election comes, the voters now have a clear choice between a weak and divided Labour party or a strong and united Conservative party offering hope and change."

The SNP candidate for East Lothian, Andrew Sharp, said: "Labour's selection saga has become increasingly bitter and will further isolate the party from voters who are fed up with the community being overlooked as Labour focus on settling scores.

"This must be especially embarrassing for Iain Gray, who is embroiled in his own scandal over the use of council resources for party fundraising. He must now say where he stands on the deselection of Ms Moffat."

Mike Rumbles, the Liberal Democrat chief whip, said: "Labour have failed, and as the general election approaches, blind panic is setting in. Labour in East Lothian are no exception – they are all over the place."

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A Scottish Labour Party spokesman said: "This is a local party issue. They have followed the correct procedure and the most important thing is that we win East Lothian, which we are confident that we will do at the general election."

Moffat could not be contacted last night.