SNP's Stephen Flynn admits Scottish Parliament backlash 'not pleasant' over two-seat bid

SNP Westminster leader Stephen Flynn has been forced to address matters publicly following complaints from some within his own party

SNP Westminster leader Stephen Flynn has described the party infighting over his plans to run for Holyrood as unedifying and “not pleasant” as he defended his ambitions as being good for Scotland.

The 36-year-old announced he was seeking to stand for Aberdeen South and North Kincardine at the next Scottish Parliament election in 2026, prompting criticism from many within his own party.

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John Swinney and Stephen Flynn share a lighter moment earlier this year (Picture: Jeff J Mitchell)John Swinney and Stephen Flynn share a lighter moment earlier this year (Picture: Jeff J Mitchell)
John Swinney and Stephen Flynn share a lighter moment earlier this year (Picture: Jeff J Mitchell) | Getty Images

Mr Flynn, the MP for Aberdeen South, would oust incumbent SNP MSP Audrey Nicoll if selected. He plans to keep his Westminster seat, sitting in both parliaments, but said he would not accept two salaries.

The SNP’s National Executive Committee (NEC) is now expected to decide next month if members are allowed to hold seats in both Holyrood and Westminster. The Scotsman understands while the NEC met on Saturday, the issue of dual mandates was not on the agenda, so was not discussed.

Reacting to party infighting over the issue, Mr Flynn on Sunday said he understood the anger. But he stressed it was expected when trying to do things “slightly differently”.

“I've experienced this before in politics,” he told the BBC’s The Sunday Show. “It's not something which is particularly pleasant. It's not something which is particularly comfortable, particularly when you're dealing with people who you know really well.

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“You're dealing with, in my case, a colleague who overlaps almost entirely with the constituency that I currently represent at Westminster.

“This is not a pleasant situation for either of us. All I'm seeking to do is ask the members who vote for us, who ultimately decide who their candidate is going to be, to make a decision. Do they want Audrey to be their candidate or do they want me to be that candidate?

“I hope that campaign, if I'm allowed to take part in it, can be done in good faith, in good spirit, and that we can have a positive battle of ideas, because that's something which I think the people expect of their elected members.”

Ahead of the 2021 Holyrood elections, the SNP had changed internal rules to require MPs to resign their seat at Westminster to fight for selection to Holyrood. However, the NEC will decide afresh on the rules for 2026.

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Defending his decision to run, Mr Flynn suggested the previous rules no longer applied and that sitting in both parliaments would save money.

He said: “All rules that were previously in place are election specific. What I'm seeking to do here is put myself forward to members in the Aberdeen South and North Kincardine constituency where I live with my family, here in Aberdeen, and ask them whether they want me to represent them in Edinburgh for two years, whilst I also represent them in Westminster.

“I believe I would do that without taking a single penny of a second salary. I believe that in doing so, I would save the public purse a significant amount of money by not causing a by-election costing tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands of pounds. And, of course, in doing so I would save all the political parties the necessity to spend up to £100,000 on a by-election campaign.

“My motivations are simple. I want to be ambitious for Aberdeen. I want to be ambitious for Scotland. The big discussions that are happening right now, the impact on the lives of the people I represent, they are happening in Westminster, they are happening in Holyrood, and I want a wee bit of that action.

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“I want to be able to contribute to make our society the best place it can possibly be and hopefully members in the constituency will be given the opportunity to vote for me.“

Mr Flynn dismissed reports that he rang Ms Nicoll the night before his announcement of a Scottish Parliament run and told her to stand aside. He admitted making the call, but insisted it was about his plans to run, with no demands made.

Stephen Flynn is the SNP's leader at WestminsterStephen Flynn is the SNP's leader at Westminster
Stephen Flynn is the SNP's leader at Westminster | Getty Images

He said of the claims he had asked Ms Nicoll to stand aside: “That’s a lie. I did call the night before. We had a fairly cordial conversation, albeit brief. Myself and Audrey speak relatively frequently, as I'm sure you can imagine. I made it clear to her my intentions.

“She told me that she wasn't overly surprised and the decision that I was taking, I was obviously seeking to progress my activities in politics and that was ultimately the end of the conversation.

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“I had hoped it would happen sooner, as [there’s] obviously been significant goings-on in Aberdeen locally with regards to politics and I thought it was best to leave Audrey to deal with some of that. I was dealing with other things in my own personal life, which prevented me from having an earlier conversation.

“None of this is particularly edifying for anyone. I don't want to be doing this, I don't want to be having these discussions on television, trying to defend myself over lies and fabrications that are in newspapers this morning.

“But that's the reality of politics. Sometimes it's not pleasant and I'm not going to shy away or be hounded out from standing for what I believe in.”

Mr Flynn suggested he could take his experiences in Westminster and apply them to Holyrood, adding it would only be a “short overlap”. Asked if he had told First Minister John Swinney about his plans before announcing them, Mr Flynn refused to give specifics.

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He said: “I had conversations with people right across the party locally, local activists, key local activists. Everyone who needed to be aware of what my intentions were, were.

“The First Minister was, of course, aware. He’s the party leader, he’s aware of what my intentions were.

“If the leadership of the party, through the National Executive Committee, determine that they don't want me on the pitch at the Holyrood elections, I will continue to do my job of campaigning heart and soul for the Scottish National Party from the bench or from the stands because I believe that we need to win the Holyrood elections for the best interest of the SNP and the best interests of Scotland.”

Confronted over his alleged leadership ambitions, Mr Flynn added: “I am seriously ambitious for our party and for Scotland. I don't believe that there's going to be a leadership contest in the Scottish National Party for a long, long time because John Swinney is going to win the Scottish Parliament elections in 2026. He's going to continue as First Minister.”

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In a post on X that appeared to be aimed at calming the backlash, Social Justice Secretary Shirley-Anne Somerville urged those briefing the press against others in the party to “leave yer ego to the side”.

“Wee message to everyone who is briefing against folk today either on social media or to journos who are not friends to our party or our cause – stick your papers in if you want to and then get yer walking boots on and help out at a by-election,” she said.

“Voters are angry at Labour’s betrayal on the doors so take our positive message on @theSNP delivery to voters and leave yer ego to the side for the benefit of a cause much bigger than any of us.”

Mr Flynn’s comments came after the NEC announced on Saturday it was seeking to cut ten of SNP’s 26 headquarters jobs.

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A consultation with staff has opened, along with a voluntary redundancy scheme, in a push to bring down costs for a party that has struggled to attract major donors.

Mr Flynn described the move as a “tough, but necessary, decision”.

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