In context: Dual Mandates

What is it?

Dual mandate is the term used to refer to an MSP who is also either an MP, a peer in the House of Lords or a councillor.

Do other devolved nations allow it?

No, the Wales Act 2014 banned members of the Senedd from simultaneously holding a seat at the House of Commons, while the Northern Ireland (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2014 banned double jobbing for members of the Assembly.

Do any politicians hold a dual mandate?

The most recent politician holding a job  north and south of the border was former Scottish Conservatives leader Douglas Ross, who up until the July general election simultaneously served as the MSP for Highland and Islands and the MP for Moray.

MSP for West Scotland Katy Clark is also a peer at the House of Lords but is currently on a leave of absence from the latter.

In the past, various MSPs have remained as councillors when elected to parliament, such as Jackie Dunbar who remained as an Aberdeen City Councillor until May 2022, after being elected as the MSP for Aberdeen Donside on May 2021.

Several of the latest intake of MPs were also councillors, with Susan Murray retaining her seat on East Dunbartonshire Council.

What’s the ongoing row within the SNP?

Earlier this month, SNP MP Stephen Flynn, who is also the party’s Westminster leader, announced he was planning to stand in the 2026 Holyrood election for the Aberdeen South and North Kincardine seat, which is currently held by SNP MSP Audrey Nicoll.

Flynn had been critical of Ross for holding seats in Edinburgh and London, telling delegates during SNP conference in August that Ross had “one too many commitments”.

Last year he also wrote to former prime minister Rishi Sunak saying that “being elected as an MP is a privilege and must never be treated as anything less than a full-time job”.

But Flynn’s decision faced a significant backlash from his SNP colleagues and opposition, and he has since said he will no longer be seeking a “dual mandate” by standing for Holyrood while still an MP.

In a statement released yesterday, he said that “doing it  for the right reasons doesn’t change the fact I got it wrong”.

SNP MPs Stephen Gethins and Dave Doogan have also put their names forward to be considered for selection but are yet to say whether they would seek a dual mandate or drop their job down south if elected to Holyrood.

Speaking to the BBC, Doogan said his application was "not a statement of intent" but added "it is possible to do both jobs" if the "bulk" of constituents represented were the same in both parliaments.

But didn’t the SNP ban dual mandates?

Yes. Before the 2021 Holyrood election, the party changed internal rules so that MPs seeking a seat in the Scottish Parliament would have to quit the Commons before running for Holyrood.

The rule meant current health secretary Neil Gray was forced to stand down as an MP in order to run for his Airdrie and Shotts constituency, while former MP Joanna Cherry had to pull out of the selection contest for the Edinburgh Central seat.

However, the SNP’s ruling National Executive Committee is still to decide on whether it will apply in the next election.

Former health secretary Alex Neil said the SNP “changing the rules every five minutes” was “totally unacceptable and opens the party up to charges of unfairness and cronyism”.

So, will there be a ban in place before 2026?

In 2022, there was a petition for the Scottish Government to bring dual mandate legislation in line with Wales and Northen Ireland in time for the next election, but, to date, the petition has not been very successful, only receiving four signatures.

However, earlier this year Tory MSP Graham Simpson reignited the push to ban double jobbing.

He introduced three amendments to the Scottish Elections (Representation and Reform) Bill to ban elected members from being an MSP and at the same be an MP, a peer in the Lords or a councillor. However, he did not press these amendments at stage two after government minister Jamie Hepburn said the matter “should be addressed with discussion and consultation, not through this bill”.

Hepburn has said a ban would not been in place by 2026 if a consultation took place.

However, following Flynn’s bid to stand in 2026, Simpson has now re-tabled two of his amendments to outlaw double mandates at stage three of the bill. He has not re-tabled the amendment to ban an MSP from being a councillor.

The amendments are supported by both Labour and the Greens, while the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats have said they will consider the proposals.

What’s next?

The amendments could be voted on before Christmas, and an alliance from the opposition could force changes to the law, given the SNP now presides over a minority government thanks to the end of the Bute House Agreement in April.