FERGUS Ewing could be banned from standing as an SNP candidate at the next Holyrood election.
It comes after he claimed party bosses only tended to select "obedient and pliant" candidates and accused the Scottish Government of making many "blunders", The Herald reports.
The veteran MSP – who has been in the Scottish Parliament since 1999 – was suspended from the SNP Holyrood group in 2023 after he voted against Humza Yousaf's government in a no-confidence motion on the then Scottish Green minister Lorna Slater.
He has also been a vocal critic of the SNP in Holyrood, calling the SNP an "authoritarian party" after he lost his suspension appeal.
One insider told The Herald that the case against Ewing was "compelling".
Under the SNP’s vetting procedure all new candidates must undertake a full interview, are assessed on policy and often face a mock media interview.
However, elected members and activists who have stood previously only have to update their vetting form and declare any new information. They then have a short interview by phone.
A source said if there were complaints about a members’ conduct “or very serious issues that could bring the party into disrepute” then SNP HQ would “look into it, and decide whether to bring you in for an interview.”
For those who fail the vetting procedure, there is an appeals process in place.
The SNP said they would not comment on internal processes including candidate selection, which is undertaken by the candidate assessment committee.
Ewing declined to comment, though confirmed the party had yet to tell him that he would not be their candidate in the Inverness and Nairn constituency next year.
In an interview on Friday, Ewing said he was planning to stand again.
He said: “I'm just actually waiting to see whether my party wishes me to stand again. I think I've got not a bad CV.
"I think the party machine has become too all-powerful in selecting candidates who may be suitable from the party point of view — in other words, obedient and pliant — but perhaps not what the people want."
It comes as more SNP MSPs announced this week that they will not be standing at the next election.
Audrey Nicoll, SNP MSP for Aberdeen South and North Kincardine, confirmed her intention to stand down, as she said it had been an "absolute privilege" to be in Holyrood.
She denied claims that she had been pressured to stand down, after reports circulated that allies of Stephen Flynn had drawn up an all-women "hit list" of SNP MSPs to oust before the next election.
Meanwhile, Stirling MSP Evelyn Tweed – one of the MSPs named on the "hit list" – announced on Thursday she is also standing down, saying that she wanted to "embrace new opportunities" and that she "passionately believe[s] that Scotland will be an independent country".
