Margaret Ferrier: MP refuses to resign after travelling hundreds of miles with coronavirus

Scottish MP journeyed from Glasgow to Westminster while awaiting a Covid-19 test result, and made the return trip knowing she had the virus

The Scottish MP who travelled hundreds of miles on public transport after testing positive for coronavirus has refused to resign.

Margaret Ferrier travelled from Glasgow to Westminster while awaiting a Covid-19 test result, and made the return trip when she knew she had the virus last month.

The Rutherglen and Hamilton West MP’s breach of the coronavirus rules triggered a backlash, and calls for her resignation came from both Nicola Sturgeon, the Scottish first minister, and Ian Blackford, the SNP Westminster leader.

Ms Sturgeon said she was “very angry” and spoke to Ms Ferrier to make clear “my view that she should step down as an MP”.

Ms Ferrier also had the SNP whip withdrawn, while Scottish Labour launched an online petition calling on her to stand down over the incident.

However, Ms Ferrier said on Sunday the breach was a “blip”, suggesting “Covid makes you do things out of character”, and that she travelled to London by train because she wanted to represent her constituents.

“This has been an awful experience but I’ll keep fighting for my constituents because that’s who I am,” she told The Scottish Sun on Sunday.

Commenting on the backlash, Ms Ferrier said she felt she was getting “a lot of criticism from people you thought were your colleagues or friends who’d understand it was an error of judgement”.

“You then think about all that hard work and dedication — is that just wiped away?” she added.

Ms Ferrier is being investigated by both the Metropolitan Police and the Parliamentary Commissioner for Standards.

Additional reporting by Press Association