General Election 2015: SNP suspends two members for disrupting Glasgow Labour rally

Piers Doughty-Brown and James Scott were part of a group which confronted Jim Murphy as he campaigned alongside comedian Eddie Izzard in the city

Piers Doughty-Brown confronts Scottish Labour leader Jim Murphy in Glasgow on Monday (PA)

The SNP has suspended two of its members for disrupting a Scottish Labour rally in the centre of Glasgow, in scenes which opponents described as “the ugly face of nationalism”.

Piers Doughty-Brown and James Scott were part of a group which confronted Jim Murphy as he campaigned alongside comedian Eddie Izzard in the city. The Scottish Labour leader had to cut short his visit as scuffles broke out amid chants of “red Tories out”.

Nicola Sturgeon condemned the disruption, saying that the protesters involved “weren’t acting on behalf of the SNP”. But it emerged yesterday that Mr Doughty-Brown and Mr Scott were both members of her party.

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Labour’s shadow Scottish secretary Margaret Curran described the events at the rally as “appalling", claiming that she had raised concerns about Mr Doughty-Brown’s behaviour months ago after he followed her around the streets of Glasgow.

James Scott has been suspended by the SNP (PA)

“What happened yesterday was the ugly face of nationalism, but we will never let it stop us making a positive case for Scotland’s future – and it will never stop me standing up for the people of the East End of Glasgow,” she added.

An SNP spokesman said that both men had been placed under “administrative suspension” and criticised Labour for not taking similar action against activist Ian Smart, who has previously described the SNP as “fascist scum”.

He added: “As Nicola Sturgeon has said, this is a fantastic election campaign and we should all be out there putting forward positive messages and engaging constructively with the people of Scotland.”