As the local paper, the Southern Report, highlights:
In a shock move, Conservative candidate Chris Walker has quit the battle to take the Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk Westminster seat from the Liberal Democrats. The constituency has been targeted by the Scottish Conservative Leader Annabel Goldie as winnable. … The seat is held for the Lib Dems by Michael Moore. He has a majority of 5,901 over the Tories.
Favourite to succeed Mr Walker is current Tory MSP for Roxburgh and Berwickshire John Lamont – however, he has made it clear he would, if elected, sit in both the Holyrood and Westminster parliaments. Yet, as Lib Dem blogger Andrew Reeves points out, this is in direct contrast to the Tories’ attacks on SNP leader Alex Salmond for doing just that:
The other MP in the Borders is Conservative David Mundell, who in February this year “Mr Salmond has two jobs when many people in Scotland don’t have a single job at all. That is quite wrong.” I assume David Mundell will mention this at some point to his colleague John?
John Lamont MSP also says that he thinks (assuming he wins) a by-election for his MSP seat would be “an unnecessary burden on the taxpayer” however, his boss in Holyrood, Annabel Goldie thinks the exact opposite of Alex Salmond in Banff & Buchan.
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One Comment
Did the previous candidate jump or was he pushed?
He’s quoted in the Galloway News as saying: ” It seems such a shame after nearly two years hard work in the Borders that the party seemed unable to support a businessman. I had honestly thought that was what the Conservatives wanted.”