Who is standing in the Rutherglen and Hamilton West by-election

The removal of disgraced MP Margaret Ferrier has triggered a hotly anticipated by-election in her constituency on 5 October.

Voters in Rutherglen and Hamilton West backed a recall petition after the ex-SNP parliamentarian breached Covid rules during lockdown.

Both Labour and the SNP are hoping to secure a major boost ahead of the next general election with a victory in the South Lanarkshire seat.

Here are some of the key questions ahead of what will be the country's first ever recall by-election.

So far, the candidates who have declared they are standing in the by-election are (in alphabetical order):

With UK-wide attention focused on the seat, it is likely that other candidates will also put their names forward ahead of the by-election.

The recent by-election in Uxbridge and South Ruislip featured 17 candidates, while another in Selby and Ainsty had 13 names on the ballot paper.

Ferrier could have stood as an independent but has confirmed she will not do so.

MPs passed an SNP motion to the Commons requesting a by-election in a process known as moving the writ.

The proposed polling day of 5 October was then confirmed by South Lanarkshire's returning officer.

The vote will be held between 07:00 and 22:00 on 5 October, the earliest possible date for the by-election.

Voters will need to be registered by Tuesday 19 September. It will be the first election in Scotland in which they will require an accepted form of photographic identification.

A by-election is the process for electing a new MP when a seat in the Commons becomes vacant outside a general election. This can happen, for example, when an MP dies or resigns.

In this case, Ferrier lost her seat after almost 12,000 of her constituents signed a recall petition - a mechanism introduced in the wake of the MPs' expenses scandal.

The former SNP MP was given 270 hours of community service last August after being convicted of breaching Covid regulations almost two years earlier.

On 28 September 2020 Ferrier travelled to London and spoke in the Commons while awaiting the result of a Covid test.

But after receiving her positive result via text she got a train home to Glasgow the following day, despite the fact guidance at the time stated she should have self-isolated for two weeks.

Ferrier subsequently lost the party whip and continued to sit in the Commons as an independent.

In January 2021 the former sales manager was arrested and charged with culpable and reckless conduct.

Ferrier was removed from the SNP Westminster group and was suspended from the House of Commons in June for 30 days, triggering the recall process.

The petition to remove her was signed by almost 15% of the 81,124 eligible constituents, passing the 10% threshold which forces a by-election.

The by-election could turn out to be a defining moment in the electoral fortunes of the SNP and Scottish Labour.

Rutherglen and Hamilton West has changed hands between the parties at each of the past three general elections.

It is the SNP's fourth most vulnerable seat in terms of SNP-Labour marginals, according to pollster Mark Diffley.

Based on the 2019 general election result - which saw the SNP take the seat with a majority of 5,230 - he said a swing of at least 5% would result in a Labour gain.

The party could need a strong performance north of the border if Sir Keir Starmer is to win the next general election and the by-election is seen as a key indicator of whether Labour's message is getting though to voters.

UK general elections have to be held no more than five years apart and the next is therefore due by January 2025.

Meanwhile, for Mr Yousaf, it is his first electoral test after eight years of unprecedented success under former party leader Nicola Sturgeon.

"If Labour can't win this seat then it really does diminish their hopes next year," Mr Diffley said in a panel discussion organised by Charlotte Street Partners.

"But I think both Anas and Humza have got both a lot to gain and a lot to lose."