Michael Russell, SNP list MSP said of the upcoming by-election "Obviously, any by-election will be extremely hard fought, and the SNP as the official Opposition will contest Ayr to win. On recent swings in Scottish politics - such as in Hamilton South and local authority by-elections - the SNP are in the running in Ayr, requiring a swing of just over 9%. There is everything to play for, and the SNP will be campaigning to win."

A Labour MSP Ian Welsh is giving up his seat! The Tories were second last time, but hopefully the public of this region now have seen the Tories are a non-option for Scotland and that the SNP has fought for a better deal for farmers within the EU than Nu_Labour.