By-election nominations close

The contest will take place on 21 December

Nominations have now closed for candidates joining the race to become the new Westminster MP for Falkirk West.

Five people will fight the contest.

The by-election on Thursday, 21 December, has been caused by the resignation of current independent MP Dennis Canavan.

---

Iain Hunter - Scottish Socialist Party: The 32-year-old local man is a carer looking after people with learning difficulties. He is currently the secretary of the Falkirk branch of the SSP.

Eric Joyce - Scottish Labour Party: The former army major is a trained teacher and aged 40. He is the son of a postman and entered the public arena when he condemned elitism and snobbery in the army. He left school without any qualifications and by his own admission, he was a teenage troublemaker who was expelled from his first secondary school and fined £30 for assaulting a first-year probationary science teacher.

David Kerr - Scottish National Party: He is a BBC Scotland journalist who until recently was editor of the Newsnight Scotland programme. Mr Kerr, 27, is a past national convener of the SNP's student wing and has been a member of the party's national executive.

Hugh O'Donnell - Scottish Liberal Democrat Party: The married father-of-two is 48 and stood as Scottish parliamentary candidate for the Lib Dems in Central Scotland last year. Mr O'Donnell is currently constituency assistant to Lib Dem Central Scotland MSP Donald Gorrie and was formerly a lecturer at Falkirk College and a community care professional.

Craig Stevenson - Scottish Conservative Party: The 37-year-old married father-of-two has previously been a candidate in East Kilbride. Mr Stevenson, who used to run his own plumbing business, is currently employed as a lecturer in plumbing services at Cardonald College.

---

General Election result, May 1997

Canavan, Labour: 22,772 (60.01%)

Alexander, SNP: 8,989 (23.4%)

Buchanan, Con: 4,639 (12.1%)

Houston, Lib Dem: 1,970 (5.1%)

Lab Majority: 13,783 (35.92% of the vote)

Electorate: 52,850

Total vote: 38,370

4% Swing from SNP to Lab