Lisa Cameron

Cameron was elected as an SNP MP for the East Kilbride, Strathaven and Lesmahagow seat at the 2015 UK general election.[8] The seat and its predecessor, East Kilbride, had been won by successive Labour Party candidates since 1974.

Cameron is the first clinical psychologist to be elected as an MP to the House of Commons.[9] During the 2015–17 Parliament, Cameron was a member of the International Development Committee and the International Development Sub-Committee on the Work of the Independent Commission for Aid Impact.[10]

On 5 January 2016, the Scottish Daily Mail published a story highlighting that Cameron owned five ex-council houses (managed by her husband) despite campaigning against the sale of council houses at the 2015 general election. She responded by stating that she had been transparent in her property dealings and had declared ownership of the properties per parliamentary rules in her register of interests.[11][12] Cameron made a complaint about the article to the Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO) which was not upheld.[13]

Cameron retained her seat at the 2017 snap general election with 21,023 votes and both a reduced vote share and a majority of 3,866 votes.[14] Following the election, Cameron was elected to be part of the Health Select Committee and the Commons Reference Group on Representation and Inclusion.[10] She was the chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Groups (APPGs) on Health, Chile, Disability, Dog Advisory Welfare, Psychology, Textile and Fashion and co-chair of the APPG on New Towns. She was also a Vice-Chair on the Pro-Life APPG.[15]

In 2017, Cameron launched the successful Lucy's Law campaign in the House of Commons against puppy farming which became statute in 2019.[16] In 2018, Cameron led the Ivory Bill for the SNP through the House of Commons.[17]

In 2019, Cameron described receiving abusive messages and threats with deselection after voting against legalising abortion in Northern Ireland in a conscience vote. An SNP assessor reportedly said he would recommend anyone with these views should have their application rejected to be a candidate and she should "quit her position as an elected representative."[18]

In September 2019, Cameron's local SNP branch passed a motion which criticised the National Executive Committee’s decision “to impose Dr Lisa Cameron as the party's candidate in the forthcoming General Election for the second time".[19] Despite this, Cameron was reselected.[19]

Cameron was returned to Parliament at the 2019 general election with a majority 13,322.[20]  

On 29 June 2020, Cameron was the only SNP MP to vote on a motion to introduce a Bill to restrict anti-abortion demonstrations near abortion clinics in England. She voted against the motion, submitted on her behalf by the SNP Chief Whip.[21] Cameron claimed to receive over 3,000 "thank you notes" from people across Scotland supporting her anti-abortion stance and claiming to give them "a voice in parliament"[22] Following this, she received a death threat and said "freedom of religious belief appears to be being continually eroded".[23]

Cameron received an Award for Distinguished Contribution to Practice of Psychology from the British Psychological Society in 2020 for her work as a psychologist in NHS Scotland and on mental health in Parliament.[24] Cameron was reportedly given the title in 2021 as SNP Parliamentary Carers Champion for Carers Week.[25]

In 2022, Cameron was appointed Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for Crypto and Digital Assets.[26] In March of that year, she received the MP of the Year Award from Patchwork Foundation for her disability activism and campaigns against online abuse.[27] Cameron was awarded the Order of Saint Agatha by the Republic of San Marino in October 2022.[28]

In January 2023, following the unprecedented decision of the UK Government to intervene to block the wholly devolved Scottish Government's Gender Recognition Reform (Scotland) Bill, Cameron wrote to Conservative Scottish Secretary Alister Jack calling on him to "intervene" in a way that didn't undermine the devolution settlement.[29]

In 2023, the SNP, which requires parliamentarians to go through a selection process without presumption of reselection,[30] carried out its selection process for the next UK general election. On 23 September 2023, Cameron, who was one of five sitting SNP MPs involved in selection ballots,[31] told media that if SNP members did not nominate her as the candidate in she could resign, and call a by-election.[32] Her comments were criticised SNP leader Humza Yousaf, who said it was up to local branches and members to select candidates, and urged for all to follow the selection contest rules.[33]

Cameron, who had previously spoken about "deselection threats" in 2019,[34] claimed that her challenge in 2023 from a local activist was due to her being "ostracised" by the SNP group at Westminster.

Cameron claimed the ostracisation began after she had apparently spoken on 14 June 2022[35] at an internal SNP Westminster group meeting ahead of the readmission of Patrick Grady to that group, following a suspension after he apologised for an incident of sexual harassment, urging the group to think of the victim.[36] Stephen Flynn, the leader of the SNP Westminster group, said this did not "reflect [his] experience of the situation",[37] and a local activist said that her local SNP branch had no record of Cameron ever mentioning or standing up for the victim.[19] Cameron also said she had felt sidelined following her 2019 vote against abortion rights in Northern Ireland.[37]

Her local SNP branch had raised "eight or nine complaints" on Cameron's conduct over the previous "six or seven years",[19] and her local party was reportedly "unhappy" with the number of taxpayer-funded overseas trips she had taken.[30]

Grant Costello, Cameron's selection opponent, was endorsed by the local branch, the local MSP Collette Stevenson, her predecessor Linda Fabiani, and Scottish government minister Christina McKelvie.[19] Fabiani also claimed that "almost every activist" in Cameron's branch opposed her.[38]

On 12 October, on the day votes were due to be counted in her selection contest, Cameron left the SNP, citing an alleged "toxic and bullying atmosphere", to sit as a Conservative Party MP.[2][39] This was the first instance of an SNP parliamentarian moving to the Conservative Party.[40] The Herald reported that Cameron had been unhappy with the SNP for over 18 months, predating the Grady meeting, with David Mundell, her local MP, a Tory, telling her in 2022 she would be "welcome" should she wish to defect.[41]

Cameron said she could not have joined the Labour Party due to her Christianity and views on transgender rights, citing the experiences of her friend Rosie Duffield.[40] Grant Costello, who had been leading in the selection contest, was named SNP candidate for East Kilbride and Strathaven later that day.[41]

SNP leader Humza Yousaf, First Minister of Scotland, called on her to resign as an MP, saying her defection was a "betrayal" of constituents and activists.[42] Prime Minister, and Conservative Party Leader, Rishi Sunak hailed Cameron's decision as "brave".[43] On 13 October, Cameron announced she and her family had to "go into hiding" after she received death threats following her defection.[44]

Later that month, Cameron announced she would be standing down at the next general election.[45]