An all-women SNP shortlist of six candidates vying for Dave Thompson’s Skye, Lochaber and Badenoch seat when he retires at next May’s Holyrood elections.
They are Liz MacDonald and Susan Lyons (Nairnshire and Culloden), Katie Forbes (Dingwall and Black Isle), Elizabeth Paul (Lochaber and North Lorne), Muriel Cockburn (Wester Ross) and Heather Williams (Preston, East Lothian).
Mr Thompson has paid tribute to all six, but offered a personal endorsement for Ms Forbes, who he described as “a bright local woman” with skills including fluent Gaelic and commercial training.
SNP members will decide which candidate is selected. The verdict is expected by the end of August.
The party’s national executive decided that where its MSPs are standing down there should be all female shortlists to try to redress the gender imbalance at Holyrood.
