Ex-SNP leader Alex Salmond to stand for UK parliament
Ex-SNP leader Alex Salmond announces he is to stand for UK parliament
(about 9 hours later)
Former SNP leader Alex Salmond is to stand for a seat at Westminster at next May's General Election, the BBC understands.
Former SNP leader and First Minister Alex Salmond has announced he is to stand for a seat at Westminster at next May's General Election.
He will contest the Gordon seat held by retiring Lib Dem MP Sir Malcolm Bruce.
He unveiled his candidacy for his party's nomination in the Gordon constituency at a meeting in Ellon.
Mr Salmond stood down as SNP leader and Scotland's first minister after the "Yes" campaign was defeated in September's independence referendum.
The seat is currently held by retiring Lib Dem MP Sir Malcolm Bruce.
He is expected to confirm his decision when he addresses a meeting in the constituency on Sunday morning.
Mr Salmond said the north east of Scotland had been his "political home" since he entered representative politics.
'Wait and see'
He stood down as SNP leader and Scotland's first minister after the "Yes" campaign was defeated in September's independence referendum.
There has been intense speculation that Mr Salmond would seek to return to Westminster ever since he announced he was stepping down as first minister.
He currently represents the constituency of Aberdeenshire East in the Scottish Parliament.
He currently represents the constituency of Aberdeenshire East in the Scottish Parliament and had indicated he would continue in that role.
However, he confirmed his decision to seek election to Westminster when he addressed a meeting in the Gordon constituency.
At the 2010 general election Mr Bruce held the Gordon constituency in Aberdeenshire with a majority of 6,748 over the SNP, having been an MP since 1983.
He said three things had become "self-evident".
BBC news correspondent Catriona Renton said there was an enormous amount of momentum behind the SNP since the independence referendum and Mr Salmond was likely to have a good chance in the Gordon seat.
Mr Salmond said the Smith Commission had "not measured up to what was promised".
It had not come as much of a surprise because he had hinted at it on the BBC's Question Time recently, she added.
He added that Gordon Brown, "the man who said he would stand guarantor of the vow", had retired from politics.
On Question Time, presenter David Dimbleby asked Mr Salmond whether he would consider a return to Westminster.
Thirdly, he said he believed the SNP and "progressive allies" could emerge as a "powerful force" at the UK Parliament.
He replied: "The answer to your question, David, absolutely decisively I can tell you I haven't made up my mind. So you'll have to wait and see."
Mr Salmond said he had no ambition to lead the SNP group at Westminster and would, if elected for a year with a dual mandate, donate one salary to a charity supporting local youth causes.
In response to Mr Salmond's candidature, Mr Bruce said: "People in Gordon rejected the first minister's independence plans overwhelmingly at the referendum.
He said: "I have been first minister of Scotland.
"I am sure that they would be delighted to have the chance to reject him again in May. Bring it on."
"I have no interest in titles and fully support Angus Robertson who is an excellent leader of the SNP at Westminster, a close friend and a fine MP.
"I am perfectly content as a constituency member of parliament and will seek to have a role in negotiating the progress for Scotland which would arise from a powerful group of SNP MPs and our allies."
Three challenges
Mr Salmond also set out "three big local challenges" in health, transport and jobs in the constituency.
He said they had to "rally round" the local NHS under its new leadership, secure "key investments" on routes in the area and encourage local companies to diversify.
In response to Mr Salmond's candidature, Mr Bruce said: "This is not all about Alex Salmond, as he seems to think it is.
"It's about the people of Gordon and how their interests are best served.
"They're not best served by a man whose mission is to disrupt Westminster, to provoke division and to ignore the way the people voted on that issue."
He said he felt that meant Mr Salmond had a "problem to address".
"I've been out and about in the constituency and he's not a popular man," he added.
The Lib Dems' candidate for the constituency, Christine Jardine, said she intended to be a "strong voice for all the people of Gordon".
The Lib Dems' candidate for the constituency, Christine Jardine, said she intended to be a "strong voice for all the people of Gordon".
'Changed for better'
Mr Salmond was the MP for Banff and Buchan between 1987 and 2010. He stood down as an MP after being chosen as first minister, a role he served between 2007 and 2014.
He used his resignation speech as first minister in the Scottish Parliament to describe the job as the "privilege of my life".
Analysis
By Catriona Renton, BBC News
Alex Salmond opted for Westminster over Holyrood after his first spell as SNP leader ended in 2000; and it looks like he's once again going to seek election as an MP having stood down as the party's leader and Scotland's First Minister.
Since the Yes campaign lost the referendum back in September, he's been hinting at a return to Westminster politics. It's expected he'll seek to become the SNP's candidate for the rural seat of Gordon in Aberdeenshire.
When the SNP won the 2007 Holyrood elections, Mr Salmond made a triumphant return to the equivalent seat at Holyrood, knocking out the Liberal Democrat incumbent in the process.
With the opinion polls in flux following the referendum, Mr Salmond - and indeed the SNP as a whole - are sensing an opportunity to carve a significant political role for themselves at Westminster.
He said: "Scotland has changed - changed utterly and much for the better over the 15 years of this parliament and over the seven years of this government.
"I'm happy to say with every degree of certainty that more change and better days lie ahead for this parliament and for Scotland."
The referendum on Scotland's future saw voters turn out to reject independence by 55% to 45%, on a turnout of almost 85%.
'No coalition'
Speaking last week, Mr Salmond said it was unlikely that the SNP would be part of a formal coalition government with Labour at Westminster.
The new SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon has ruled out helping the Conservatives if David Cameron fails to win an overall majority of MPs in May.
Mr Salmond was named Spectator magazine's Politician of the Year at a ceremony in London last week, which he was also awarded in 2011 after the SNP's victory in the Scottish elections.
He said: "This has been a momentous year for Scotland and, while the Yes campaign may not have won in the referendum, there is no doubt that Scotland has been changed utterly.
"With the SNP now the third biggest party in the UK, with more than twice as many members as the Lib Dems, and support for the party surging in the polls, there is a determination in Scotland to ensure that real progress is delivered."
