THE Scottish Greens have confirmed they are standing in the Rutherglen and Hamilton West by-election.

They will tomorrow unveil their candidate for the crucial contest, expected in October, and launch the party's campaign.

The announcement came as Scottish Labour's deputy leader Dame Jackie Baillie suggested the Greens, which did not stand in the seat in 2019, would not be fighting the election and accused them of being a "branch office" of the SNP. 

Scottish Labour was branded a “branch office” in 2014 by Johann Lamont as she quit as the party’s leader, blaming interference from London as her reason for not being able to do the job properly.

Labour also earlier today suggested the Greens would not be running due to its pact with the SNP under the Bute House Agreement, made in 2021.

The power-sharing agreement sees co-leaders Patrick Harvie and Lorna Slater take up ministerial posts in the Scottish Government in exchange for support in no confidence motion and on budget votes.

The arrangement has come under intense scrutiny in recent months following controversial policies such as Scotland's deposit return scheme and Highly Protected Marine Areas (HPMAs).

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A Scottish Greens spokesman said: "This is really desperate stuff from the Labour Party, although it is good to see that even Jackie Baillie acknowledges that the Scottish Greens are the party of environmental justice. 

"We have selected our candidate and will be launching our campaign tomorrow. We will put the climate crisis front and centre of our campaign and present a vision for a fairer, greener and better future for the people of Rutherglen and Hamilton West. 

"Scotland has had enough of the broken status quo being offered by Sir Keir Starmer and Anas Sarwar, who are prepared to punish the most vulnerable with a brutal two child cap and a disastrous Tory Brexit that they are committed to maintaining. 

“Business as usual isn't good enough. Only the Scottish Greens can deliver the transformative change that the Westminster parties are so afraid of.” 

READ MORE: Labour's Michael Shanks says independence supporters are rejecting SNP

Earlier today Scottish Labour called on the Greens to commit to standing a candidate in the Rutherglen and Hamilton West by-election or be confirmed as a branch office for the SNP.

Ms Baillie said: “At a time when Scots deserve a green party fighting for environmental justice, the Scottish Green Party has taken Humza Yousaf’s shilling and shown for all to see that it is nothing less than an SNP branch office.

“While the SNP-Green coalition of chaos goes from crisis to crisis, Patrick Harvie and Lorna Slater are acting as human shields for Humza Yousaf.

“The fact is that the Scottish Green Party are now a wholly-owned subsidiary of the SNP who have surrendered all political independence for a shot on the ministerial bicycles.

“Only Scottish Labour is serious about turning Scotland into green energy superpower and creating thousands of green jobs.”

The announcement by the Scottish Greens that they are to contest the seat will be a blow to the SNP who would have hoped to be the only main pro independence party standing.

Labour are the favourites to win the seat which the party last held from 2017 to 2019.

It is not yet known if Alex Salmond's Alba party is to stand. Alba has been considering whether to run in the by election and has called for a single pro independence candidate to stand under a Scotland United banner - a movc rejected by the SNP.

An Alba spokesman said: "Alex Salmond has made overtures to Humza Yousaf on numerous occasions and has publicly written to him. It’s up to Humza to reply to Alex to make clear if he supports a single independence candidate through backing the principal of Scotland United to put country before party.

"As things stand Humza is marching his troops to defeat because he wishes to put party before country, and in doing so being unable to galvanise the entire independence support in the Constituency. We look forward to his response.

"Alba Party’s National Council will decide on Saturday whether or not we will contest the seat.” 

The Independence for Scotland party is also standing with leader Colette Walker, a former SNP member who left the party over her opposition to the Gender Recognition Reform Bill, named as the candidate.

It is standing on an abstention message arguing that independence supporting parties should not take their seats in Westminster.

A statement earlier this month said: "If we win a Westminster seat, we will not sit. We feel that any MPs talents are better spent in the constituency helping people and building the cause of independence, rather than sitting purposeless in a system that we cannot influence. The answers to Scotland’s problems are not to be found in Westminster, but here in Scotland and it is from here we will push the cause of independence, with or without Westminster’s permission.

"Neither will we take the oath to King Charles. ISP believe that a head of state should be elected and should have no part in government legislation. The undue influence of the monarch through the Privy Council and the Crown estate, particularly with regard to Scotland’s oil and gas resources is something we cannot countenance."

Other smaller pro-independence parties - the Scottish Socialist Party and the Scottish Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition - are also running in the contest.

The by-election is taking place following the removal of former SNP MP Margaret Ferrier in a recall petition earlier this month.

The petition was triggered after Ms Ferrier was suspended from the Commons for breaching Covid lockdown rules in 2020.