DUNFERMLINE and West Fife MP Douglas Chapman has announced he will not seek to become an SNP candidate at the next Westminster election.

The politician said serving his constituency for the past eight years had been "the privilege" of his life.

Posting a letter on Twitter, he stated: "This has not been an easy decision for me to reach , however following discussions with my family and close political friends I decided not to seek a nomination to be an SNP candidate at the next Westminster election.

"I wish to thank my local branch members for their committed support over many years. Also, I am very proud of my dedicated staff team who have worked hard to win countless cases on behalf of our constituents and provided a high level of support to the thousands of people in Dunfermline and West Fife who contacted my office."

Mr Chapman, a former Fife councillor, also acknowledged the love and support of his immediate family.

"Without them, standing for parliament and then functionally successfully as an MP would have been more than a difficult challenge," he said. "Above all I would like thank my constituents for the faith they placed in me as their representative in parliament and their help in winning three consecutive elections in 2015, 2017 and again in 2019.

"Serving you and our constituency over the past eight years has been the privilege of my life.

"Finally, this is not about retirement, far from it! I intend to work hard for my constituents for the remainder of this parliament and continue to raise expectations and ambitions in our constituency.

"I will continue to work towards achieving our national mission to see Scotland become a confident, prosperous and happy independent nation and help us "settle up" once and for all."