9.—(1) Subject to paragraph (3) a person shall not be validly nominated as a candidate for return as a constituency member unless that person’s consent to nomination—
(a)is given and dated in writing on, or within one month before, the day fixed as the last day for the delivery of constituency nomination papers;
(b)is attested by one witness; and
(c)is delivered at the place, and within the time, for the delivery of constituency nomination papers.
(2) Subject to paragraph (3), a person shall not be validly nominated as an individual candidate for return as a regional member or as a candidate on a registered party’s regional list unless that person’s consent to nomination—
(a)is given and dated in writing on, or within one month before, the day fixed as the last day for the delivery of individual nomination papers and regional lists;
(b)is attested by one witness; and
(c)is delivered at the place or a place, and within the time, for the delivery of individual nomination papers and regional lists.
(3) If the appropriate returning officer is satisfied that, owing to the absence of a person (“P”) from the United Kingdom it has not been reasonably practicable for P’s consent in writing to be given as mentioned above, a facsimile communication (or any similar means of communication) consenting to P’s nomination and purporting to have been sent by P shall be deemed for the purposes of this rule to be consent in writing given by P on the day on which it purports to have been sent, and attestation of P’s consent shall not be required.
(4) The consent of a candidate (“Q”) given under this rule—
(a)shall state the day, month and year of Q’s birth; and
(b)shall state—
(i)that Q is aware of the provisions of sections 15 to 18 of the 1998 Act(1) and of any Order in Council made under section 15 of that Act;
(ii)that to the best of Q’s knowledge and belief Q is not disqualified from being a member of the Scottish Parliament;
(iii)in the case of a candidate for return as a constituency member, that Q is aware of the provisions of sections 5(2) and 9(6) of the 1998 Act and that, to the best of Q’s knowledge and belief, Q may stand as a candidate to be a member for that constituency;
(iv)in the case of a candidate on a registered party’s regional list, that Q is aware of the provisions of section 5(7) of the 1998 Act and that, to the best of Q’s knowledge and belief, Q may be included in that list;
(v)in the case of an individual candidate for return as a regional member, that Q is aware of the terms of section 5(8) of the 1998 Act and, to the best of Q’s knowledge and belief, Q may stand as an individual candidate to be a regional member for that region.
Section 15 was amended by the Constitutional Reform Act 2005 (c.4), Schedule 18, Part 5. Section 16 was amended by the House of Commons (Removal of Clergy Disqualification) Act 2001 (c.13), Schedule 1, paragraph 4 and by the 2006 Act, Schedule 1, paragraph 45.