SNP MP Amy Callaghan steps up call for proxy voting at Westminster

But the member for East Dunbartonshire is also frustrated she had to defy doctors’ advice in order to attend Westminster and represent her constituents.

She is campaigning for the Commons to improve accessibility for those with health conditions, including having proxy voting – which was made available during the pandemic.

The MP met with House of Commons leader Mark Spencer to press for change during her London trip.

READ MORE: Congratulations pour in for SNP MP Amy Callaghan who announces her engagement

She told the Sunday National: “I am not getting my hopes up too much, given how long it has taken to get to this stage, but certainly it was a much more interesting conversation than I was expecting it to be.

“I think that making politics more accessible is something we should all be trying to achieve.

“If that’s the legacy I could leave at Westminster, then I would leave happy the day I walk out of those doors for good.”

Callaghan’s trip to Westminster was the first in two years after she had a stroke in June 2020 at the age of just 28.

She described the buildings of Westminster as “completely antiquated” and not designed for people with accessibility needs, with winding staircases and long corridors.

“I would say it probably took me a couple of days to get back to normal [after the trip],” she said.

“But that is the nature of it – I am going to have to keep defying my doctor’s orders and doing this until Westminster decides to adapt and hopefully makes a change.

“It is an absolute farce that they have not decided to do that so far.”

During the height of Covid, the House of Commons did change the way it conducted business – including remote participation and proxy voting, where an MP nominates another to vote on their behalf.

Callaghan said this had eliminated a lot of stress she had felt over not being able to participate while she was in hospital. She also said while the majority of her constituents have been incredibly understanding of her situation, she experienced an increase in abuse when she wasn’t able to vote.

“I think we all know abuse on Twitter is a reality for a vast majority of elected members, and it certainly increased when I hadn’t been voting,” she said.

That is why, she argued, the alternative system of “pairing” doesn’t work. This informal arrangement between two MPs from opposing parties not to vote allows one to be absent without affecting the result – but is not included in voting records.

Callaghan also emphasised her campaign for proxy voting is focused around the wider need to improve diversity in parliament.

There should be around 136 disabled MPs to reflect the makeup of the wider population, according to a report last year from the Disability Rights Group – instead there are currently just five who are open about having a disability.

Callaghan said: “I want to see changes in Westminster for the better and for it to become more accessible for people with disabilities and health conditions.

“It can provide me with a place to hang my sword, but no opportunity to embrace technology so I can vote from home or actually take part at this moment in time. It is ridiculous.”

She added: “It was in place all during the pandemic – if I was asking for this several years ago it would still have been a very important issue, but very different in terms of the amount of money that would be having to be spent.

“Right now it is literally just pressing a button to reinstate technology that already exists.”

Voting by proxy is available for MPs on parental leave, and the Commons’ Procedure Committee is looking at whether this should be extended to other grounds like long-term illness.

Callaghan, who gave evidence to the inquiry last year, said: “It was supposed to be a short three-month long inquiry and we are now at five or six months down the line and there has been no movement on it.”

Back in her East Dunbartonshire constituency, with Covid restrictions easing and her health improved, Callaghan is getting out to meet with her constituents, which she says is the most enjoyable part of the job.

She is still dealing with the recovery process – made even more traumatic due to Covid restrictions.

“It was awful, I can’t pretend otherwise – I saw my family through a window for four months whilst I was in hospital,” she said. “There was only a very short time where visiting was allowed. It doesn’t make recovery easy and you still feel it now.”

READ MORE: Amy Callaghan returns to Westminster as she blasts 'antiquated' voting rules

It is this very personal experience of lockdown which has left her – like so many across the country – seething at the recent revelations about parties in Downing Street during restrictions.

“I was absolutely furious – I can’t actually put into words how I felt about it,” she said.

“I was lying in hospital for a month on my own while Boris Johnson was being ‘ambushed by cake’.

“What can you say about that, how can you put it into words?”