Candidates to succeed Nicola Sturgeon will not be allowed to spend more than £5,000 on their leadership campaigns, according to leaked rules obtained by The Herald.

The strict conditions also limit the size of any donation taken by a candidate to just £50 per donor.

The rules also set out the conduct expected, with the three vying to be the next first minister told they must not “engage in any form of trickery or deception.”

Meanwhile, staff at the party’s HQ are forbidden from acting in a way “which would call into question their impartiality.”

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Kate Forbes, Ash Regan and Humza Yousaf were confirmed as candidates for the leadership yesterday, with all winning enough nominations from party members to secure a place on the ballot.

The three had to secure the backing of at least 100 members from a minimum of 20 local branches by noon on Friday.

The Party Leader Election rules state that the “maximum permitted expenditure” of £5,000 runs from the opening of nominations at 23:59 on 15 February to the close at poll at noon on 27 March 2023.

All the campaigns will need to submit a “statement of expenditure” including details of all website design and hosting costs, video production, copywriting, social media advertising, printed materials, other advertising, hustings,  and “other expenditure.” 

Given the timescales involved in the contest and the fact that they need to reach over 100,000 voters, £5,000 will likely be a very tight budget. 

Some candidates have already hired staff to work on their campaigns. 

On donations, candidates can only accept them “from individuals who are members eligible to vote in the election.” 

The SNP copy the rules used in the Scottish Parliament elections, with “property, goods, services etc provided free of charge or at a discount” all counting as a form of donation.

Section four of the rules focuses on campaigning and tells candidates that they should not "make or publish any false statement of fact in relation to another candidate's character or conduct."

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It also warns them against offering money "or any other advantage to any member of organisation as an incentive to support their campaign."

No bully-boy tactics are allowed, with the hopefuls told not to "improperly pressurise any member in relation to their vote in elections."

The rules then go on to say no candidate may "engage in any form of trickery of deception" or "otherwise act in a way which impedes the free choice of members in the election."

The document seen by The Herald is pretty clear, that the rules do not just apply to the candidates but also to members of their campaign team. 

On “organisational neutrality,” no resources of the party "including membership data may be used or made available to any candidate seeking election.” 

Also, no member is allowed to use a party email “to seek to influence the votes of members in the election.” 

While staff at the SNP’s HQ “must not act or be asked to act in a way which would call into question their impartiality.” 

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And parliamentarians and councillors must “ensure that neither they nor their staff use parliamentary or council resources for campaigning.”

They are also warned against acting in a way “which impedes the free choice of members in the election" or doing anything to “improperly pressurise any member in relation to their vote in the elections”

The party say these rules also apply to their campaign teams.