Former SNP chief executive, Nicola Sturgeon’s husband Peter Murrell, has been arrested in connection with the ongoing investigation into the funding and finances of the party.
Police Scotland said a 58-year-old man – understood to be Mr Murrell – is in custody and is being questioned by detectives as officers also carried out searches at a number of addresses as part of the investigation.
Police were seen cordoning off the South Lanarkshire home of Ms Sturgeon and Mr Murrell on Wednesday morning. A blue police tent was set up in the driveway as detectives searched the property.
Ms Sturgeon is under pressure to reveal if she knew about an impending arrest before her shock resignation in February, citing the pressures of almost a decade in the job.
Police Scotland have been probing £660,000 raised by the SNP for Scottish independence campaigning after allegations of donations fraud – an inquiry codenamed Operation Branchform.
The probe was launched in 2021 after it was alleged money had been diverted from a “ring-fenced” fund to fight a second Scottish independence referendum – sparking the resignation of several senior people from the SNP ruling body.
A Police Scotland statement said: “A 58-year-old man has today, Wednesday, 5 April 2023, been arrested as a suspect in connection with the ongoing investigation into the funding and finances of the Scottish National Party.”
It added: “The man is in custody and is being questioned by Police Scotland detectives. Officers are also carrying out searches at a number of addresses as part of the investigation … As the investigation is ongoing we are unable to comment further.”
Officers stand beside by police tape outside Nicola Sturgeon’s home
Ms Sturgeon is under pressure to say if she knew about a possible arrest when she quit in February. Grilled about the police probe last month, Ms Sturgeon indicated she had not been interviewed by police.
Asked if she had heard about a police interview, she told Sky News: “No. I wouldn’t comment on any ongoing police investigation and I am not going to comment on this one.”
But senior SNP figures were reportedly interviewed by police detectives in the days before she announced her exit amid the ongoing probe.
Former treasurer Douglas Chapman was among those interviewed in connection with the probe into claims of “missing” ring-fenced cash shortly before Ms Sturgeon’s resignation announcement, according to Scotland’s Sunday Mail.
It emerged in December that Mr Murrell had given a personal loan of £107,000 to the SNP in June 2021. His loan was aimed at helping the SNP out with a “cash flow” issue after the last Holyrood election, the party said.
The loan came the day after a SNP leadership meeting discussed the funding being looked at by Police Scotland, according to The Herald.
Nicola Sturgeon and Peter Murrell
Recently-elect SNP leader and first minister Humza Yousaf said he first became aware of the arrest after it happened, as he admitted events were “not great” for trust in his party – describing it as a “difficult day”.
Asked if the investigation was the real reason Ms Sturgeon resigned, Mr Yousaf said: “Nicola’s legacy stands on its own … I believe her very much when she says how exhausted she was. So, no, I don’t think this is the reason why Nicola Sturgeon stood down.”
Asked if the arrest would hurt the SNP in the polls or at a potential by-election, he said: “It certainly doesn’t do us any good … There will be some concerns. Our party membership will have concerns too. What I can commit to as party leader is that we want to be absolutely transparent.”
Scottish Labour’s deputy leader Jackie Baillie said the arrest was a “deeply concerning development”. She added: “We need Humza Yousaf and Nicola Sturgeon to urgently state what they knew and when.”
Peter Murrell (left) greets Queen Elizabeth II in 2017
Mr Murrell resigned from his top job last month amid a row over transparency about party membership numbers. SNP media chief Murray Foote quit after journalists were misled about the true figures, for which Mr Murrell took responsibility.
Mr Yousaf had defended Mr Murrell at the time of his departure. “I don’t know why somebody would demand getting rid of somebody who’s been the chief executive of the party, who’s won countless elections in the last few years,” he said.
Scottish Tory MSP Donald Cameron also said Ms Sturgeon and Mr Yousaf “must cooperate fully with the investigation into this very serious case and commit to openness and transparency”.
The SNP released a statement following Mr Murrell’s arrest. “Clearly it would not be appropriate to comment on any live police investigation but the SNP have been co-operating fully with this investigation and will continue to do so,” it said.
It added: “At its meeting on Saturday, the governing body of the SNP, the NEC, agreed to a review of governance and transparency – that will be taken forward in the coming weeks.”
It comes as new polling shows Labour has slashed the SNP lead for the next general election to five points. If there was a general election, 36 per cent said they would vote for the SNP and 31 per cent said they would vote for Labour, the Redfield-Wilton survey found.
A week after entering office as first minister, Mr Yousaf’s first approval rating among Scottish voters is minus 7 percent. The polling also showed a 6 per cent lead for No if Scotland was to hold another independence referendum.
