Nicola Sturgeon’s “arch-loyalists” have turned against the former First Minister as Scottish National Party members claim they have been “taken for fools”.
Sturgeon has come under pressure from furious SNP insiders after footage emerged of the 52-year-old trying to shut down scrutiny of party finances at a National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting in March 2021.
The ex-First Minister was taped telling the NEC that SNP finances had “never been stronger” as she warned colleagues against suggesting there were “any problems” with the party’s war chest.
Sturgeon, who quit last month after a nine-year stint in Bute House, is also facing growing calls to quit Holyrood altogether following the arrest of her husband, the SNP’s former chief executive Peter Murrell.
Nicola Sturgeon's husband Peter Murrell was arrested on April 5 but released pending further investigations
PA
Despite announcing she will steer clear of the Scottish Parliament this week, a senior MSP told The Telegraph that the “radioactive political cloud” could hang over Sturgeon’s successor Humza Yousaf for months.
The MSP instead urged Sturgeon and her allies to put all their cards on the table.
Party insiders have warned the SNP’s financial situation will only worsen unless Sturgeon tackles the matter head on.
They predict members will leave and donors will refuse to cough up cash to Scotland’s largest party amid its ongoing police probe.
Murrell, who tied the knot with Sturgeon in 2010, was arrested on April 5 as the couple’s home was raided during the Police Scotland’s Operation Branchform investigation.
He was released without charge pending further investigations.
Police Scotland has been examining the SNP’s handling of more than £600,000 in donations raised in 2017 for a second independence referendum.
Murrell is also alleged to have lent the SNP £107,620 to tackle so-called “cashflow” issues.
Humza Yousaf defeated Kate Forbes in the race to replace Nicola Sturgeon last month
PA
SNP treasurer Colin Beattie, who was arrested this morning, raised concerns on Saturday about SNP finances amid declining membership, falling donors and rising costs.
He claimed the SNP was “having difficulty in balancing the books”.
The Midlothian North & Musselburgh MSP added: “We need to find money to keep the party going forward or we’ll keep cutting our tail until there’s nothing left.”
An SNP insider slammed Sturgeon over he “unforgivable secrecy”, claiming: “Just about everybody apart from the people at the top have been misled by our leaders.”
Nicola Sturgeon will work as an MSP remotely and has "no intention of stepping down" from Holyrood
PA
“We’ve been taken for fools because none of them have offered us a single word of explanation.
“It’s been total secrecy yet at the same time MPs and MSPs are supposed to give unqualified loyalty.”
The source continued: “Even some of her arch-loyalists are beginning to think, what is going on?”
Yousaf, who defeated Kate Forbes in the race to replace Sturgeon last month, recently insisted the SNP is “solvent”.
The First Minister added: “I wasn’t particularly disturbed at all by the video in the way some of our opponents seem to be.”
A spokesperson for Sturgeon confirmed the ex-SNP leader will participate as an MSP “remotely” but “return to Holyrood in the near future”.
They also claimed the former First Minister had “no intention of stepping down”.
