The SNP thread

[~ True Legend ~]

Peter Murrell is being investigated over inflation of the SNP membership numbers, failing to account for the numerous resignations. Peter Murrell, husband of Nicola Sturgeon resigned recently. Now during the police probe into Peter Murrell's reporting, auditors have resigned.

SNP auditors quit amid Peter Murrell police investigation

The BBC understands the accountants resigned before the former SNP chief was arrested this week.

www.bbc.co.uk

Mr Murrell, who has been married to Ms Sturgeon since 2010, resigned last month after taking responsibility for misleading statements about a fall in party membership.
Last year it emerged that he gave a loan of more than £100,000 to the SNP to help it out with a "cash flow" issue after the last election.

The party had repaid about half of the money by October of that year.

At the time an SNP spokesman said the loan was a "personal contribution made by the chief executive to assist with cash flow after the Holyrood election".
He said it had been reported in the party's 2021 accounts.

Weeks earlier, MP Douglas Chapman had resigned as party treasurer saying he had not been given the "financial information" to do the job.

The SNP is required to prepare financial statements in accordance with the Political Parties, Elections and Referendum Act 2000. It has until 7 July to present their accounts to the Electoral Commission.

If there is no report and no reasonable excuse, the commission has the power to appoint its own firm of auditors.

 

[~ True Legend ~]

The SNP "will be in trouble" unless the leadership takes "decisive action" on its internal affairs, former leadership candidate Kate Forbes has warned.

SNP will be in trouble without action, says Kate Forbes

The former leadership candidate tells the BBC voters are watching the SNP "with astonishment" .

www.bbc.co.uk

Since the shock resignation of Nicola Sturgeon as party leader and Scotland's first minister in February, the SNP has descended into turmoil.

The subsequent leadership race exposed deep divisions in the party, and midway through the contest Peter Murrell, Ms Sturgeon's husband, stepped down as chief executive after the party misled the media about membership numbers.

Mr Murrell was arrested earlier this month as part of a police investigation into the SNP's finances. On Tuesday, SNP treasurer Colin Beattie was also arrested in relation to the same investigation. Both men were released without charge pending further investigation.

I bet the SNP will lose the next general election.

Ms Forbes told the programme: "I think we need decisive action or we will be in trouble.

"People are watching with astonishment but they want to see the leadership dealing with it and resolving it."
She added: "Right now with questions over integrity, trust, transparency - I think voters are watching extremely carefully."

Looking ahead to the next general election - expected to take place in 2024 - she said people would vote on "the basis of how we have sorted out our internal problems - even more than that how we govern".

"There is still time to sort it out. But I said throughout the campaign, I'm afraid I'm going to say it now: Continuity won't cut it."

Such a divided party.

Despite calls for unity, Ms Forbes left the cabinet in Humza Yousaf's reshuffle.

At the time, the deputy first minister Shona Robison suggested this was for a better work life balance.

But Ms Forbes said: "The primary reason that I didn't take the job was because I couldn't do positions that I'd taken during the campaign.
"Having made much of integrity - I think it was important to be able to hold to those positions.
"I know how important it is within cabinet to work together and support the decisions made."

Ms Forbes did not rule out running for the leadership again in the future but said it was "highly unlikely".

There's a but to this.

She also said she would be a loyal backbencher to Mr Yousaf

 

[Heatman]

All I can say in this situation is that there's a big fire on the mountain and everyone is trying so hard not to get caught up and get burnt hence why they are resigning.