FIRST Minister Humza Yousaf says he will not suspend Nicola Sturgeon from the SNP despite calls for him to do so.
The former first minister and SNP leader was arrested and released without charge on Sunday as part of a police investigation into the party's finances.
Yousaf told BBC Scotland he saw "no reason" to suspend her because she had been released without charge.
Sturgeon has said she is "innocent of any wrongdoing" and "innocent beyond doubt" in a statement published after her release.
It comes after former SNP leadership contender Ash Regan said that Sturgeon should "voluntarily" give up her membership of the party while the probe is ongoing.
Humza Yousaf says he won’t suspend Nicola Sturgeon from the SNP. https://t.co/GlXnsVl9oe pic.twitter.com/W3CBqGV3JK
— STV News (@STVNews) June 12, 2023
Both Labour and the Tories insisted that Sturgeon should be suspended from the party as the news broke on Sunday.
Speaking to journalists on Monday, Yousaf was asked if Sturgeon should resign the whip.
"There's no pressure on her to do so from the party or from me as leader of the SNP," he said.
"She has been released without charge and I think it is so important that presumption of innocence is upheld."
Sturgeon was questioned by police on Sunday for seven hours as part of Operation Branchform, the investigation into the SNP's finances.
Speaking to journalists in Inverness on Monday, the FM said that the news of Sturgeon's arrest was “personally quite painful” due to their longstanding friendship.
"I know it's been a difficult day for her and our party, and those who have known Nicola Sturgeon as I have done for the past 15 years," he said.
"I’ve got to separate that out from the role as First Minister, and that role as First Minister makes it incumbent on me that I don’t of course intervene or comment in a live police investigation."
The FM added that he had not spoken to his predecessor since her arrest as it would be inappropriate to discuss the live investigation.
Asked why he was not suspending Sturgeon when other members in the past had been forced to stand down, he said: "I can’t account for decisions that were made before I was leader of the SNP."
He added: "I hope I’ve demonstrated consistency for each of those individuals arrested and released without charge, I’ve said we don’t have to suspend their membership.
"We should let the process of justice, natural justice, take its course."
It comes as Labour and the Tories called on Sturgeon to quit the party, a suggestion backed by some SNP politicians.
Regan, who unsuccesfully ran for the SNP leadership earlier this year, told the BBC that Sturgeon should consider quitting the party.
Meanwhile, SNP MSP Michelle Thomson said she was forced to give up the party whip during an investigation into her property dealings.
"Some eight years ago when an MP, I was required to resign the SNP whip although I was never personally under investigation and was certainly not arrested," Thomson said in a statement, adding that Sturgeon should resign the whip.
This soap-opera has gone far enough, Nicola Sturgeon suspended others from the SNP for an awful lot less! Time for political distance until the investigation ends either way. https://t.co/8tclFmrza0
— Angus B MacNeil MP🇺🇦 (@AngusMacNeilSNP) June 11, 2023
It comes after SNP MP Angus MacNeil appeared to suggest Sturgeon should be suspended to give the party "political distance" from the finance probe.
Elsewhere, SNP MP Chris Law showed support for Sturgeon and insisted she should be allowed to remain in the party.
He tweeted: "I was arrested in 2016 and released without charge regarding Spirit of Independence campaign.
"I had the support of the FM Nicola Sturgeon and I was not suspended from the party. This should be the right course for anyone that is in that position."
The Scottish Tories accused Yousaf of being a "weak leader" by refusing to suspend his predecessor to whom "he owes his job".
Craig Hoy, Scottish Tory party chairman, said that Yousaf's statement he had "no reason" to suspend Sturgeon "is fooling no one".
He added: "He knows, as everyone else does, that there’s a clear precedent in his party for MPs and MSPs under investigation to be suspended until the conclusion of their case.
“And, in this instance, the police probe into the SNP’s murky finances is very much ongoing.
“Several senior SNP figures have already said it’s wrong for Nicola Sturgeon to receive favourable treatment by the party.
“But the reason Humza Yousaf will not follow the precedent – which was set by his predecessor when she was party leader – is because he’s hopelessly compromised by the fact that he only won the leadership election thanks to the backing of Nicola Sturgeon and her inner circle.”
