The Peter Murrell saga has been “agony”, First Minister John Swinney has said.
Mr Swinney spoke to journalists in Holyrood on Tuesday after his party’s former chief executive was sentenced to five years and three months in prison for embezzling more than £400,000 from the SNP’s coffers.
He said he was a “forgiving” person, pointing to his Christian faith, but refused to say if he had or would forgive Mr Murrell – whom he has known for decades.
“Nothing would have given me the sense that this was a likely course of action to take, a likely circumstance to face,” he said.
“You would never have got me speculating that this is something I should have been concerned about.”
He added: “I was not a serving office bearer in the Scottish National Party from 2004 to 2024, so I had no operational right to look at these things.
“But is it distressing? Is it hurtful? Is it agony? Yes, all of those things.
“But part of what I view as my responsibility as leader of the Scottish National Party today is to make sure that the SNP operates with clear and effective governance that protects the interests of the party and that uppermost in my thinking at at all times.”
The sentence, handed down by Lord Young on Tuesday at the High Court in Edinburgh, “recognises the severity and seriousness of the offenses that have been committed against the Scottish National Party”, he told journalists.
The First Minister added: “I welcome the sentence that has been allocated and I hope this provides some answers and some closure for members of the party who will feel deeply let down by the betrayal of trust, as I feel let down by the betrayal of trust by Peter Murrell in this particular case.”
While such a betrayal was “of the greatest of concern” to him, the First Minister said he had put in place “the strongest and highest standards of governance”.
Former first minister Nicola Sturgeon – Murrell’s estranged wife and Mr Swinney’s ex-boss – has come under increasing scrutiny since the extent of the former SNP chief executive’s crimes became known, but Mr Swinney told journalists he accepted she did not know of her husband’s dealings.
The First Minister also addressed the most high profile purchase made by Murrell in his more-than-decade long, spending spree.
“Let me just make it clear – the SNP has no use for a motorhome,” he said.
“But it is part of the £400,000 embezzlement, and that’s what we are trying to secure by the pursuit of the compensation order, which follows the confiscation order of the Crown.”
When news broke about the motorhome, senior SNP sources told journalists it was to be used during the 2021 election, which was held under strict Covid-19 restrictions.
While Mr Swinney said he was not privy to decision-making around its use, but added: “I couldn’t see how that would have a role to play in our campaign efforts.”
In a statement released by the SNP, a spokesperson said the sentence would “offer significant closure” to those who had donated to the party.
But Scottish Labour deputy leader Dame Jackie Baillie said “serious questions” remain unanswered despite the sentencing.
“It is right that Peter Murrell is punished for his crimes, which saw him spend hundreds of thousands of pounds to fund a lavish lifestyle using money donated in good faith by members of the public.
“However, there are still serious questions which remain unanswered about this appalling scandal, such as why Murrell was able to get away with stealing vast sums of money for over a decade and why no-one within the SNP had any curiosity about the state of the party’s finances.
“John Swinney and the SNP have shamelessly tried to sweep this under the carpet by stubbornly refusing to accept that a parliamentary inquiry could help get to the bottom of these issues.
“If they have nothing to hide, they have nothing to fear from an inquiry.”
Scottish Tory leader Russell Findlay hit out at “weak SNP sentencing guidelines”, which would allow Murrell to apply for parole after serving half of his sentence.
While Scottish Lib Dem leader Alex Cole-Hamilton said the saga was “hugely embarrassing” for the SNP, with the First Minister’s refusal to hold an inquiry looking “nakedly self-serving”.
