He Scottish National Party (SNP) is immersed a whirlwind of corruption lawsuits due to funds from the referendum, which aims to achieve Scotland’s independence from the United Kingdom.
Just a week after Prime Minister Nicola Sturgeon unexpectedly stepped down from her post, Peter Murrell, her husband and chief executive of the SNP, was detained by police for 11 hours in April, for the management of the donations collected campaign for a second vote of independence.
He was later released, pending further investigation. This Tuesday was the turn of the Party Treasurer.
the treasurer arrested
The Treasurer of the PNS, Colin Beatty, was arrested as part of the police investigation into party finances. He is an MP, “he is in custody and is being questioned by detectives,” police Scotland said in the morning.
“Today, Tuesday 18 April 2023, a 71-year-old man was arrested on suspicion in connection with the ongoing investigation into the funding and finances of the Scottish National Party. The man is in custody and is being questioned by Police Scotland detectives,” police said.
An SNP spokesman said: “We have no comment on an ongoing police investigation.”
Referendum funds
Beattie served as party treasurer for most of Peter Murrell’s managing directorship, husband of Nicola Sturgeon. He held the position from 2004 until December 2020, until members elected Douglas Chapman, an MP who had pledged to improve transparency.
Beattie was reinstated in the role a few months later in June 2021 after Chapman resigned on the grounds that he had not been given the information he needed to carry out his duties.
Beattie has already tried to explain where did the £600,000 go? (about 750 thousand dollars) in donations, requests for independence referendums that never took place.
The questions about the “missing” money. triggered a police investigation. In 2021, she said the money had remained protected and had been “woven” into accounts.
The Scottish Nationalist Party
The Scottish National Party (SNP), called in Scottish Gaelic: Pàrtaidh Nàiseanta na h It is a Scottish social democratic and nationalist political party.
the PNS supports and campaigns for Scottish independence or the secession of the United Kingdom and the accession of Scotland to the European Union, with a platform based on civic nationalism.
it is the political party largest in Scotland where it has the most seats in the Scottish Parliament and 45 of Scotland’s 59 seats in the House of Commons in Westminster. The current leader of the Scottish National Party is Humza Yousafwho replaced Nicola Sturgeon, following the leadership election on March 27, 2023.
The arrest of Sturgeon’s husband
Murrell, who has been married to Sturgeon since 2010, has served as CEO since 1999. But he resigned last month after accepting blame for the misleading statements what the party did about the number of members.
In February, Nicola Sturgeon shocked the political world when she announced her resignation as First Minister of Scotland and leader of the SNP, prompting a frantic race to succeed herwhich Humza Yousaf won last week.
In line with British rules, a statement from Police Scotland did not identify Nicola Sturgeon’s husband by name, referring only to the arrest of the 58-year-old man. But the British media have identified him.
About 11 hours after the arrest, police said the detained man had been “released without charge, pending further investigation”.
He added that officers had conducted searches of various addresses as part of the investigation. Police and a blue forensic tent were set up at Sturgeon’s home.
They took computers and boxes of paper. They were also at the headquarters of the Independence Party, which dominates Scottish politics, in Edinburgh.
The PNS, in serious trouble
Speaking to the BBC, new leader Yousaf said he could not comment on a police investigation. But he was told of the arrest «this morning after the fact. Obviously my reaction, as you can imagine, as anyone involved with the SNP, is that it is a difficult day for the party”.
In a statement following news of the arrest, the SNP said: “Clearly it would not be appropriate to comment on any ongoing police investigation. But the SNP has fully cooperated with this investigation and will continue to do so.” Sturgeon has not been charged with wrongdoing.
Nicola Sturgeon was a popular figure and effective communicator as First Minister of Scotland. His departure dealt a major blow to the SNP. She was an outspoken supporter of Scottish independence. Her decision to step aside created an opportunity for the SNP’s political rivals, especially the Labor Party.
Murrell’s arrest was another setback for the SNP, just as Yousaf is settling into his new job as party leader.
Operation Branchform
The police investigation into the party’s finances, codenamed Operation Branchform, began in 2021. It reportedly followed up on complaints about the handling of around $750,000 in donations raised to campaign for a Scottish independence ballot.
Authorities are believed to be investigating whether the money allocated to fight for another referendum diverted for a different purpose.
In the 2014 referendum, Scots voted 55% to 45% against independence.
During a meeting of the ruling National Executive Committee over the weekend, Beattie would have sounded a dire warning about the state of finances of the party, due to increased legal fees, declining membership and declining donations.
He said the party was “struggling to balance the books”.
They are calling for the resignation of Nicolas Sturgeon
Nicola Sturgeon’s “arch-loyalists” turn against her over an “unforgivable secret”. The former SNP leader has become a “radioactive political cloud” over Humza Yousaf after filming his attempt to shut down control over finances. They ask you to resign.
In the SNP they begin to turn against him for his “unforgivable” secret about the party’s financial crisis.
Members were furious that the former prime minister might have ‘fooled’ them, after a video leaked in a British tabloid showed her trying to close the SNP finance controlat a March 2021 meeting of its National Executive Committee (NEC).
Some of her staunchest supporters were now wondering ‘what’s going on’ amid growing speculation that she might resign her Holyrood seat, following the arrest of her husband Peter Murrell, the party’s former chief executive.
Sturgeon announced it I will stay away from Holyroodthe Scottish Parliament this week.
The scandal it will force donors to abandon their donations to the SNP. They won’t be willing to hand over their money to a party affected by the scandal being investigated by law enforcement.
Sturgeon’s spokesman said he had “no intention of stepping down”. Faced with recent competition for the SNP leadership, he insisted there was no reason to suspend Sturgeon from the party or resign from Holyrood.
She said she wasn’t “bothered” by the leaked video and even hinted that she was being criticized for Murrell’s alleged actions.
match against
But experts said the party mood was starting to turn against her, after footage showed her telling the NEC that SNP finances “they’ve never been stronger”. They warned their colleagues not to imply there were “problems” with cash.
Within weeks Murrell loaned the party £107,620 to address what the SNP had previously said cash flow problems and a police investigation into alleged fraud was launched.
Finance under the magnifying glass
Since July 2021, Police Scotland has been looking into the SNP’s handling of SNP over £600,000 in donations, gathered in 2017 for a second independence referendum.
Supporters complained when accounts filed at Companies House in 2020 appeared to show SNP I only had £97,000 in the bank, even though the referendum never took place.
Scottish leader Ian Blackford says the former prime minister ‘should definitely not’ be suspended amid police investigations into party funding.
Nicholas Sturgeon “he didn’t do anything wrong” privately seeking to shut down control of the SNP’s finances, the close ally said, as he fights to save his political career.
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Source: Clarin
Mary Ortiz is a seasoned journalist with a passion for world events. As a writer for News Rebeat, she brings a fresh perspective to the latest global happenings and provides in-depth coverage that offers a deeper understanding of the world around us.