New calls for Nicola Sturgeon to be suspended from SNP after fundraising leak
Leaked video shows former SNP leader angrily denying any problem with finances
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Your support makes all the difference.SNP leader Humza Yousaf is facing calls to suspend his predecessor Nicola Sturgeon following claims police are investigating attempts to shut down scrutiny of party finances.
Ms Sturgeon blocked plans to hire a fundraising manager for the party when she was leader and first minister despite concerns about transparency, leaked emails appeared to show.
Police Scotland detectives investigating the partyās finances have been handed emails showing Ms Sturgeon quashed the idea of a fundraising manager in June 2021, according to Scotlandās Sunday Mail.
The newspaper also published a video in which Ms Sturgeon told the partyās National Executive Committee (NEC) that there were no problems with the accounts, despite concerns.
Jackie Baillie, Scottish Labourās deputy leader, said Mr Yousaf should suspend both Ms Sturgeon and her husband Peter Murrell while police inquiries continue.
āThis bombshell revelation goes to show just how central Nicola Sturgeon was to the secrecy and culture of cover-up that festered within the SNP,ā said Ms Baillie.
āShe has big questions to answer over her actions and Humza Yousaf must consider suspending her party membership and that of her husband, former chief executive Peter Murrell, until the investigation has been concluded.ā
Extracts from leaked emails appeared to show that a suggestion to hire a fundraising manager was rejected by Ms Sturgeon, with those carrying out a review ordered to remove the idea from their final report.
The suggestion was reportedly made by former SNP treasurer Douglas Chapman and his sucessor Colin Beattie as part of the transparency review.
The leaked footage from an SNP NEC meeting in March 2021 showed Ms Sturgeon giving her top officials a stern warning to be āvery carefulā about suggesting there was āany problemsā with party accounts.
She said: āJust be very careful about suggestions that there are problems with the partyās finances ā¦ There are no reasons for people to be concerned about the partyās finances, and all of us need to be careful about not suggesting that there is.ā
![Nicola Sturgeon speaking to reporters outside her home](https://static.the-independent.com/2023/04/08/16/SEI151298561%20%281%29.jpg)
The latest revelations follow the shock arrest of Ms Sturgeonās husband and the search of the coupleās Lanarkshire home during a police raid. Mr Murrell was later released without charge, as police continue to investigate the partyās finances.
The probe into Ā£660,000 raised specifically for Scottish independence campaigning was launched after it was alleged money had been diverted from a āring-fencedā fund, sparking the exit of several senior people from the SNP.
Mr Yousaf has denied the SNP faces bankruptcy this weekend as he confirmed forensic auditors could be appointed following a meeting of the partyās ruling body.
The Sunday Times reported that the partyās treasurer Mr Beattie told the SNPās NEC meeting on Saturday it is āhaving difficulty in balancing the books due to the reduction in membership and donorsā.
![SNP leader Humza Yousaf insists party ānot close to bankruptcyā](https://static.the-independent.com/2023/04/12/10/e5635f6a9154c8ffa5d237ac024c2764Y29udGVudHNlYXJjaGFwaSwxNjgxMzc2ODc4-2.71643170.jpg)
But the recently-elected SNP leader told reporters: āWeāre not close to bankruptcy. This is something Iāve read in some social media circles but, no, the party is solvent.ā
Mr Yousaf said the party is ādesperateā to appoint new auditors. Last week it emerged he was unaware before becoming leader that the previous auditors resigned more than six months ago.
The SNP leader also said he was not aware about the purchase of a camper van by the party, seized by police, after he became first minister last month.
SNP MP Joanna Cherry, who resigned from the NEC when the fundraising row first emerged, said she had ānever seen business conducted in such an inadequate way as it is on the SNP NECā ā saying its business had been conducted in a āmenacing atmosphereā.
But the SNPās former Westminster leader Ian Blackford said on Sunday that the partyās finances are in ārobust healthā following claims its ruling body was told it is struggling financially.
Mr Blackford told BBC Radio Scotland: āAbsolutely, categorically, the SNP is solvent, the finances are in balance. We will be able to meet our obligations, our liabilities going forward. Everybody knows there has been a dip in SNP membership.ā
An SNP spokesperson said: āYesterday, the SNP National Executive Committee agreed to a series of proposals to increase transparency in the SNP. It is the case that the SNP accounts are published annually and are in order.ā
The Independent has contacted Police Scotland for comment.
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