Angus Robertson accused of 'throwing civil servant under bus' over Historic Scotland scandal

The Culture Secretary said officials failed to pass on an invitation to attend a board meeting of the crisis-hit quango because they were seeking to address “a number of sensitive matters”, including a probe into the conduct of its former chair, Dr Hugh Hall.

Critics said Mr Robertson had been “asleep on the job while the toxic work culture and malpractices of senior executives took root” at HES.

Mr Robertson previously told a Holyrood committee he had not been invited to attend a board meeting of the heritage quango, which has been mired in allegations of malpractice by senior officials, including claims a senior leader was sanctioned after “twerking” in front of actor Martin Compston.

READ MORE: SNP minister Angus Robertson denies misleading Parliament over Historic Environment Scotland scandal

However, a leaked email published in The Herald over the weekend showed former HES chair Dr Hall wrote to the most senior civil servant in Mr Robertson's department in August to invite the Culture Secretary to a full board meeting.

"I remain puzzled that I have not had a meeting with the Cabinet Secretary since he took on responsibility for HES early last year,” Dr Hall wrote. He resigned as HES chair on September 5 and was replaced by Sir Mark Jones later that month.

Speaking in Holyrood, Mr Robertson said: “I was not aware of any such invitation when I attended the committee last week.

“Senior officials have now confirmed they had not advised me of the request from the former chair as they were seeking to address a number of sensitive matters at Historic Environment Scotland prior to providing me with advice.

“Perhaps the most pressing sensitivity was that included in the ongoing investigations at Historic Environment Scotland was one into the conduct of the former chair, Dr Hugh Hall. Subsequent to his request, Dr Hall then indicated his resignation to the Scottish Government some months prior to the end of his term.

“This brought the investigation into his conduct to an end, and as a result, his request to meet the board was superseded.”

Mr Robertson said officials did not pass on the invitation to “protect the independence of the investigation”.

He added: “I’ve asked officials why they did not share the information with me, and while I understand their reasoning, I’ve been very clear that going forward I am to be kept informed of any such requests in a timely fashion.”

The Scotsman understands the first of two complaints - a Scottish Government investigation - was dropped after an under-fire Dr Hall stepped down as chair in September, months after being told he would not be welcome back for a second term.

However, an investigation by the Ethical Standards Commissioner is still ongoing. As many as seven areas of concern are being looked into, including expenses claims, misuse of company property and conflicts of interest.

An insider told The Scotsman: "Clearly it would have been much more straightforward had the Cabinet Secretary met with the board, but he would have been crazy to do so at the same time as two live investigations into the conduct of the-then chair.

"It's telling that Mr Hall then suddenly resigned before he was shown the door. Thankfully Mr Robertson has now met with the new chair and speaks very highly of him. Hopefully that is a sign of things to come."

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Scottish Conservative MSP Stephen Kerr said: “The Ministerial Code states that accurate and truthful information must be given to Parliament, and any errors corrected at the earliest opportunity.

“Thanks to courageous whistleblowers, we know that Angus Robertson failed in that duty when he told the culture committee last week that he’d never been invited to a board meeting of HES.

“Now he’s shamefully throwing a civil servant under the bus, instead of taking responsibility for his own failings.

“Angus Robertson’s handling of the HES scandal has been hopelessly complacent from the outset. He was asleep on the job while the toxic work culture and malpractices of senior executives took root. And, if his own excuse is to be believed, he doesn’t even know what’s going on in his own office.

“This whole shabby affair has left Angus Robertson’s reputation in tatters.”

In May, Mr Robertson instructed senior civil servants to contact Dr Hall and inform him that ministers would be attending all board meetings and private meetings.

Under the Historic Environment Scotland Act 2014, Scottish ministers have the power to authorise people who have not been appointed to the HES board to attend board meetings. Dr Hall was informed the government would be exercising that right and told to provide all board papers to be provided to civil servants.

The former chair was told the decision had been taken due to a “serious complaint” made about his conduct and a failure to reassure the government that he and his board members would be undertaking additional training.

HES has been awash with allegations of inappropriate behaviour by senior members of staff accused of bullying, racism and sexual misconduct. Issues of financial irregularity are also under investigation at the quango, which receives £74 million of public money each year.

Dr Hall, a former managing director of audit services at Audit Scotland and ex-chair of Colleges Scotland, was appointed to his role at HES in 2022.

His tenure was due to end in January 2026, but he resigned early from his role on September 5 this year after the Scottish Government confirmed he would not be welcome back for a second term.

Meanwhile, HES chief executive Katerina Brown became absent from work just months after starting and is believed to have been suspended. She has returned to work in a reduced capacity to interrogate and sign off the organisation’s annual accounts.