Cost to Crown Office of SNP finances probe soars, as Peter Murrell case prepared
No date has yet been set for former SNP chief executive Peter Murrell’s next court appearance.
The cost to the Crown Office of the investigation into the SNP's finances has more than doubled in five months as prosecutors prepare their case against Peter Murrell.
Mr Murrell, the former party chief executive and Nicola Sturgeon's estranged husband, was charged with embezzlement in April last year. The 60-year-old made no plea when he appeared at Edinburgh Sheriff Court in March and was granted bail.
Figures show the Crown Office has now spent almost £460,000 on the probe, up from £206,000 in February. The vast majority of this was staffing costs, according to a Freedom of Information request.
A spokesman said: “Resources are being applied to this investigation, which includes an ongoing prosecution, in line with its significance.
“The extensive resourcing of this inquiry demonstrates that it has been taken seriously and that decisions have been based upon evidence not assumptions or external pressure. Prosecutors take decisions independently, free from political influence or external interference, relying on evidence and the law."
The Crown Office said no date had been set for Mr Murrell’s next court appearance.
Mr Murrell was chief executive of the SNP for more than 20 years, and is credited with helping to transform the party into an election-winning machine.
He stood down in 2023 amid a row over membership numbers, just weeks before the police investigation into the SNP - known as Operation Branchform - exploded into the headlines.
Ms Sturgeon announced the pair had split in January this year. “It goes without saying that we still care deeply for each other, and always will,” she wrote in a social media post.
Earlier this month, the Scottish Legal Aid Board confirmed Mr Murrell had been granted legal aid.
"When assessing an applicant's eligibility for legal aid, we look at their financial position at the time of their application," a spokesperson said.
"This includes information they give us about their salary, the amount of money they have in the bank and any investments, which might be available to fund their own defence privately.
"Peter Murrell's application met the tests we have to apply when deciding whether to grant legal aid."
Scottish Labour deputy leader Jackie Baillie said on the legal aid decision: “Taxpayers will be scratching their heads at why they should have to foot the bill for Peter Murrell - a man who has been charged with embezzlement.
“It is also particularly galling that Peter Murrell will be receiving legal aid after the SNP Government has repeatedly ignored warnings about the financial pressures raised by lawyers."
Ms Sturgeon was cleared as a suspect in the police investigation earlier this year. She said there was “never a scrap of evidence that I had done anything wrong”.
“I was confident of reaching this point and getting to this outcome, but there is relief to have that confirmed,” she said at the time.