Nicola Sturgeon and John Swinney accused of giving Peter Murrell 'licence to steal'
John Swinney has doubled down on his opposition to a Holyrood inquiry into the SNP’s finances
John Swinney and Nicola Sturgeon have ben accused to “enabling” Peter Murrell to embezzle £400,000 of SNP funds - amid a claim the duo handed him a “shield of protection”.
The accusation, made at the first FMQs session after the Holyrood election, comes after Murrell pleaded guilty at the High Court in Edinburgh to embezzling more than £400,000 of party funds.
Mr Swinney, visibly irate at FMQs, repeated his opposition to a parliamentary inquiry to examine the governance of the SNP’s finances.
Speaking at FMQs, Scottish Conservative leader Russell Findlay, told MSPs that “the Peter Murrell scandal isn’t just about the SNP’s toxic, internal culture”.
“This goes to the heart of government and Scotland’s justice system”, he added.
Mr Findlay said: “John Swinney and Nicola Sturgeon didn’t stop Peter Murrell. They enabled him. Sturgeon warned SNP members to stop asking difficult questions and John Swinney assured everyone that their finances were sound.
“Their shield of protection gave Murrell a licence to steal. People want to know why Nicola Sturgeon wasn’t in the dock beside her husband.”
Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar added that “questions remain about the deeper culture that allowed him to commit and think he could get away with his crimes”.
He added that it was “a culture that has been a hallmark not just of how they run their party but also how they govern the country”.
Mr Sarwar accused the SNP of overseeing a culture where the “public are not told the truth” alongside “a sick and twisted belief that the cause is bigger than anything”.
In response, Mr Swinney said: “I am appalled by the conduct of Peter Murrell.”
READ MORE: Westminster should hold Peter Murrell SNP embezzlement inquiry if Holyrood doesn't, say MPs
He stressed that Police Scotland have acknowledged a “lengthy and extremely complex case due to the scale of criminality”.
Mr Sarwar accused the SNP leader of an “arrogant disposition” that he claimed has “destroyed so many people’s lives in his own political party”.
He added: “This is a culture he helped, build, enable and defend.
“Secrecy and cover-up go far beyond one individual or one case. At its heart is an SNP culture where secrecy became normal, dissent dangerous and people learned that speaking out carried a heavy price.
“Those at the top of the SNP machine operated without scrutiny.”
Asked by the Scottish Labour leader if he will back a parliamentary inquiry, Mr Swinney said: “No, I won’t back a parliamentary inquiry on this issue.
“We have just had a police investigation that has gone on for five years.
“That police investigation has identified criminality as the source of this particular issue.
“I don’t think there is anything a parliamentary inquiry can add to a five-year forensic police investigation.”
But Mr Sarwar stressed that a Holyrood inquiry “is not to look into the criminality”.
He said: “This inquiry is to look at the culture, the process and decision-making and lessons for the future. It’s to answer the many questions that the public has.
“That requires light and transparency - not the usual John Swinney and SNP playbook to shut down or deflect.
“We’ve seen the dangerous outcomes of this culture - victims who reported the abuse by Patrick Grady threatened with legal and disciplinary action. SNP officials bullied and forced out by a first minister for trying to reveal Murrell’s crimes.”
Mr Sarwar claimed the SNP culture “puts victims last as if they are a threat to the cause”.
He added: “He has a choice. Will be back a parliamentary inquiry or will be double down on protecting a culture that he helped build that enabled a man that he appointed to embezzle more than £400,000.”
In response, Mr Swinney said: “There is one person and one person alone who is responsible for the embezzlement of my party’s funds and that’s Peter Murrell.
“People in glass houses should not throw stones. He knows that the Labour party is up to its neck in difficulty - whether it’s about live criminal cases that involve former members of this parliament or whether it’s Peter Mandelson and his influence over the Labour government. Anas Sarwar hasn’t got a leg to stand on in taking me to task.”