The auditors to the pro-independence Scottish National Party have resigned amid a police investigation into its finances, deepening questions about SNP governance as Scotland’s dominant political force reels from a highly divisive leadership contest.
A person familiar with the situation said auditors Johnston Carmichael resigned before police on Wednesday arrested former SNP chief executive Peter Murrell, the husband of ex-first minister Nicola Sturgeon, as a suspect in an “ongoing investigation into the party’s funding and finances”.
Murrell was released without charge pending further investigation after more than 11 hours in police custody.
His arrest came less than two weeks after Humza Yousaf succeeded Sturgeon as first minister and SNP leader following a party leadership contest in which he was strongly criticised by rival candidates over his record in government.
The contest also featured criticism of the way Sturgeon and Murrell ran the SNP. Yousaf has promised more accountability and transparency.
Scottish police launched an investigation into the SNP’s finances in 2021 after complaints from donors who claimed money given to the party during special independence referendum fundraising appeals in 2017 and 2019 had been spent on other things.
The SNP has said all its activities are dedicated to the cause of independence.
The party has also faced questions about a £107,620 loan Murrell made to the SNP in 2021 “for working capital purposes”.
The loan was not declared by the SNP to the Electoral Commission until more than a year later, in a breach of election finance rules. The party has said it has been co-operating fully with the police investigation.
The SNP said on Friday Johnston Carmichael had told the party it was resigning “following a review of our client portfolio and existing resources and commitments”.
The party added its national treasurer was “undertaking a tendering process for alternative provision”.
The SNP declined to comment on when Johnston Carmichael resigned, whether they had given any other reasons for quitting, whether any problems had been identified in the party’s accounts or whether it would be able to file its financial statements for 2022 to the Electoral Commission on time.
Asked about its decision to resign, Johnston Carmichael said: “As a regulated organisation, we adhere to our obligations on client confidentiality and do not discuss client business.”
Yousaf said on Thursday that he respected Sturgeon and Murrell, but added that it was “pretty obvious” there had been a lack of financial accountability by the SNP.
“Whatever else transpires in this case, it is very, very clear that the governance of the party was not as it should be,” added Yousaf.
Murrell, who had been SNP chief executive since 1999 and married Sturgeon in 2010, resigned during last month’s party leadership contest. The SNP admitted it had 30,000 fewer members than it had previously claimed.
Yousaf told journalists on Thursday the appointment of a new party chief executive would made through an “open process” and would be an opportunity for change in the SNP.
The opposition Scottish Conservatives said the auditors’ resignation raised “further questions about the increasingly murky picture surrounding the SNP’s finances”.
“The public are sick of the SNP shrouding matters relating to their finances behind a wall of secrecy, and senior figures — including Humza Yousaf and Nicola Sturgeon — must be upfront about this situation,” said Donald Cameron, Tory constitution spokesperson.
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