Police Scotland have confirmed the arrest of a 52-year-old woman on Sunday as part of Operation Branchform.
Most media outlets are reporting that it is Nicola Sturgeon MSP, the former First Minister who has been arrested, apparently at a police station. This suggests that Ms Sturgeon knew an arrest was imminent and did not want the spectacle of being arrested at her home, as her husband Peter Murrell, former Chief Executive of the SNP was a few weeks ago.
The former Treasurer of the SNP, Midlothian MSP, Colin Beattie was also arrested at home. Both men were released later without charge.
A spokesperson said that Ms Sturgeon was cooperating with the investigation.
Scottish Conservative Chairman Craig Hoy MSP, said: “Nicola Sturgeon and other senior SNP figures – including Humza Yousaf – must cooperate fully with this police investigation and commit to full transparency surrounding it.
“The SNP continue to be engulfed in murkiness and chaos. Humza Yousaf must now show some leadership and suspend his predecessor from the SNP.
“The SNP set that precedent when politicians such as Michelle Thomson and Natalie McGarry were under investigation and must do so again here.
“This extremely serious matter is continuing to escalate and the result is that the SNP are totally distracted at the worst possible time. This is the time they should be focused on the real priorities facing the people of Scotland, such as the cost-of-living crisis, fixing our NHS and strengthening our economy.”
Shadow Secretary of State for Scotland Ian Murray MP said: “This is a deeply concerning development and the Police Scotland investigation must be allowed to proceed without interference.
“For too long, a culture of secrecy and cover-up has been allowed to fester at the heart of the SNP.
“The same culture that leads to police tents in front gardens created the deeply dysfunctional government that is currently failing Scots.
“Humza Yousaf must urgently come clean on what he knows – the people of Scotland deserve answers.”
Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Alex Cole-Hamilton said: “Obviously we can’t comment on a live police investigation and justice must be allowed to take its course.
“It’s fair to say that today’s events will have huge ramifications both for the SNP and the future of Scottish politics.”
Founding Editor of The Edinburgh Reporter.
Edinburgh-born multimedia journalist and iPhoneographer.
