The Scottish Conservatives have renewed calls for the Crown Office to publish the reasons why no charges were brought against former First Minister Nicola Sturgeon in relation to Operation Branchform following the conclusion of criminal proceedings against Peter Murrell earlier this week.
Murrell, the former chief executive of the SNP and Sturgeon’s estranged husband, pleaded guilty on Monday to embezzling more than £400,000 from party funds.
Following that development, the Conservatives say the previous justification for withholding information about prosecutorial decisions no longer applies.
The party has pointed to a Freedom of Information response it received from the Crown Office last year in which officials declined to explain why Sturgeon had not been prosecuted on the basis that criminal proceedings were still active.
Scottish Conservative leader Russell Findlay now argues that greater transparency is needed following the conclusion of the case against Murrell.
The issue was raised in the Scottish Parliament after First Minister John Swinney rejected calls for the Government to intervene or compel publication of the Crown Office reasoning.
The Conservatives claim public confidence in Scotland’s justice system has been damaged by the wider controversy surrounding Operation Branchform and the political fallout connected to the investigation.
Findlay said:
“Faith in the integrity of Scotland’s justice system has been shattered by this epic SNP scandal which reaches into the heart of government.”
“Senior SNP figures publicly tried to exert undue influence on Police Scotland so was there any other meddling behind the scenes?
“And the Lord Advocate, appointed by Nicola Sturgeon, was passing sensitive information to John Swinney while the public was kept in the dark.”
The party says the Lord Advocate should now disclose both the rationale behind the decision not to prosecute Sturgeon and whether Police Scotland agreed with that conclusion.
Questions have also been raised by the Conservatives around the timing of Murrell’s guilty plea, which came shortly after the Scottish Parliament election.
“The Lord Advocate has a duty to publish the reasons why only one person was prosecuted and whether Police Scotland agreed with that decision.
“An explanation should also be provided about the timing of this case which spanned five years yet ended with a guilty plea just after the election, to the SNP’s clear advantage.”
Neither the Crown Office nor the Scottish Government has indicated any change in position regarding publication of prosecutorial reasoning.
The wider political and constitutional fallout from Operation Branchform continues to dominate debate at Holyrood following Murrell’s conviction earlier this week.
