Former Scottish independence leader Nicola Sturgeon, who resigned as Prime Minister in February, was arrested on Sunday in connection with an investigation into the finances of her political party, the SNP, police and officials said. British media.
This arrest is a new blow to the Scottish national party, the SNP, weakened since the surprise departure of its charismatic leader, who remained in power for eight years.
“A 52-year-old woman was arrested today, Sunday June 11, 2023, as a suspect in the ongoing investigation into the funding and finances of the Scottish National Party,” Police Scotland said. According to the British media, including the BBC and the PA agency, it is Nicola Sturgeon.
“The woman has been taken into custody and is being questioned by” the Scottish police, added this one.
According to a spokeswoman for Nicola Sturgeon, quoted by PA, the former leader went voluntarily to an interview with the police, “during which she was to be arrested and questioned”. “Nicola always said she would cooperate with the investigation […] and she continues to do so, ”continued this spokesperson.
Searches were carried out at several properties, including the home of Nicola Sturgeon and her husband Peter Murrell, where a police tent was erected in the garden, and the SNP headquarters in Edinburgh, according to PA.
At the beginning of April, Peter Murrell, who was until mid-March director general of the SNP before resigning, was arrested as part of this investigation into the finances of the party, before being released the same evening without prosecution. .
A few days later, the treasurer of the SNP, Colin Beattie, was arrested. He was also released without charges being brought against him.
Dead end
The investigations, which began in 2021, then focused in particular on the use of donations of 600,000 pounds sterling (more than one million Canadian dollars) collected in recent years with a view to organizing a new independence referendum, project deadlocked in the face of rejection from London. The media then also raised questions about a loan he allegedly paid to the party.
After eight years at the head of Scotland and a total of 15 years in positions of responsibility in the local executive, Nicola Sturgeon announced her resignation in mid-February to everyone’s surprise, explaining that she lacked energy. During all these years in power, she fought for independence with determination.
The party, weakened by this departure, also emerged divided from the internal campaign which resulted in the appointment in March as prime minister of Humza Yousaf, 38.
The leader, the first of the Muslim faith to head one of the constituent nations of the United Kingdom, is seen as embodying continuity after Ms Sturgeon, with a progressive line on societal issues and a leftist sensitivity on the economy.
On the BBC, Humza Yousaf repeated on Sunday morning that he would be “the leader who will ensure that Scotland becomes an independent nation”.
But the fight for independence, a time revived by Brexit and the unpopularity of successive Conservative governments in London, seems to be at an impasse. The Supreme Court has rejected Edinburgh’s desire to hold a new referendum without London’s agreement, after the vote that resulted in a 55% “no” victory in 2014.