Lead
Former Scottish National Party (SNP) chief executive Peter Murrell has been indicted on an allegation that he embezzled £459,000 from the party over a period spanning August 2010 to January 2023. The indictment, seen by news outlets, details purchases allegedly made for personal use and alleges false accounting to disguise them as party expenses. Murrell, who led the party for 22 years and is the estranged husband of former first minister Nicola Sturgeon, is due at the High Court in Glasgow for a preliminary hearing on Friday 20 February. He was arrested in 2023 as part of Operation Branchform and charged with embezzlement in April 2024.
Key Takeaways
- Alleged total: Murrell is accused of embezzling £459,000 from the SNP between 1 August 2010 and 31 January 2023, according to the indictment.
- Major vehicle claims: The papers allege a £124,550 motorhome was bought for personal use and £57,500 of party money went toward an £81,000 Jaguar I‑PACE in 2019.
- Sale proceeds: When the Jaguar was sold in 2021, more than £47,000 is said to have been paid into Murrell’s personal bank account.
- Additional vehicle claim: The indictment alleges £16,489 of party funds helped pay for a £33,000 Volkswagen Golf in 2016.
- Retail spending: More than £159,000 is alleged to have been spent at over 80 retailers between December 2014 and 2022 using party cards.
- Online purchases: The documents claim over £81,600 of purchases were made through Amazon in a similar manner.
- Legal timetable: Murrell made no plea at an earlier Edinburgh Sheriff Court hearing and was granted bail; a preliminary hearing is scheduled for 20 February at the High Court in Glasgow.
Background
The allegations come amid Operation Branchform, a Police Scotland inquiry launched to examine the funding and financial conduct within the SNP. That probe led to Murrell’s arrest in 2023 and formal embezzlement charges in April 2024; police have publicly clarified that former first minister Nicola Sturgeon is not under investigation. Financial scrutiny of political parties has intensified across the UK in recent years, prompting closer regulatory and public attention to internal controls and accounting practices.
Murrell served as the SNP’s chief executive for 22 years, a tenure that encompassed the party’s electoral advances and governance of Scotland’s devolved government. The indictment alleges a long-running pattern of transactions and bookkeeping entries that prosecutors say masked personal benefit. Political and legal stakeholders have stressed the distinction between allegations contained in charging documents and outcomes yet to be determined by a court.
Main Event
The indictment, a formal charging document seen ahead of next week’s preliminary hearing, itemises alleged purchases and asserted accounting irregularities. It claims a £124,550 motorhome was obtained from a Staffordshire dealer and recorded as a legitimate party expense despite being used personally. Separate entries allege £57,500 of party funds contributed to an £81,000 Jaguar I‑PACE acquired in 2019, with an invoice allegedly falsified to obscure the true nature of the transaction.
When that Jaguar was later sold in 2021, the papers assert that over £47,000 from the sale was deposited into Murrell’s personal bank account. The documents also set out an alleged partial party payment of £16,489 toward a £33,000 Volkswagen Golf purchased in Newbridge, Edinburgh, in 2016. Beyond vehicles, the indictment lists more than 80 retailers — ranging from Harrods, the Royal Mint and John Lewis to Homebase and Argos — where purchases totalling in excess of £159,000 were allegedly made between December 2014 and 2022.
The account further alleges the use of SNP credit or charge cards alongside the insertion of false or inaccurate accounting codes and descriptions to disguise personal spending as party business. Purchases through online platforms are included: the papers claim over £81,600 of spend through Amazon was also recorded in the same fashion. The documents remain subject to change during the judicial process up until Murrell’s appearance in court.
Analysis & Implications
If the allegations are proven, the case would underline severe vulnerabilities in political party finance controls and raise questions about governance and oversight at senior levels. A finding against a long-serving chief executive could prompt parties across the UK to tighten authorization, reconciliation and audit procedures to prevent similar risks. For the SNP, the reputational impact may be significant, coming while public trust and scrutiny of party funding are already heightened.
Legally, the matter will pivot on documentary evidence, accounting records and the traceability of funds — prosecutors must show that payments were diverted for personal gain and that supporting documents were knowingly falsified. Defence strategy is likely to challenge the interpretation of accounting entries, the intent behind transactions and whether any personal benefit can be proven beyond reasonable doubt. The preliminary hearing will focus on procedural steps, not on deciding guilt, but it may shape pre-trial disclosure and case management.
Politically, the timing intersects with internal SNP dynamics and public debate about governance. While Nicola Sturgeon has been publicly confirmed as not being under investigation, the association of a senior figure with these charges will be politically sensitive. Internationally, the case is unlikely to shift macroeconomic trends but could influence how parties and regulators in other jurisdictions view compliance standards for political funding.
Comparison & Data
| Alleged Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Motorhome | £124,550 |
| Jaguar I‑PACE (party contribution) | £57,500 |
| Jaguar sale proceeds to personal account | £47,000+ |
| Volkswagen Golf (party contribution) | £16,489 |
| Retail purchases (80+ stores, 2014–2022) | £159,000+ |
| Amazon purchases | £81,600+ |
| Alleged total | £459,000 |
The table aggregates the principal sums cited in the indictment and helps contextualise how individual alleged transactions feed into the claimed £459,000 total. Those figures were drawn from the charging document and cover distinct categories: vehicles, retail spending and online purchases. While the listed sums are specific, the legal process will test attribution, timing and whether entries were legitimately party expenses or mischaracterised.
Reactions & Quotes
Police and official sources have delineated the scope of the inquiry and the status of other individuals mentioned in reporting. The indictment contains wording prosecutors rely on to describe alleged conduct and the intended uses of funds.
“for your own personal use”
Indictment (court document)
Police statements provided brief clarifications about investigation status rather than detailed commentary about evidence; that distinction is common in active inquiries to avoid prejudicing proceedings.
“She is no longer under investigation”
Police Scotland (official confirmation)
Unconfirmed
- Any assertion that other senior SNP figures will be charged has not been confirmed by prosecutors and remains speculative.
- Allegations in the indictment are unproven until tested in court and may be amended as part of the judicial process.
- Details about the precise use of each listed purchase for personal rather than party purposes await evidential clarification at trial.
Bottom Line
The indictment against Peter Murrell sets out extensive and specific allegations that, if proven, would represent a serious breach of party financial controls and personal accountability. The documents cite vehicle purchases, retail and online spending, and alleged use of party cards with false or misleading accounting entries amounting to the £459,000 figure.
Next steps for the legal process are procedural: the preliminary hearing on 20 February will shape how evidence is disclosed and what issues proceed to trial. Observers should distinguish between charged allegations in an indictment and facts established in court; the judiciary will ultimately determine whether the prosecution has met the required legal standard.
Sources
- BBC News — media report summarising indictment and court timetable (news outlet)
- Police Scotland — official statements regarding Operation Branchform and investigation status (official)