Taxpayers are set to foot the bill for former SNP chief executive Peter Murrell’s legal costs after he was charged with embezzlement, it has emerged.
According to the Daily Record solicitors acting for Nicola Sturgeon’s estranged husband have had an application for legal aid approved.
Murrell, 60, was SNP CEO for over twenty years before he stood down from the post in 2023.
He was arrested later that year as part of the Operation Branchform police probe into SNP finances, but released without charge.
He was then charged in connection with embezzlement and appeared in court in March.
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The Scottish Legal Aid Board has confirmed an application for solemn legal aid by his solicitors was granted on April 30 and no payments have been made to date, the Daily Record reports.
A spokesperson for the SLAB said: “When assessing an applicant’s eligibility for legal aid we look at their financial position at the time of their application to ensure they meet tests set by legal aid legislation.
"This includes information they give us about their salary, the amount of money they have in the bank and any investments, which might be available to fund their own defence privately.
“Peter Murrell’s application met the tests we have to apply when deciding whether to grant legal aid.”
It is unclear what Murrell’s final salary was at the SNP, but the party’s 2023 accounts showed his successor, Murray Foote, started on £95,000.
Mr Foote quit last year and was replaced by Carol Beattie.
When Mr Murrell appeared at a private petition hearing at Edinburgh Sheriff Court, he made no plea or declaration and was committed for further examination and bailed.
The Crown Office said there are no dates for a future hearing.
Labour MSP Jackie Baillie said: “Taxpayers will be scratching their heads at why they should have to foot the bill for Peter Murrell - a man who has been charged with embezzlement. It is also particularly galling that Peter Murrell will be receiving legal aid after the SNP government has repeatedly ignored warnings about the financial pressures raised by lawyers."
Mr Murrell and Ms Sturgeon married in 2010 and were regarded as Scotland’s most prominent political power couple.
In an Instagram post, she announced earlier this year that their marriage had ended: “With a heavy heart I am confirming that Peter and I have decided to end our marriage.”
“To all intents and purposes we have been separated for some time now and feel it is time to bring others up to speed with where we are. It goes without saying that we still care deeply for each other, and always will. We will be making no further comment.”
Ms Sturgeon was arrested as part of Operation Branchform in 2023 and released without charge. She is no longer a suspect.
The former First Minister is to launch her memoir Frankly at the Edinburgh International Book Festival in August.
Due for release on August 14, the day she is appearing at the book festival, Frankly is billed as “a deeply personal memoir” which will reveal “the person behind the politician.”
Revealing the title and cover for the book in March, Ms Sturgeon said: “I have poured my heart into this book. It tells the story of my personal journey, it recounts the extraordinary events that I have been privileged to live and to lead through.
“It takes you behind the scenes of the incredible experiences I’ve had along the way, and my interactions with some colourful characters.
“The title sums up what the book is – open, honest, candid – about my mistakes and my heartbreaks as well as my triumphs and achievements.”
Legal aid is usually granted to those who cannot afford to pay for legal help themselves, though in some cases they still need to make their own contribution.
While he ran the SNP, the party often did not publish Mr Murrell’s salary in annual accounts. However, they do show that in 2011, the year the SNP won a majority in Holyrood, he was paid £109,492.
Mr Murrell’s salary then appeared in the accounts for 2012, although at this point the document simply identified that only one member of staff earned more than £50,000 and that this person took home £77,024.
According to the SNP’s most recently published accounts, the party still owes Mr Murrell £60,000. While still chief executive, he loaned the party £107,620 in June 2021 to help it with “cash flow” issues after that year’s Holyrood election.
