John Swinney has dodged questions over what information his top aides had on the allegations against Jordan Linden.
The First Minister has been accused of a “cover up” but maintains he did not personally know of the behaviour until it was reported by the press in 2022.
Linden, the former leader of North Lanarkshire Council, was convicted of 10 offences last week, including five sexual assaults between 2011 and 2021.
He was also convicted of stalking, coercive behaviour and sexual communication offences. Linden will be sentenced on May 5.
A letter was sent to Mr Swinney, and his predecessor Humza Yousaf, in September 2025, from ex-council colleagues who demanded a review into the SNP’s complaints process.
But they never received a response.
A leaked recording also emerged showing SNP councillors – including a current Holyrood candidate – backing Linden after he resigned when the sexual misconduct allegations emerged.
Quizzed by journalists in Dundee, Mr Swinney said: “I knew nothing about this until it all came into the public domain.
“I can only tell you what I knew about it and I’ve set out that the party is reviewing its complaints handling process.”
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But asked if his aides were aware of the behaviour at the time, he did not directly answer the question and instead said: “What matters is whether we’ve got the processes in place to tackle these issues, and after the review that’s been done.
“I’m satisfied that we have got the procedures in place but I want to satisfy myself and make sure we’ve got further independent scrutiny of that.”
Tracy Carragher, a councillor in North Lanarkshire and a regional SNP candidate in Central Scotland, was called as a defence witness at Linden’s trial last week at Falkirk Sheriff Court.
She has vehemently rejected claims she defended Linden and said she gave an “honest account” of her knowledge of events.
The leaked recordings, published on social media by councillor Cammie McManus, hears Ms Carragher tell SNP councillors in 2022 that “Jordan isn’t okay” but she stresses that he “has got a lot of support from the party”.
She added: “His mental health is absolutely being affected by this. He wanted to be here, but he couldn’t.”
She added that “the party told him [Linden] not to comment”.
“I can’t speak for Jordan,” she added. “But what I can tell you is no complaint was made…the party has confirmed that.
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“The other party involved in this didn’t complain to the police, didn’t complain to the press.”
She added: “That tells its own story here.”
Councillor Kirsten Larson is overheard stating that “the only thing Jordan Linden is guilty of is being a young person”.
Councillor Claire Barclay can be heard making remarks about finding and disciplining the individual responsible for leaking information to the press.
Jackie Baillie, the deputy leader of Scottish Labour, has said Mr Swinney’s response “speaks volumes”.
She said: “It is disgraceful that John Swinney is still refusing to say what he knew and when about the reprehensible behaviour of Jordan Linden.
“His silence about whether his aides knew about the allegations speaks volumes. Instead of continuing to dodge the question, he should come clean and tell us when SNP HQ knew and why they chose to cover it up.
“It is clear to everyone that this review is nothing more than a cynical sham – only being used to allow the slippery SNP to hide behind a process, rather than answer questions during their election campaign.
“The people of Scotland will not be fooled by this desperate tactic, which has been deployed by the SNP for years to avoid accepting accountability. They are a party addicted to cover-up and secrecy, and Scotland deserves better.”
An SNP spokesperson said: “We have undertaken a comprehensive review of our complaints procedures since 2016, but in light of this case the Party Leader, John Swinney has instructed that an independent review of these procedures be conducted. This will ensure people are protected and our complaints procedures are as robust as they can be.
"More generally, the SNP welcomes the verdict against Mr Linden and commends the bravery of the individuals who came forward and shared their experiences with the police."
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