Nicola Sturgeon's husband Peter Murrell arrested in SNP finance probe

The husband of former first minister Nicola Sturgeon has been arrested in connection with an investigation into Scottish National Party finances.

Peter Murrell, 58, is being questioned after being taken into police custody on Wednesday morning.

Police Scotland said officers were carrying out searches at a number of addresses as part of the investigation.

Mr Murrell resigned as the party's chief executive last month, a post he had held since 1999.

He has been married to Ms Sturgeon since 2010.

A spokesperson for the former first minister said she had "no prior knowledge" of Police Scotland's action or intentions.

They added: "Ms Sturgeon will fully cooperate with Police Scotland if required, however at this time no such request has been made."

Ms Sturgeon stood down as first minister last month and was last week succeeded by Humza Yousaf.

The new first minister said it was "a difficult day" for the SNP.

Mr Yousaf said: "I obviously can't comment on a live police investigation.

"But what I will say is that the SNP has fully cooperated with the investigation and it will continue to do so."

He added that the party had agreed to carry out a review on governance and transparency.

There has been police activity at Mr Murrell and Ms Sturgeon's home in Glasgow and at SNP headquarters in Edinburgh.

Police Scotland said Ms Sturgeon was at the house when officers arrived at 07:35 to arrest her husband.

By 10:00 there were 10 uniformed officers stationed outside the couple's detached property, along with three police vehicles.

The house was sealed off with blue and white tape, while a tent was erected on the driveway. Items were brought from the house to the tent, where the BBC understands a vehicle was parked.

Police officers could be seen searching a small shed and storage box in the back garden, a police photographer took pictures and officers looked at a laptop.

The curtains and blinds remained drawn and there was no sign of anyone in the property.

Meanwhile, at least six marked police vehicles were parked outside SNP HQ and officers carrying green crates and other equipment were seen going inside.

In the afternoon, two vans left the city centre building, while police officers remained stationed outside.

In July 2021 Police Scotland launched a formal investigation into the SNP's finances after receiving complaints about how donations were used.

Questions had been raised about funds given to the party for use in a fresh independence referendum campaign.

Seven people made complaints and a probe was set up following talks with prosecutors.

Ms Sturgeon, then first minister and SNP leader, had insisted that she was "not concerned" about the party's finances.

She said "every penny" of cash raised in online crowdfunding campaigns would be spent on the independence drive.

Nicola Sturgeon gave multiple reasons for her resignation - but the police investigation into her party's finances was not one of them.

When I asked her about it on the day she stood down she declined to comment, but would later insist it had not been a factor.

I still wonder if it may have influenced the timing of her departure because her husband's arrest would be much more awkward for her if she was still in office as SNP leader and first minister.

Police inquiries have been under way for about 18 months and were triggered when questions were raised about how more than £600,000 raised for independence campaigning had been spent, when there had not been an independence referendum for it to be spent on.

The SNP has previously said that it always intended to spend an equivalent sum in that way.

Some weeks ago, the investigation reached a crucial stage when officers consulted the Crown Office on how to proceed. It is now much clearer what direction they received from those who oversee criminal investigations in Scotland.

According to a statement, the SNP raised a total of £666,953 through referendum-related appeals between 2017 and 2020. The party pledged to spend these funds on the independence campaign.

Questions were raised after its accounts showed it had just under £97,000 in the bank at the end of 2019, and total net assets of about £272,000.

Last year it emerged Mr Murrell gave a loan of more than £100,000 to the SNP to help it out with a "cash flow" issue after the last election.

The then SNP's chief executive loaned the party £107,620 in June 2021. The SNP had repaid about half of the money by October of that year.

At the time an SNP spokesman said the loan was a "personal contribution made by the chief executive to assist with cash flow after the Holyrood election".

He said it had been reported in the party's 2021 accounts, which were published by the Electoral Commission in August last year.

Weeks earlier, MP Douglas Chapman had resigned as party treasurer saying he had not been given the "financial information" to do the job.

Mr Murrell resigned last month after taking responsibility for misleading statements about a fall in party membership.

The number of members had fallen from the 104,000 it had two years ago to just over 72,000.

An SNP spokesperson said: "Clearly it would not be appropriate to comment on any live police investigation but the SNP have been cooperating fully with this investigation and will continue to do so.

"At its meeting on Saturday, the governing body of the SNP, the NEC, agreed to a review of governance and transparency - that will be taken forward in the coming weeks."

Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar told BBC Scotland it was "an extremely serious situation" and that the police investigation must be allowed to proceed without interference.

He added: "But there are huge questions I think to answer for both Humza Yousaf and Nicola Sturgeon about what they knew and when."

Scottish Conservative leader Douglas Ross said: "This is clearly a very serious case and it's absolutely crucial now that those at the top of the SNP, including Humza Yousaf and Nicola Sturgeon, co-operate fully with this ongoing police investigation."

Alba leader Alex Salmond, who preceded Ms Sturgeon as first minister and SNP leader, told BBC Scotland: "I led the SNP for a long time. I'm very sad about what's happening to it and indeed about what it has become."

The scene on the outskirts of Glasgow is surreal. A quiet residential area with a very famous resident is witnessing a major police investigation.

Switch on the news most nights and you'll see images of houses being searched by police, tents in front gardens, fluttering blue and white tape.

But this happening at the home of the power couple at the centre of an election winning machine - the woman who was Scotland's longest serving first minister and her husband, the man who ran the SNP for nearly 24 years.

It's very hard to get your head around that.

In the steady drizzle, news crews are waiting for something to happen.

An ice cream van can be heard in the distance. People walking bedraggled dogs pass the scene of a huge news story. A woman pushing a pram films it all with her mobile phone.

It is a mind-boggling sight and who knows where it's going to lead.