Peter Murrell, the former chief executive of the Scottish National Party and ex-husband of Nicola Sturgeon, has been sentenced to five years and three months in prison for embezzling hundreds of thousands of pounds of party funds. The sentence, reduced from seven years due to his guilty plea, was handed down by Judge Lord Young, who described Murrell’s actions as a ‘significant breach of trust’ and said he used his position at the top of the party to ‘circumvent checks and balances’. Murrell spent more than two decades as SNP chief executive, from shortly after the creation of the Scottish Parliament until his resignation in 2023, overseeing the 2007 Holyrood election that began the party’s reign in power and the 2015 UK general election where the SNP won all but three Scottish seats.
Over several years, Murrell embezzled £400,000 from the party, spending the money on a vast array of items ranging from flashy purchases to mundane household goods. Among them were gifts for Sturgeon, expensive kitchen gadgets and—most famously—a motorhome he parked beside his parents’ house. Sturgeon, who served as Scotland’s first minister for nine years, denied any knowledge of her then-husband’s crimes. The couple have since separated.
“Peter Murrell jailed for embezzling £400,000 from SNP; police interview reveals £19,000 luxury pen purchase.”
Following the sentencing, the Scottish Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service released footage of a police interview in which Murrell was quizzed about his tactics. Highlighting one particularly extravagant example, an officer asks: ‘What does the SNP need over £19,000 of luxury pens for?’ Murrell answers that question, and all others, with: ‘No comment.’ Judge Lord Young added that it is ‘very difficult to get a clear picture for what drove [Murrell’s] actions’. The former chief executive of Scotland’s party of government now begins his prison term.