SNP Finances

It's not unreasonable to conclude that the SNP finances are in a bit of a mess. The central question is what happened to the £600 000 or so that people donated to the Referendum Appeal Fund which was specifically to be used for a future referendum campaign. Indeed the SNP gave guarantees that the monies were ring-fenced and could be deployed at a moments notice. The previous Treasurer, Colin Beattie assured any enquiring minds that they were ring-fenced except that they were woven through the SNP accounts. The problem is that the money was raised for a referendum and not for the SNP. If they were used for party business they are open to accusations of fraud. Standing on a platform of reforming SNP finances and brining more transparency, Douglas Chapman, was elected to replace Beattie. However after only 5 months in the job he resigned on May 29th 2021. His public resignation, as required by law, was that he was unable to get the necessary information from Chief Executive, Peter Murrell and so Chapman was unable to fulfil his remit. This last part is important as the National Executive Committee (NEC) members are personally liable for any financial troubles so resignations have to clearly state the reasons in order to absolve themselves of any future liabilities. The same thought was certainly going through the heads of the three members of the Finance and Audit Committee when they tendered their resignations a few weeks earlier. And as for Douglas Chapman's replacement? Step forward one Colin Beattie, quickly assigned lest the responsibility fall on Nicola Sturgeon's shoulders. Well, at least he's familiar with the situation.