THE luxury campervan seized by police from outside the home of Peter Murrell’s widowed 92-year-old mother does belong to the SNP, Humza Yousaf has confirmed.

The First Minister said the £110,000 motorhome was listed on the warrant showing the party assets impounded by officers in raids last week.

Mr Murrell, the SNP’s former chief executive and the husband of Nicola Sturgeon, was arrested, questioned and released without charge on Wednesday of last week.

While the couple’s Glasgow home was searched, police officers seized the motorhome from the driveway of an address in Dunfermline, where it had sat unused since early 2021.

It was reportedly bought by the SNP as a Covid compliant ‘battle bus’ for the Holyrood election campaign that year.

Speaking to Sky News, the SNP leader also complained he had not been told sooner about the problems inside the party, including its auditors quitting last September.

The resignation of accountants Johnston Carmichael left the SNP struggling to find new auditors, and the party may miss the July 7 deadline to file its annual accounts for 2022.

“There should have been more transparency around the party finances,” Mr Yousaf said.

Asked about the police seizures, Mr Yousaf said: “Of course I have been briefed. The police of course gave us a warrant for items that they’re looking to take into their possession.

“I can’t go into the detail of that, but of course the police have done the responsible thing in terms of giving us - and I as leader have seen the warrant -  in terms of the items that they've confiscated, including the motorhome that you referenced.”

 

 

Asked when he was told the SNP owned the motorhome, he said: “Shortly after I became leader of the party [March 27].

“I only knew about the auditors resigning when I became party leader and one of my first instructions to the party has been to make sure we get replacement auditors.

“That is going to be a challenge to meet that deadline, but I’m going to do my best, and we’re going to do our best as a party, to try to meet it.”

Asked if it had been wrong of Ms Sturgeon not to have told him about the “huge issue that was looming” for her successor, he said: “I think people have got a very reasonable question to ask the party around transparency. 

“That's why I've committed to a review of governance and transparency with external input.

“Frankly, it would have been helpful to have known beforehand, but equally I know the party has been working to try to get replacement auditors without success so far.

“I agree and accept the premise of your question, which is there should have been more transparency around the party finances.”

Police Scotland has been investigating the SNP’s finances since July 2021 after complaints that £660,000 raised specifically for Indyref2 may have been spent on other things.