The SNP may struggle to recruit a "quality" successor to Murray Foote given its current "challenges", according to a leading expert on the party.

However, James Mitchell, professor of public policy at Edinburgh University, said a number of former SNP MPs who lost their seats in the July 4 general election may apply for the position.

Mr Foote announced his resignation as the SNP's chief executive on Friday after just over a year in the role, saying he could no longer make the personal commitment required for the job.

He was appointed to the position in August last year after Peter Murrell – Nicola Sturgeon’s husband – had quit the position.

Mr Foote was a former editor-in-chief of the Daily Record and previously served as the SNP’s head of communications but resigned in March last year after a row about the party’s membership numbers.

READ MORE: 

His departure comes after the SNP suffered huge losses at the general election with the party’s 48 MPs being whittled down to just nine.

Polls suggest the SNP, which has had three leaders over the past two years, could lose several MSPs at the 2026 Holyrood election amid a resurgent Labour Party.

The loss of the party's Westminster seats also hit the party's finances after the UK parliament reduced its "short money" budget by a million pounds.

"Short money" is funding handed out by parliament to help opposition parties hold the government to account. It is separate from MPs’ office expenses. Before the election, the SNP were entitled to £1.3m per year. The loss of 39 MPs and hundreds of thousands of votes meant this budget has now been reduced to £360,000.

The SNP also faces the ongoing Police Scotland probe Operation Branchform into its finances with Ms Sturgeon still under investigation. She was arrested last year, released without charge and has denied any wrongdoing.

"Murray Foote’s resignation is hardly a surprise," Professor Mitchell told the Herald on Sunday.

Murray Foote pictured at the SNP's annual conference in Aberdeen last year. (Image: Andrew Milligan) "His time with the SNP coincided with major internal problems.He resigned as SNP communications chief after he harshly dismissed news reports suggesting the SNP had lost a significant number of members.  

"John Ferguson’s report in the Sunday Mail proved spot on and left Mr Foote with no alternative as an honourable individual.  Few doubt that he had only repeated what he been assured and that he had been misled.  

"It was, nonetheless, surprising that he subsequently replaced Peter Murrell as SNP chief executive when Mr Murrell was forced out given his role in the membership numbers deception.  

READ MORE: 

"Through no fault of his own, Mr Foote became chief executive of a party facing police investigations, with his predecessor charged with embezzlement and former leader still under police investigation."

He added:  "The collapse of support for the SNP at the general election this year and the reputational damage on many fronts have contributed to a significant loss of income for the party.  

"The chief executive’s task had gone from spend, spend, spend to finding cuts and making very difficult choices.  It had become a thankless task and it was understandable that he has decided he wanted a quieter life especially as an independence referendum is nowhere in sight. 

"The SNP may find it difficult to find anyone of quality to take on this task given the challenges. But there are a number of former SNP MPs who might be inclined to apply if only because they have been unable to find alternative gainful employment."

Announcing his resignation, Mr Foote stated it was in the best interests of the party and himself that he step down.

He said in a statement on Friday: “The SNP has recently embarked on a substantial process of internal re-organisation and renewal to better equip it for current electoral contests and to prepare for the critical Scottish Parliament elections in 2026.

“While I agree these changes are both essential and appropriate, I also recognised after a period of reflection that I could not make the necessary personal commitment to leading the delivery of these changes into 2026 and beyond.

“In the circumstances, I concluded it would be in my best interests and the best interests of the party that I step down to give my replacement the time and space to mould and develop these changes in a manner they deem appropriate.”

Mr Foote said he will remain in his role until a new chief executive is found.

He added: “I offer my very best wishes to both my successor and to colleagues at party HQ. I will always be grateful for the privilege of holding this post for the past 14 months and I stand ready to offer any assistance requested of me.

“I also believe that in First Minister John Swinney, our party has the right leader at the right time to advance the cause of Scottish independence and I look to the future with renewed optimism as I support him in that cause.”

John Swinney said Mr Foote had made a “significant contribution” to the SNP during his time as chief executive, adding that he played “a key role in strengthening the SNP’s headquarters functions and supporting the party as a formidable national organisation”.

The First Minister added: “When I became leader of the SNP, I promised to deliver a professional, modern, dynamic election-winning organisation – and Murray’s successor will build on the work he has started.

“I would like to extend my sincere thanks to Murray for his commitment and dedication to the Scottish National Party, and to independence, and I wish he and his family all the best for the future.”

Mr Foote had resigned from his role as head of communications for the SNP in March last year after he described a newspaper report that the party’s membership had dropped by 30,000 as “drivel”.

The figure was later confirmed and the row led to the resignation of Mr Murrell who took responsibility for misleading the media.

The SNP had 64,525 members as of June this year – nearly half of its 2019 peak of 125,691.

Mr Foote has been in the communications role since 2018 while Mr Murrell had been the party’s chief executive for more than two decades.

Mr Murrell was later charged with embezzlement of SNP funds as part of Police Scotland’s Operation Branchform investigation into the party’s finances.

The SNP was approached for a response to Professor Mitchell's comments.