HUMZA Yousaf has denied being weak for not suspending Nicola Sturgeon from the SNP, calling her an asset to the party and “the most impressive politician in Europe”.
The First Minister also denied being undermined by some of his own MSPs who had called on Ms Sturgeon to resign the SNP whip after her arrest on Sunday.
The former FM was questioned for seven hours by detectives investigating the SNP’s finances before being released without charge.
She later insisted she was "innocent of any wrongdoing" and said she would soon return to Holyrood to represent her Glasgow Southside constituency.
Labour and the Tories both accused Mr Yousaf of being weak after he refused to suspend Ms Sturgeon from the SNP on the grounds that she had not been charged.
READ MORE: Nicola Sturgeon arrest - SNP MSP demands clarity on removal of whip
SNP MSPs Ash Regan and Michelle Thomson also suggested Ms Sturgeon should give up the whip voluntarily, saying she should accept the hardline she took with others.
Speaking to the media at Holyrood ahead of the weekly meeting of SNP MSPs today, Mr Yousaf said: “I have shown consistency throughout this process.
"If people are released without charge there’s no reason to suspend them. I've made that clear.
“It’s the way I’ve treated other parliamentarians, for example, and that’s the way I’ll continue.
“I know why the opposition want Nicola Sturgeon out of here because she’s of course thrashed them in every single election. So I’m hardly surprised at that.”
The reference to “other parliamentarians” appeared to mean MSP Colin Beattie, who was arrested by police in April as part of the same long-running investigation.
He was released without charge, as was Peter Murrell, the former SNP chief executive who is married to Ms Sturgeon.
Police Scotland is investigating whether £660,000 raised by the SNP to fight Indyref2 was spent on other things.
Asked if two of his MSPs calling on Ms Sturgeon to resign the party whip undermined him, Mr Yousaf said: “I will speak to our group. “I think it’s important we have a unified voice on these matters.
“But I'm not going to stop MSPs from expressing their view. That is entirely their prerogative.”
Asked if Ms Sturgeon should give up the whip, he said: “I've said already in interviews yesterday, there's no pressure on her to have to do that.”
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Asked if Ms Sturgeon remained an asset to the SNP, he said: “Nicola Sturgeon is the most impressive politician I think we've seen in Europe.
“She's an asset to our movement and to our party.”
He added: “It’s obviously a difficult time. It's a very, very difficult time for her, a difficult time for our party and personally painful to many of us too.”
Asked if he had spoken to Ms Sturgeon since Sunday’s events, he said: “No.”
Asked if he was not suspending her because the was “weak”, Mr Yousaf said: “That question’s already been asked, and that answer to that is No.
“The reason I’m doing it is because I believe in natural justice, I believe in due process. She was released without charge.”
Asked why Derek Mackay was ousted in 2020 after pestering a teenage boy with text messages while finance secretary, Ms Yousaf said: “I don’t account for what happened in the past.
"Of course, Derek Mackay admitted to something that was inappropriate.”
After meeting his MSPS, Mr Yousaf said: "I was listening, I was engaging as I hope any good leader would do, and a really constructive conversation then had with the group."
Asked if he was concerned that some of his MSPs were speaking out, Mr Yousaf said: "I'm not going to stop MSPs or MPs or any elected from saying what they wish to say.
"I hope I've shown as a leader a very consistent approach to my own elected members."
Asked about the reaction from SNP MSPs at their weekly group meeting, the First Minister said the conversations were private.
"I'm not going to talk about what is a private group meeting. Of course, as I've said, you interview and speak to MSPs, MPs, elected members. I hope I've shown a level of consistency when it comes my approach. "
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