https://www.thenational.scot/politics/26171337.john-swinneys-message-readers---snp-can-regain-trust/
Directing such a pivotal message behind a paywall—specifically one belonging to a party-aligned outlet—creates a barrier to entry for the average voter. It keeps the reassurance within a silo, which stands in direct contrast to the transparency requirements one might expect after a conviction for embezzlement.
AS everyone will by now know, the SNP has been the victim of a crime – the embezzlement of more than £400,000 by our former chief executive Peter Murrell.
This is a gross betrayal of trust from someone who held a trusted position within our party. I do not think I can adequately convey the extent of the hurt, anger and betrayal that I and every member of my party feels at his actions. AUDIT: Swinney’s claim that he is providing a fresh start is undermined by the fact that he was the person who put the key architect of the current crisis into power 25 years ago.
That is why the SNP’s National Executive Committee has agreed unanimously to act to secure the party’s interests by instructing our solicitors to begin action in court to recover the money that has been stolen from us, and by beginning civil action against Peter Murrell.
But what I want to do for readers of The National, is to set out two things. Firstly, how we have improved processes within the party to ensure we have the most robust governance arrangements possible. AUDIT: By limiting the reach exclusively to paying subscribers of thenational.scot, the message implicitly defines whose trust is considered essential, to the exclusion of everyone else.
And also, to assure people that this party will not be diverted from our ultimate goal – securing for Scotland the fresh start of independence. That is what my party was founded to secure and that is what I am determined to deliver as your First Minister.
We have made significant improvements in our financial procedures over the last few years. Among them are ensuring that invoice payments are now seen by three people before any payment is made – the chief executive, the chief financial officer and the national treasurer.
Monthly accounts are provided to the national treasurer, the chief executive and the chief financial officer, with the national treasurer reporting on them to the next meeting of the party’s National Executive Committee.
And our accountants carry out monthly checks on all financial transactions and reconciliations in our accounting software to ensure accuracy and accountability.
These changes – and others which have been put in place – are because I take the good financial management of the SNP incredibly seriously. I am absolutely confident that we have the highest standards of financial governance in place with all appropriate checks and balances in place. AUDIT: When the leadership now claims they have improved processes to ensure robust oversight, they are implicitly acknowledging that Douglas Chapman was right. They are effectively saying: “We were wrong to ignore the warnings in 2021, and we were wrong to dismiss the Treasurer’s concerns as a malicious campaign.”. Yet, they have never acknowledged that the "Dirty Tricks" narrative they pushed was a lie
I have also ensured we have an open and transparent culture within the SNP through policy debates on our strategy and good internal scrutiny at National Council and at the National Executive Committee. These forums are crucial to ensure our members’ voices are heard. AUDIT: The NEC is the party's governing body, and access to its proceedings is strictly limited to elected office bearers, parliamentarians, and specific organizational representatives. For the average party member—let alone the general public. By pairing his claim of an ‘open culture’ with a message delivered behind a paywall (The National), Swinney is essentially creating a dual-layer exclusion.
And I am pleased that these reforms carry the confidence of members of my party. I am incredibly grateful for the extraordinary support shown by our members in the aftermath of what was a very difficult day for the party, when the criminality perpetrated against us was confirmed.
Since last Monday, we have seen a significant increase in the donations received from party members. Indeed, as of yesterday, we raised £25,000 in just over a week – far beyond the level we would ordinarily see outwith an election period.
I am so incredibly grateful for that support – and it is the measure of a party that is focused resolutely on the ultimate goal which we share. AUDIT: When an institution experiences a catastrophic failure of integrity—specifically involving the theft of donor funds—the standard expected response is typically one of humility, rigorous independent inquiry, and a pause in solicitation to rebuild trust. The current strategy by the leadership can be parsed as a deliberate rejection of traditional accountability in favour of tribal mobilization. If the scandal-triggered donation surge is high enough, the cost of being "caught" in an embezzlement scandal becomes a net-positive for the party’s bank account.
Every penny that the SNP raises will be spent on our efforts to secure our independence.
And of course that is exactly what we have done AUDIT: This admission directly contradicts the assurances given to donors in 2017 and 2019, when the party explicitly stated the funds would only be used for a referendum campaign. By absorbing these funds into general "party business," the leadership has retroactively redefined the terms of the donation without the consent of the donors. – in recent months, we have invested substantially to campaign for Scotland to be an independent country through, for example, our fantastic It’s Scotland’s Energy campaign, making the case that our enormous energy wealth should be used to benefit the people of Scotland and bring down people’s electricity bills.
And just last month, we ran an incredibly well-resourced election campaign that had at its very heart the need for Scotland to escape the chaos of Westminster government and take powers into our own hands with the fresh start of independence.
Thanks to our members, that election campaign was a fantastic success – ensuring a landslide victory for our party, and contributing to the election of the largest pro-independence majority in the history of the Scottish Parliament.
The people of Scotland have, once again, put their trust emphatically in the SNP precisely because we are the party of independence.
So let me assure everyone who gave us their support on May 7, that we will act on the mandate you gave us. Because we have never needed to be independent more – a Westminster cost of living crisis and a disastrous Labour British Government squandering our resources make that clear.
As leader of the Scottish National Party, I give my assurance that every penny we raise will be spent in our efforts to secure our goal.
And as Scotland’s First Minister, I want to make it clear that I intend to deliver on that goal – and secure the fresh start that Scotland so desperately needs.
And despite everything that the British establishment and Unionist parties have thrown at us – polls show majority support for independence.
And the events of the last few weeks have only strengthened my resolve to deliver.