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Peter Murrell

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Peter Tierney Murrell (born 8 December 1964) is a former chief executive of the Scottish National Party (SNP).[1] He is married to Nicola Sturgeon, the former leader of the SNP and First Minister of Scotland.[2]

Peter Murrell
Chief Executive Officer of the Scottish National Party
In office
1999 – 18 March 2023
Preceded byMichael Russell
Succeeded byMichael Russell (acting)
Personal details
Born
Peter Tierney Murrell

(1964-12-08) 8 December 1964 (age 60)
Edinburgh, Scotland
Political partyScottish National Party
Spouse
​
(m. 2010)​
EducationUniversity of Glasgow

Early life and education

Murrell was born in Edinburgh on 8 December 1964.[3][4] He attended Craigmount High School and studied at the University of Glasgow.[5]

Career

Murrell replaced Michael Russell as chief executive of the Scottish National Party (SNP) in 1999.[1] He had previously worked in the Banff and Buchan constituency office of Alex Salmond, the former party leader.[6] The party's success in the 2007 elections was credited to the organisation of Murrell.[7][8]

Murrell was formerly the company secretary of Independence Merchandising Limited, a now-dissolved company that included as its directors SNP politicians Pete Wishart and Stewart Stevenson.[9]

In January 2019 Murrell came under pressure to resign from Kenny MacAskill, former SNP Justice Secretary.[6]

Following his testimony to the Committee on the Scottish Government Handling of Harassment Complaints in December 2020, Murrell was reported to the Lord Advocate by committee member Murdo Fraser, who alleged Murrell had made a "false statement" under oath while giving evidence. Murrell said he "absolutely refuted” the allegation.[10][11]

Murrell is facing questions from party members over the alleged disappearance of £600,000 in donations to the party. Police in Scotland are currently investigating an allegation of fraud with regards to the missing £600,000.[12] The Scotsman reported in June 2021 that Police Scotland had been asked to investigate Murrell regarding a donation to SNP from lottery winners Colin and Christine Weir, which they subsequently asked to be returned to them.[13][14]

Murrell has also faced questions from the Scottish Labour and Conservative parties over a £107,620 interest-free loan made to the SNP on 20 June 2021, that was not declared to the Electoral Commission for more than a year after the July 2021 deadline. The SNP stated that it did not declare the loan as it did not think the matter was reportable. The loan was to assist with cashflow problems at the party.[15][16]

When his wife, Nicola Sturgeon, announced her resignation as first minister on 15 February 2023, Joanna Cherry, an SNP MP, called for Murrell to step down as CEO of the party stating "The SNP Leadership & party management have been deeply bound together. I cannot see any circumstances in which Peter Murrell can continue as Chief Executive under a new leader who must be free to choose a successor."[17]

During the leadership election, the SNP came under pressure to reveal the size of its membership.[18] The party’s national executive committee agreed to publish the figure, which was 72,186 as of 15 February 2023, down from 104,000 members in 2021.[19] There had been prior media reports that the party's membership had dropped around 30,000. Murray Foote, the SNP’s media chief, had described these reports as “inaccurate” and “drivel”. In response to the confirmation of the numbers, he said he had been “acting in good faith” with earlier comments, but resigned his position.[20] This then led to the SNP's national executive committee giving Murrell an ultimatum as he was blamed for Foote having been misinformed. Murrell resigned as SNP Chief Executive "with immediate effect" on 18 March 2023 ahead of a vote of no-confidence.[21] In a statement, Murrell said: "Responsibility for the SNP's responses to media queries about our membership number lies with me as chief executive. While there was no intent to mislead, I accept that this has been the outcome. I have therefore decided to confirm my intention to step down as chief executive with immediate effect."[22]

On 5 April 2023, Murrell was arrested by police in connection with an investigation into Scottish National Party finances.[23]

Personal life

Murrell married Nicola Sturgeon in July 2010 at Òran Mór Glasgow.[2][24] They first met in 1988 when Sturgeon, who volunteered at the Banff and Buchan constituency office of Alex Salmond, attended an SNP youth camp organised by Murrell.[25] Sturgeon and Murrell became a couple in 2003.[6] On 5 April 2023, Murrell was arrested in connection to an investigation into the funding and finances of the Scottish National Party. It was reported that Police Scotland were searching a number of addresses including SNP headquarters and the home that he shared with Nicola Sturgeon in Glasgow. [26] [27]

References

  1. ^ a b Whitaker, Andrew (23 April 2018). "Spouse of the First Minister of Scotland". The Herald. Retrieved 4 February 2019.
  2. ^ a b "Nicola Sturgeon ties the knot — but she won't be calling herself Mrs Murrell". www.scotsman.com. Retrieved 3 February 2019.
  3. ^ Henden, Amalie (21 April 2020). "Nicola Sturgeon husband: Who is Nicola Sturgeon married to?". Daily Express. Express Newspapers. Retrieved 19 July 2020.
  4. ^ "Company registration data for Independence Merchandising Ltd".
  5. ^ "Peter Murrell". Facebook. 4 February 2019. Archived from the original on 4 February 2019. Retrieved 4 February 2019.
  6. ^ a b c "Who is Peter Murrell the SNP chief executive and why is he facing calls to quit?". The Scotsman. 28 February 2019. Retrieved 28 February 2019.
  7. ^ Camp, Edwige (20 December 2014). "The Scottish National Party (SNP) : A Party of Government in the early 21st Century". Revue LISA/LISA e-journal. Littératures, Histoire des Idées, Images, Sociétés du Monde Anglophone – Literature, History of Ideas, Images and Societies of the English-speaking World (vol. XII–n°8). doi:10.4000/lisa.7008. ISSN 1762-6153. {{cite journal}}: |issue= has extra text (help)
  8. ^ "Murrell, Peter". www.politics.co.uk/.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  9. ^ ltd, company check. "INDEPENDENCE MERCHANDISING LTD.. Free business summary taken from official companies house information. Free alerts. Registered as SC203193". Company Check. Retrieved 3 February 2019.
  10. ^ "Sturgeon's husband 'refutes' perjury claim but ducks key question". The Herald. 8 February 2021.
  11. ^ Fraser, Murdo [@murdo_fraser] (8 February 2021). "Following Peter Murrell's evidence to the Salmond Inquiry Committee today, I have written to the Lord Advocate asking" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  12. ^ Ferguson, John (4 April 2021). "Fraud cops probe SNP over £600k of indyref 2 funds after claims cash 'diverted'". Daily Record.
  13. ^ Brown, Alexander (13 June 2021). "Police investigating SNP over money donated by EuroMillions winners Christine and Colin Weir". The Scotsman.
  14. ^ "Nicola Sturgeon's husband Peter Murrell gave £100,000 loan to SNP". BBC News. 14 December 2022. Retrieved 9 January 2023.
  15. ^ "SNP respond to accusations of 'murky' £100,000 loan from Peter Murrell". The National. 14 December 2022. Retrieved 9 January 2023.
  16. ^ "Sturgeon's husband in row over 'murky' £100,000 loan to SNP". HeraldScotland. 14 December 2022. Retrieved 9 January 2023.
  17. ^ Cherry, Joanna [@joannaccherry] (15 February 2023). "The SNP Leadership & party management have been deeply bound together. I cannot see any circumstances in which Peter Murrell can continue as Chief Executive under a new leader who must be free to choose a successor. Meantime we need a neutral caretaker CEO" (Tweet). Retrieved 15 February 2023 – via Twitter.
  18. ^ "SNP rebuff calls from leadership candidates to publish membership numbers". The National.
  19. ^ Meighan, Craig (16 March 2023). "SNP reveals huge membership losses as 30,000 people leave party". STV News.
  20. ^ "SNP media chief Murray Foote resigns over membership dispute". 17 March 2023 – via www.bbc.co.uk.
  21. ^ "Nicola Sturgeon's husband Peter Murrell quits as SNP chief executive in face of no confidence threat". Sky News. 18 March 2023. Retrieved 18 March 2023.
  22. ^ Sanderson, Daniel (18 March 2023). "Nicola Sturgeon's husband Peter Murrell resigns as SNP chief executive". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 18 March 2023.
  23. ^ "Nicola Sturgeon's husband Peter Murrell arrested in SNP finance probe".
  24. ^ "Wedding for SNP's Nicola Sturgeon". BBC News. 16 July 2010. Retrieved 4 February 2019.
  25. ^ Midgley, Dominic (16 April 2015). "Nicola the Queen of Scots: The story behind the fiesty [sic] SNP leader". Express.co.uk. Retrieved 4 February 2019.
  26. ^ <https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2023/apr/05/peter-murrell-nicola-sturgeons-husband-arrested-over-snp-funding-investigation>
  27. ^ Breaking, BBC (5 April 2023). "Sturgeon's husband arrested in SNP finance probe". BBC News. Retrieved 5 April 2023.
 
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