Sturgeon claims she was “deceived and betrayed” by husband over SNP funds scandal

Former Scottish first minister Nicola Sturgeon has spoken publicly for the first time since her estranged husband Peter Murrell admitted embezzling more than £400,000 from the SNP, saying she had been “lied to, deceived and betrayed” by someone she believed she knew.

Speaking at a literary event in Ireland while promoting her memoir, Sturgeon described the fallout as the “worst week” of her life and said she was struggling to process revelations that Murrell used party funds for luxury purchases, vehicles and household items over more than a decade.

Sturgeon, who has not been charged following the long-running Operation Branchform investigation into SNP finances, insisted she had no knowledge of the fraud and said she would tell her full story once legal proceedings conclude.

Sceptics however point out that Stugeon claimed she did not see a 24 foot long motorhome Murrell had purchased with the funds that was parked outside her mother-in-law’s home for two years, while other aspects of her claims seem implausible.