One of Alex Salmond’s sex abuse accusers benefited from almost £100,000 of public money from Scottish Government agencies after she made allegations against him in court. The woman was a director of a company that received the money from two sources in the 18 months after the former First Minister’s trial.
WhatsApp messages reveal SNP involvement
WhatsApp messages show that the woman was visited by a senior SNP official in January 2019 and that the party’s now jailed former chief executive Peter Murrell was keen to get her permission to pass a complaint from her to police. In another message, Chief Operating Officer Sue Ruddick said she hoped the woman would get “back in the game”.
In court, the woman said she had felt “hunted” by Salmond, who she claimed had “pounced on her” after a dinner at Bute House in June 2014. Under cross examination, she denied making up the allegation after defence lawyer Shelagh McCall QC suggested the woman was not at Bute House on either date she claimed to have been attacked.
Salmond cleared, legal action continues
Salmond was ultimately cleared of all charges against him in March 2020. Earlier this year, we revealed WhatsApps which appear to show senior SNP figures conspiring against the former First Minister. He believed former SNP colleagues including Nicola Sturgeon plotted to bring him down and was suing the Scottish Government at the time of his death in October 2024. The case has now been picked up by millionaire businessman Paul McManus, who has said he “strongly believes” there was a plot.
Scottish Conservative justice spokesman Stephen Kerr MSP said: “The SNP has serious questions to answer over almost £100,000 of taxpayers’ cash handed to a company linked to one of the most explosive trials in Scottish political history. Taxpayers will rightly be asking why public money was handed out and what senior SNP figures meant by getting this woman ‘back in the game’. John Swinney must get to the bottom of this and explain exactly what went on behind closed doors.”
Calls for public inquiry
Former SNP Justice Secretary and Salmond ally Kenny MacAskill said: “It is clear to me that a number of people at the heart of the SNP conspired against Alex and were determined to see him go to jail. There should be a public inquiry because this was an attack on our country’s democracy. This is yet more reason why we need to know the full truth of this sorry chapter. Alex Salmond was treated shamefully and Paul McManus is doing a sterling job of trying to get to the truth.”
The WhatsApp messages we published in April covered a four-month period between September 2018 and January 2019, during which an “unlawful” and “biased” Scottish Government misconduct probe against Salmond collapsed and police began a criminal investigation. The late SNP leader went on to be cleared of 13 sexual misconduct charges at Edinburgh High Court.
In a pre-trial court hearing, Salmond’s defence lawyer Gordon Jackson KC told Lady Dorrian texts between complainants, Scottish Government officials and SNP members raised questions about an orchestration of some of the allegations. He told Lady Dorrian the defence believed “there was a concerted effort made by people in the government to influence the process, to get it as best they could in terms of criminal prosecution”. He alleged those efforts were motivated by revenge because Salmond had won his judicial review in January 2019, after the Scottish Government admitted it had botched an internal inquiry into two sexual harassment complaints against him.
Lady Dorrian refused to allow much of that material to be used in court but allowed other messages to be admitted as evidence. The messages reveal that senior figures privately doubted their experiences amounted to criminal offences. One woman was also furious her name had been given to detectives without consent. They also show SNP management discussing attempts to round up potential complainers.
As well as McManus’s legal action, there has been a long-running dispute between Scotland’s information commissioner David Hamilton and the Scottish Government over the release of the so-called “Salmond files”. Hamilton has claimed there is a culture of secrecy within public bodies.
Timeline of key events
October 31, 2017: Ministers order a review of the Scottish Government’s “policies and processes for addressing inappropriate conduct” in the wake of sexual harassment scandals in politics and showbiz. This is led by permanent secretary Leslie Evans.
December 2017: Nicola Sturgeon signs off the government’s new process for dealing with complaints of sexual harassment and misconduct which can be applied to ex-ministers.
January 2018: Two female staff members make formal complaints to the Scottish Government about Alex Salmond’s conduct, dating back to when he was first minister in December 2013. An internal inquiry is established and an investigating officer appointed.
August 2018: Allegations against Salmond are made public. He announces he is launching a legal challenge and resigns from the SNP.
September 2018: Police Scotland says it has launched a probe into complaints against him.
January 8, 2019: The government concedes defeat in Salmond’s judicial review. The court declares the government’s inquiry unlawful and biased and Salmond is awarded £512,000 in legal costs.
January 24, 2019: Salmond is arrested and charged with 13 counts of sexual assault and one breach of the peace. He denies all criminality.
March 2020: The former First Minister is cleared of all charges after a trial at Edinburgh High Court.
