As the SNP struggles to recruit replacement auditors, how much worse will the crisis get?
As political opponents try to create the perception of a leader compromised, how does Humza Yousaf deal with the SNP's biggest crisis in decades?
Thursday 20 April 2023 15:52, UK
The latest chapter of the extraordinary SNP soap opera reveals a deepening crisis.
Humza Yousaf being forced to deny the governing party of Scotland is facing bankruptcy shows just how much the new regime is bogged down in scandal.
Political opponents accused the first minister of being "compromised" as the police probe surrounding SNP finances intensifies. They are trying to create a whiff of a leader not in control.
The Scottish National Party boss, who is also stepping in as temporary treasurer after the incumbent was arrested, told reporters they still owed cash to former chief executive Peter Murrell. Nicola Sturgeon's husband was also recently detained - and later released without charge - by detectives.
Yousaf refused to reveal how much of the £100,000 loan Murrell gave to the SNP was still outstanding.
In yet another huddle with reporters, the first minister attempted to draw a line under the constant commentary on the health of the SNP accounts. But the issues remain of deep public interest and will not abate.
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Another headache is the SNP's lack of auditors. The accounting firm it worked with for years quit last year, despite that being concealed from Humza Yousaf until he became first minister.
It has left the state of the accounts in a dangerous position as all political parties need to submit fully audited papers to the Electoral Commission by July - or face heavy penalties.
It is very telling that the SNP still cannot recruit a replacement firm. What does that tell us?
Read more:
Who is at the centre of the police investigation into the SNP?
Why have senior SNP executives been arrested and what are police investigating?
The first minister has pushed the transparency button hard since taking over from Nicola Sturgeon a few weeks ago with repeated attempts to distance himself from the problems of the past.
Yousaf, who was branded the "continuity candidate", and his new squad of ministers are dealing with the biggest hangover the SNP has suffered in decades.