Badenoch questions SNP’s stewardship of Scottish public finances

Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch accused the SNP of mishandling public money and said its record meant Scottish finances required close scrutiny. Speaking after the party’s conference, she argued that ministers’ spending decisions undermined their ability to manage Scotland’s budget and public services.

Badenoch cited the reported £400,000 embezzlement of SNP funds by former chief executive Peter Murrell, an £11,000 taxpayer-funded artist in public finance minister Hannah Mary Goodlad’s office, and plans for more than 30 overseas offices in 34 countries. She also criticised transport minister Stephen Flynn over his response to information about a gas leak on a passenger ferry, and separately questioned the Prime Minister’s reliability after a parliamentary correction concerning an ongoing criminal case.