Nicola Sturgeon defends 'no comment' stance during Operation Branchform police interview

Nicola Sturgeon has defended her reported decision to give "no comment" answers while being interviewed by police following her arrest.

The former first minister was quizzed by detectives as part of Operation Branchform, an investigation into Scottish National Party (SNP) funding and finances.

Ms Sturgeon was later told by Police Scotland that she would face no further action following direction from the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service.

On Monday, Ms Sturgeon's estranged husband Peter Murrell, 61, pleaded guilty to embezzling £400,310.65 from the SNP while the party's chief executive.

Murrell used the funds to bankroll a lavish lifestyle, which included luxury goods such as a £4,225 fountain pen, salt and pepper grinders costing £2,618, a £3,231 coffee machine, and a £124,550 state-of-the-art motorhome.

Ms Sturgeon was arrested in June 2023 as part of the probe, and, according to the Scottish Sun, reportedly "sat in silence for hours" at Falkirk police station and gave "no comment" answers to detectives.

In a statement issued on behalf of Ms Sturgeon, solicitor Aamer Anwar stressed that the answer is standard legal advice, and rejected claims that the move hindered the investigation.

Mr Anwar said: "In relation to the advice tendered to Ms Sturgeon to make no comment, this was by her solicitor, formerly a very senior crown counsel at Crown Office."

The lawyer added that Ms Sturgeon later insisted on providing a "detailed written response" to Police Scotland questions.

He said: "The idea that a highly resourced inquiry was hampered by a no comment interview is nonsensical.

"Had there been any evidence whatsoever of criminality against Ms Sturgeon, there can be no doubt that this gold-plated investigation would have led to Ms Sturgeon being charged and prosecuted.

"To make it abundantly clear, it was not the role of the first minister to sign off accounts - that was for the party treasurer.

"There appears to be an assumption that as FM [first minister], when Mr Murrell was busy buying multiple pens or pepper pots etc she was with him, Ms Sturgeon was not as unsurprisingly she was busy with other matters."

Scottish Conservative leader Russell Findlay said: "Did she never think to ask Peter where the money was coming from?"

In a statement issued after Murrell's admission of guilt, Ms Sturgeon said she was unaware of his spending sprees, and had no idea about the pricey campervan until it became part of the police probe in early 2023.

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Ms Sturgeon added: "In respect of any items I was aware of Peter having purchased, I had no reason to doubt that he had used his own money.

"We were both earning high salaries, and, due to the responsibilities of my job, rarely socialised or went on holidays.

"We had separate bank accounts, and I had no access to his financial records."

On Wednesday, John Swinney rejected growing calls by opposition politicians and former SNP colleagues such as Joanna Cherry KC and Alex Neil for an independent investigation into his party's finances.

The first minister said: "The police investigation has led to a criminal case.

"There has been a prosecution and there has been a guilty plea and there will be sentencing taking place as a consequence. So, all these issues have been looked at.

"We know what the problem was - the problem was criminal behaviour and the police have identified that and the individual involved has been prosecuted.

"You cannot get any inquiry more detailed than a police inquiry, and I think we should all respect the fact there has been a detailed inquiry into all the issues."

Murrell will be sentenced next month.

(c) Sky News 2026: Nicola Sturgeon defends 'no comment' stance during Operation Branchform police interview