The Scottish National Party (SNP) has plunged into a deeper crisis following the arrest and brief detention of former Scottish Prime Minister Nicola Sturgeon as part of an investigation into party financing and financing.

In the afternoon, police in Scotland confirmed her arrest. In a separate statement, it was announced that a 52-year-old woman had been arrested as a suspect in connection with an ongoing investigation. She was eventually released without charge.

An update on the Scottish National Party funding and funding investigation.

Learn more: https://t.co/0zR05TnK4o pic.twitter.com/WNA9OTJX3Q

— Police Scotland (@PoliceScotland) June 11, 2023

Authorities are investigating whether the £600,000 ($754,000) SNP donation was used to support the campaign for Scottish independence for other purposes.

As part of this investigation in April last year they were arrested former leader of the SNP and husband of Sturgeon, Peter Merrelland Colin Beatty, former Chancellor of the Exchequer of Scotland. Both were released at the time as the investigation continued.

The turbulent period of the SNP

Sturgeon has led the party and the semi-autonomous Scottish government since late 2014. until February, when she announced her unexpected resignation.

Although the investigation is still ongoing and no one has been prosecuted, her arrest it is the culmination of a period of political upheaval within the ranks of the SNP.with as yet unknown consequences.

In addition, he overshadows an important political figure who reduced Scottish independence to the cusp of her tenurewhile significantly influencing the outcome of national elections in the United Kingdom.

She has been one of Britain’s most popular politicians in recent years, challenging the country’s Conservative prime ministers directly on the most burning, urgent or contentious issues, from austerity measures to Brexit to the fight against the coronavirus pandemic.

Sturgeon’s policy was not closed and localist, but appealed to the international community for he envisioned an independent Scotland that would be present and active in the international arena. Recall also that in the 2016 referendum on Brexit, Scotland voted to remain in the EU.

Her departure from the premiership and leadership of the SNP occurred when she tried, unsuccessfully, to “impose” the London government another referendum on independence. Her departure changed the relationship in this area.

However, she stepped down as leader of a party and a country with 5.5 million citizens between intensive fission in SNP and his main goal of independence from the United Kingdom was not achieved.

The police investigation and its dramatic aftermath has seen her successor, Humza Yousaf, struggle to rally the party in the aftermath of a divisional leadership race. The results of his tenure, as well as his ability to reunite the party, will be put to the test for the first time in the next national elections.

In a speech to the Scottish Parliament on April 18, Youssef presented what he called a “fresh start” aimed at reducing poverty, supporting businesses and using green growth opportunities to boost the economy.

According to John Curtis, professor of political science at the University of Glasgow, the SNP trials could benefit Britain’s main opposition Labor Party as it attempts to regain popularity in Scotland and topple Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s Conservatives in the general election. January 2025.

Pressure for “deportation”

Now the pressure on Youssaf to disown Sturgeon is mounting.

“This soap opera has gone too far. Nicola Sturgeon fired others from the SNP for much less. Time for political distancing until the investigation is somehow concluded,” tweeted SNP MP Angus McNeill.

“For far too long, a culture of secrecy and cover-up has been at the heart of the SNP,” said British MP Ian Murray.

“The SNP is still mired in darkness and chaos. Now Humza Yusuf must take the lead and push his predecessor out of the SNP. The SNP set this precedent when politicians such as Michelle Thompson and Natalie McGarry were under investigation. And he should do it again in this case,” said Greg Hoy, Tory leader in Scotland.

“I know there will be people either from the opposition or from the media who have already written off the SNP,” Youssaf told the BBC ahead of his predecessor’s arrest, noting at the time that “the SNP has gone through some of the most difficult weeks that it has ever encountered in its modern history.”

The investigation against Sturgeon marks a new round of difficulties for the party and political instability.

Source: Bloomberg/CNN/Associated Press/Telegraph.