Scotland’s Prime Minister will not expel Nicola Sturgeon from the party after her arrest

LONDON (Reuters) – Scotland’s First Minister Humza Yousaf said on Monday he would not suspend his predecessor Nicola Sturgeon following her arrest as part of a police investigation into the finances of the ruling, pro-independence Scottish National Party (SNP).

Police are investigating what happened to more than £600,000 ($750,000) in donations raised by Scottish independence activists in 2017, which should have been earmarked but may have been used for other purposes.

Yousaf faced increasing calls from senior members of his party and rival politicians to suspend Sturgeon, her husband Peter Murrell, the party’s former chairman, and the former treasurer. All of them were arrested and then released without charge while investigations continue.

“I see no reason to suspend her membership,” Yousaf told the BBC. He said Sturgeon’s arrest was “personally quite painful” given their “long-standing friendship”.

After her release on Sunday, Sturgeon stated that she had committed no crime and was innocent.

Sturgeon’s arrest marks a dramatic fall from grace for a politician who headed Scotland’s semi-autonomous government for more than eight years until she announced her resignation earlier this year.

Ash Regan, a former candidate for the SNP leadership, called on Sturgeon on Monday to give up her membership while the investigation was ongoing, saying she had become a “distraction”.

Angus MacNeil, one of the SNP’s longest-serving MPs in the British Parliament, called for Sturgeon’s suspension on Sunday. “This soap opera has gone far enough,” he said.

The Labour Party, Britain’s main opposition party, believes the scandal will help it win seats in Scotland, which is likely to be a key battleground in the next national election, expected to take place next year.

Major victories for Labour in Scotland could be crucial for the party to win a majority and return to power in Westminster for the first time since 2010.

(Reporting by Andrew MacAskill and Kylie MacLellan; Editing by Mark Heinrich)