Desperate evasion! SNP big hitters stall over £660k indy fund in 'car crash interviews'

By TOM GORDON, SCOTTISH DAILY MAIL DEPUTY POLITICAL EDITOR Published: 20:04, 4 June 2026 | Updated: 20:04, 4 June 2026 Two SNP heavyweights have struggled to defend the party raiding a £660,000 ‘ringfenced’ referendum fund in twin ‘car crash interviews’. Party chair Angela Constance and depute leader Keith Brown were accused of ‘desperate evasion’ after appearing in quick succession on BBC Radio Scotland. John Swinney admitted on Wednesday that money raised by the SNP for an independence battle had been spent instead on ‘ongoing activities’, including elections. Critics said the Nationalists ‘hoodwinked’ their own members, who were reassured the money had been set aside for a second referendum. The row added to questions about the SNP’s financial governance in the wake of the Peter Murrell scandal. The ex-chief executive admitted embezzling £400,000 from party funds after a police probe triggered by a 2021 complaint about the Indyref2 cash chanced on his crimes. Party chair Angela Constance claimed fund issue was an internal party matter Depute leader Keith Brown claimed the money was used on ‘a pursuit on a question of a referendum’ Asked where the ringfenced £660,000 had gone, Ms Constance dismissed it as ‘an internal party matter’. She said: ‘The whole raison d’etre of the Scottish National Party is to further the cause of independence. We do that day in, day out.’ Meanwhile, Mr Brown claimed the money was used on ‘a pursuit on a question of a referendum’ rather than a referendum itself.  Scottish Tory deputy leader Rachael Hamilton said: ‘Both these car crash interviews highlighted the desperate evasion from Angela Constance and Keith Brown. ‘They were both at pains to shut down legitimate questions about what has happened to the missing money that independence supporters donated in good faith.’ She added: ‘If John Swinney and other senior SNP figures didn’t have anything to hide over the party’s finances then they would back an inquiry immediately.’ Ms Constance, the SNP’s business convener since 2023, was asked if members were ‘misled’ or ‘even defrauded’ over the referendum fundraising.  The former justice secretary said: ‘The matter, in terms of the original complaint that was made to the police, has been investigated.’ Asked how the SNP would pay for a referendum if Keir Starmer granted Mr Swinney’s request for one, she said: ‘I can assure you that party finances are very healthy.’ Mr Brown, another former justice secretary, said SNP members had ‘absolutely not’ been defrauded or money raised ‘under false pretences’. Asked if people could trust the SNP he said: ‘Yes, people can trust the SNP to pursue our objective of independence.’ Scottish Labour deputy leader Jackie Baillie said: ‘Angela Constance was an embarrassment as she flailed about trying to defend the indefensible.’ The comments below have not been moderated. The views expressed in the contents above are those of our users and do not necessarily reflect the views of MailOnline. By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual We will automatically post your comment and a link to the news story to your Facebook timeline at the same time it is posted on MailOnline. To do this we will link your MailOnline account with your Facebook account. We’ll ask you to confirm this for your first post to Facebook. You can choose on each post whether you would like it to be posted to Facebook. Your details from Facebook will be used to provide you with tailored content, marketing and ads in line with our Privacy Policy.