John Swinney won't say whether Nicola Sturgeon should hand back Peter Murrell gifts

Scotland's First Minister John Swinney has said it is for the courts to decide whether Nicola Sturgeon should be forced to give back gifts bought for her by Peter Murrell using embezzled SNP cash.

SNP leader Mr Swinney also said he had no knowledge of Murrell and his family reportedly selling their Portuguese villa before the ex-SNP chief executive claimed legal aid during his embezzlement case.

Ms Sturgeon has acknowledged that some of the gifts she received from her estranged husband were bought using cash embezzled from party members.

Murrell, who embezzled £400,310.65, admitted to using SNP money to pay for goods that included a 9ct gold pendant he bought for Ms Sturgeon.

Speaking in Glasgow on Monday, Mr Swinney was asked whether Ms Sturgeon should return any items bought for her with such funds.

He said: "There's a process under way involving the Crown, which has made representations to the court about a confiscation order, which will relate to all of these different issues.

"So, I think it's best if I leave that to the court to decide on these particular issues, because they will be material to the judgment that's got to be arrived at in response to the claim made by the Crown."

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Murrell is set to face legal action to recover the money he embezzled from his party - which he ran as chief executive from 2001 to 2023.

The 61-year-old used false invoices and fake expenses to bankroll a lavish lifestyle, which included the purchase of a state-of-the-art motorhome.

It was reported at the weekend that Murrell and his family sold their jointly-owned villa in Portugal after receiving legal aid.

Mr Swinney said he had "no knowledge" of the sale but that legal aid claims were "assessed on the basis of very strict criteria".

He added the Scottish Legal Aid Board (SLAB) has said it was satisfied "that the correct judgments have been pursued".

Last week, Mr Swinney revealed his party had "opened up discussions" with HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) amid concerns Murrell's embezzlement may have led to illegal VAT claims.

Opposition parties are also calling for a Holyrood inquiry into the SNP - something not supported by the party.

Ms Sturgeon earlier spoke of the "pain" and "bewilderment" she felt after discovering that some of the gifts Murrell gave her had been purchased with money he embezzled, including the £425 gold necklace he bought for her from a shop in Shetland that she was often pictured wearing.

"I loved that necklace and I wore it a lot," the former first minister said in an interview.

"And this is the other thing, the idea that I would have gone about wearing things that I had known were anything other than what they were presented as, a gift from my husband.

"And to then find out that these were gifts given to me that he'd bought with the party's money causes a level of, I don't know, pain, bewilderment... I'm going to try. I am just not sure I will ever properly come to terms with that."

Ms Sturgeon said she felt like she was "serving a sentence for a crime I did not commit".

A spokesperson for SLAB said: "Unlike civil legal aid, SLAB don't have any specific powers in criminal legal aid to recover (clawback) any assets which may be released to Peter Murrell at the end of the case to offset the legal aid costs.

"However, we are considering if there are other legal measures that might be used to safeguard the legal aid fund in this event.

"We would work with the Scottish government and the legal profession if it was decided that the current powers in criminal legal aid to recover assets which may be released at the end of a case to offset legal aid costs should be reviewed as part of the reform process."

(c) Sky News 2026: John Swinney won't say whether Nicola Sturgeon should hand back Peter Murrell gifts