Why has Peter Murrell not been suspended from the SNP?

Another tough week for the Scottish National party has come to a close, leaving viewers wondering what could possibly come next. Surely the nats will do all they can to toe the line to ensure the party’s reputation doesn’t diminish still further? But contradictions and hypocrisy remain in full swing at SNP HQ, with First Minister Humza Yousaf today confirming that Peter Murrell, the former chief executive of the party arrested last week over a police investigation into party finances has not been suspended from the party. 

Yousaf’s admission has ruffled a rather large number of feathers – not least among one of his own colleagues, the nationalist MSP Michelle Thomson. Back when she was an MP Thomson was suspended by the party while the police investigated whether her property dealings involved mortgage fraud. The difference, however, was that police sources made clear that Thomson herself was not the subject of an investigation.