Salmond quits the SNP after sex pest claims
aLEX Salmond last night quit the SnP amid sexual misconduct claims – and pleaded with the public to help raise £50,000 for his legal showdown with the Scottish government.
the former SnP leader ended 45 years as a member of the party nearly a week after the revelations that two women had accused him of sexual misconduct while he was first minister.
Mr Salmond said his former protegee nicola Sturgeon was under growing pressure to throw him out the SnP and that the issue could cause ‘substantial internal division’ in the party.
and the former MP made an extraordinary plea to supporters to help cover the ‘ huge’ costs of a judicial review in the Court of Session over the investigation carried out by the government he once led.
Last night around 1,000 people had pledged nearly £30,000 of the crowdfunding target.
Meanwhile, Police Scotland is ‘ assessing’ the claims against Mr Salmond.
in a statement released last night, Mr Salmond said: ‘i have been a member of the SnP for 45 years, 20 of them as party leader and seven as first minister of Scotland. i hope i have done the party and the broader cause of independence some service.’
Denying the allegations, he said: ‘in this case confidentiality has been broken to my detriment and in a way which puts at serious risk the anonymity of both complainants.
‘ it urgently needs to be established who breached that duty of confidence and why. it seems obvious that nicola feels under pressure from other political parties to suspend me from SnP membership, given recent party precedents. For my part i have always thought it a very poor idea to suspend any party member on the basis of complaints and allegations. innothe
‘Plunges party into turmoil’
cent until proven guilty is central to our concept of justice.
‘However, i did not come into politics to facilitate opposition attacks on the SnP and, with Parliament returning next week, i have tendered my resignation to remove this line of opposition attack. Most of all i am conscious that if party felt forced into suspending me it would cause substantial internal division.’
He said that he would reapply for SnP membership when he clears his name.
appealing for financial help, he said: ‘the costs of a judicial review in the highest court in the land are huge. Many have asked how they can help directly. therefore i have established a crowdfunder to assist with costs. any money left over will be used to support good causes in Scotland and beyond.’
a spokesman for the Scottish Conservatives said: ‘this is an overdue move, but one that plunges the governing party into turmoil. the fact he now has the brass neck to publicly crowdfund in the same breath as seemingly doing the right thing is astonishing.’