Salmond quits SNP ‘to avert party civil war’

Alex Salmond last night resigned from the SNP after two women accused him of sexually harassing them while he was First Minister. Mr Salmond, who denies the claims, said he had taken the decision to quit the party, which he led for 20 years, amid growing pressure on Nicola Sturgeon to suspend him and to prevent the party descending into civil war. He said he had “not come into politics to facilitate opposition attacks on the SNP” and that he had written to the party’s national secretary with his resignation.

ALEX SALMOND last night resigned from the SNP after two women accused him of sexually harassing them while he was First Minister.

Mr Salmond said he took the decision amid growing pressure on Nicola Sturgeon to suspend him and to stop the party descending into civil war.

The former SNP leader said he intended to reapply for party membership “just as soon as I have had the opportunity to clear my name”. Last night, opposition parties accused Mr Salmond of “abusing his power” as he launched a crowdfunding campaign to raise £50,000 to cover his legal costs. Within hours, it had reached its target.

Ms Sturgeon, his former protegee, who has refused to intervene in the case, said last night she felt a “huge sadness” about the situation regarding her “friend and mentor”. But she added: “The hard fact remains that two complaints were received by the Scottish Government that could not be ignored or swept under the carpet.”

Mr Salmond has pointed the finger at her Government for leaking details of the complaints. Senior nationalist insiders fear a civil war between members supporting Mr Salmond and Ms Sturgeon. The complaints, which Mr Salmond denies, have been handed to Police Scotland following an inquiry led by Leslie Evans, the Government’s most senior mandarin.

According to the Daily Record, in one incident in December 2013, a female member of staff alleges Mr Salmond touched her breasts and bottom through her clothes and only stopped after she repeatedly asked him to.

Mr Salmond has insisted he has never engaged in any “criminality” and is seeking judicial review of the Government’s new complaints procedure.

“It seems obvious that Nicola feels under pressure from other political parties to suspend me from SNP membership, given recent party precedents,” Mr Salmond said in a statement.

“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 the party felt forced into suspending me, it would cause substantial internal division.”

A Scottish Tory spokesman said: “This is an overdue move, but one that plunges Scotland’s 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.”

Rhoda Grant, of Scottish Labour, said. “Decent people will rightly be furious that he is to raise money to take the Government to court. Alex Salmond is... dragging Scotland into the gutter.”