Nicola Sturgeon refused to be drawn on the half a million pound legal costs paid to Alex Salmond when she went campaigning in Shetland yesterday.
The first minister visited the islands for the second time to canvass support before this month’s by-election to replace the previous incumbent, Tavish Scott of the Lib Dems.
Asked about the £512,250 the Scottish Government has been made to pay Mr Salmond, Ms Sturgeon said there was very little she could say while criminal proceedings were being taken against her predecessor.
The cash was paid for his legal costs relating to the botched Scottish Government investigation into complaints made about his behaviour while he was first minister.
Mr Salmond took the Scottish Government to court, which found that the government’s actions had been “unlawful” when looking into sexual harassment allegations, which Mr Salmond has denied.
Mr Salmond faces charges of attempted rape and sexual assault in a separate criminal case. He denies the charges.
Ms Sturgeon said: “This is subject to criminal proceedings at the moment; so I am not able to get into any of this.
“On the story that is in the news today, the civil court case was settled earlier in the year, I made a statement in parliament at that time.
“In the fullness of time and once the criminal proceedings are out of the way, there has already been the intention stated for parliament to look into the circumstances of this. Given the circumstances of the wider issue, I really can’t say any more about it.”
Ms Sturgeon spent the day at the Cunningsburgh Show after visiting a community bike project and Shetland Farm Dairies with SNP candidate Tom Wills.
Ms Sturgeon said: “The people of Shetland deserve the right to choose a different path than what’s being forced upon us by an out-of-touch, right-wing Tory government with no mandate in Scotland.”
Mr Wills said: “Scotland has been sidelined and silenced by Westminster from the very start of this Brexit process, but we can change that if we make our voices heard.
“More and more people are ready to vote SNP in this by-election, many of them for the first time.”
