Sturgeon 'misunderstood rules' and forgot to declare thousands in perks for ITV gig

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NICOLA Sturgeon has admitted forgetting to declare thousands of pounds worth of perks as part of her ITV night election gig.

The former First Minister said she had made an “error” over the July 4 polling job which saw her paid £25,000 for eight hours on television.

Sturgeon, who has come under fire for taking around £3000 an hour to talk about politics while still an elected politician, was late to register her £2800 hotel and £400 travel arrangements provided during the show.

According to parliamentary rules for MSPs they have 30 days after receiving the benefit or payment to register it with authorities.

Sturgeon received the hotel stay and car travel between June 30 and July 5 but only registered them on October 7 - more than two months late.

A spokeswoman for the Glasgow Southside MSP said there had been a “misunderstanding” about the rules which caused the delay but insisted Sturgeon had still kept within the rules by registering the earnings as soon as she remembered she had to do so.

She said: “Due to an initial misunderstanding of the requirements in relation to the expenses for the appearance, these were registered slightly late but within the provisions of the Code of Conduct on late registrations.

“When Nicola realised the error herself, she took immediate steps to update the register.”

But opponents have criticised the former first minister for failing to comply with the rules on time.

Alba party general secretary Chris McEleny said: “It’s incredible how quickly Nicola Sturgeon seems to have forgotten that she has to abide by the rules of parliament but is it really a surprise given she appears to have forgotten about her job as an MSP?

“Nicola’s problem is that for years she threw people to the wolves in an attempt to look whiter than white and now it is coming back to haunt her.

“When Wendy Alexander was forced to resign she said she had been ‘the author of her own misfortune”. I’m afraid for Nicola Sturgeon she is now the author of her own misfortune.

“If she thinks others should resign for their mistakes then why doesn’t that same logic apply to her?”

When former Tory leader Ruth Davidson was paid £7500 to commentate throughout ITV’s general election coverage in 2019 the SNP called for her to resign.

Douglas Ross was also challenged to quit by the SNP when he was late to declare thousands of pounds in earnings as a football linesman.

Scottish Conservative MSP Annie Wells said: “This appears to be a breach of the rules by Nicola Sturgeon. Given she has sat in Parliament since it opened, she should have been aware of them.

“She should clearly apologise for this late declaration.

“Having received a huge sum for appearing on TV, the least she should have done is to have kept her house in order.”

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Scottish Labour deputy leader Jackie Baillie said: “Nicola Sturgeon’s SNP scolded other politicians for using TV appearances to pick up pay cheques, yet it seems that these scruples can be forgotten when the price is right.

“The former First Minister seems to have also forgotten she is a serving MSP — she now owes it to her constituents to make clear whether she intends to play a part in this Parliament or not.”

A Scottish Parliament spokesman said registering financial interests was “the responsibility of each Member...in accordance with the Interests of Members of the Scottish Parliament Act 2006.”

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