Humza Yousaf accused of 'misleading' Holyrood over Nicola Sturgeon WhatsApp scandal

RUTHERGLEN, SCOTLAND – JANUARY 8: Anas Sarwar, Leader of the Scottish Labour Party, is seen giving a speech at Rutherglen Town Hall on January 8, 2024 in Rutherglen, Scotland. The Scottish Labour leader delivered his new year speech. (Photo by Peter Summers/Getty Images)

Humza Yousaf has been accused of “misleading” Parliament in the wake of the scandal of Nicola Sturgeon deleting her Covid WhatsApp messages.

Scots Labour leader Anas Sarwar said the revelation contradicted Yousaf’s claim last year that ‘do not destroy’ notices had been adhered to.

Sturgeon is facing a massive backlash after the UK Covid inquiry confirmed she had retained none of her messages during the pandemic.

She is facing a potential police complaint and will be quizzed by the media next week if she attends Holyrood.

Sarwar raised the issue of data retention with Yousaf in June, asking the First Minister to confirm that all ministers and officials – past and present – had complied with do not destroy instructions.

He also asked Yousaf for a ”guarantee” that all requested emails, texts and WhatsApps would be handed over in full.

The First Minister replied: “Yes, they will. It is important that I abide by the rules of the UK public inquiry and the Scottish public inquiry.

He added: “To ensure that there is simply no doubt whatsoever, any material that is asked for—WhatsApp messages, emails, Signal messages, Telegram messages or whatever—will absolutely be handed over to the Covid inquiries and handed over to them in full.”

In light of the Sturgeon revelations, Sarwar told the BBC: “I think it’s also becoming clearer that Humza Yousaf misled Parliament, because he was unequivocal in saying that every single official and minister would fully comply with the do not destroy notices and hand over all information to the inquiry.

“That’s clearly not happened. Really, really serious. And I think it goes to the heart of trust, a culture of cover up and secrecy at the heart of this SNP government.”

He also said of the WhatsApp row: “There seems to be an industrial scale lying and misleading of the public. And I think that goes beyond a few rotten apples at the top, in terms of ministers.

“It seems that even senior Scottish Government officials were complicit in that misinformation. It is for an inquiry to decide what evidence is relevant, not those that are being investigated, to decide what issues are relevant.

“I think there’s potentially breaches of the law, not just in terms of obstructing a COVID inquiry, but also it seems there’s a deliberate attempt to breach Freedom of Information laws.”

On X, formerly known as Twitter, Sturgeon defended herself: On X, formerly known as Twitter, the former first minister wrote on Saturday: “Contrary to the impression given in some coverage, the Inquiry does have messages between me and those I most regularly communicated with through informal means.”

She added: “Although these had not been retained on my own device, I was able to obtain copies which I submitted to the Inquiry last year.

“To be clear, I conducted the Covid response through formal processes from my office in St Andrews House, not through WhatsApp or any other informal messaging platform. I was not a member of any WhatsApp groups.

“The number of people I communicated with through informal messaging at all was limited.”

A Scottish Government spokesperson said: “The First Minister asked the Permanent Secretary to ensure that all steps are being taken to meet the Inquiry’s requests and for the Solicitor General to satisfy herself that the Scottish Government has met all its legal obligations.

“This process has concluded, and the First Minister is satisfied with the assurances he has received, which confirms that, in responding to the UK and Scottish Covid inquiries, legal advice is being taken and acted upon appropriately.”

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