THE SNP’s Westminster group could lose out on more than £1 million if it doesn’t file accounts by the end of May, Stephen Flynn has warned.
The Aberdeen South MP said the party is doing “everything possible” to meet this deadline but finding auditors for the group is proving difficult.
We previously told how accountants Johnston Carmichael took the decision to quit last October after a "review of its client portfolio".
Flynn also revealed that he only became aware of the lack of auditors on February 10, despite becoming the Westminster group’s leader in December.
Separate accounts need to be submitted for the Westminster group by May 31 in order to receive “short money”, public funding for opposition parties to carry out their parliamentary work.
The SNP as a whole is also currently lacking auditors, meaning the Electoral Commission could take action if accounts are not submitted on time.
It comes amid the ongoing police investigation into the SNP’s finances, which saw its former chief executive Peter Murrell and treasurer Colin Beattie arrested earlier this month before both were released without charge pending further investigation.
Flynn was asked about the Westminster group’s difficulty in finding auditors as he appeared on BBC Scotland’s Good Morning Scotland radio programme.
“I thought it would be a relatively straightforward process to go and secure new auditors,” Flynn said.
“That’s obviously proven not to be the case. And it’s proven not to be the case for a number of reasons.
“I understand there is a bit of a shortage within the audit market.
“Obviously, time is an issue as well, as we’re not at the end of the financial year and everyone’s seeking to do the same thing.
“And of course, we've had the additional pressures brought on by the fact that there's been undoubted challenges in relation to the party in recent weeks and months.”
Asked where the Westminster group is in terms of that process, Flynn said they are in the “same space” as the party overall.
“We’re still trying to ensure that we have an auditor in place in order to meet our deadlines, our deadlines, of course, are slightly different.
“We need to have our accounts for short money in place by May 31, I believe.
“So every effort that can be made to ensure that happens is being made and of course we’re in contact with the House of Commons authorities, meantime, in relation to it.”
Flynn said he understands that the SNP will miss out on around £1.2 million in short money if accounts are not submitted by this deadline, describing it as a “situation which is in a state of flux”.
“I think when you're not in control of something, it's best not to make firm commitments as to what could or couldn't happen,” the MP added.
“And obviously, I'm very conscious of the fact that we have staff members who this relates directly to as well.
“So I don't want to be making any commitments that I can keep.”
Asked what protections are in place for staff at Westminster, Flynn said the group are in discussion with the House of Commons authorities.
“I wouldn't want to incur any concern amongst staff that we aren't going to be able to meet our deadlines,” Flynn said.
“We're doing everything possible to ensure that that is the case, and as I'm sure you can imagine, it's probably quite a difficult time for them.”
Flynn also said he became aware of the group’s lack of auditors on February 10, when a party finance official told him so.
It was put to him that his predecessor, Ian Blackford, had said that all “relevant information” was handed over to the new leader during the changeover in December.
Flynn said: “There may well have been discussions between other people but certainly, in relation to myself, I became fully aware of the situation on February 10.”
He said he did not receive the £33,000 salary boost which former Westminster leader Angus Robertson enjoyed.
Flynn said the salary top-up is “not something which I’m overly surprised about” given the additional responsibilities of the role.
Christine Jardine, the LibDems Scottish Affairs spokesperson, dubbed the SNP crisis a “juggernaut of chaos”.
“I feel sorry for junior SNP staff who are being badly let down by those who hold the purse strings,” she said.
“It beggars belief that there could be such a murky lack of transparency at the core of Scotland’s governing party. To make matters worse, the SNP group still hasn’t appointed new auditors, even as the legal deadline for doing so looms closer.
“Scots who want to see SNP parliamentarians focussed on NHS waiting lists, broken down ferries and the sewage being pumped into rivers will be shaking their heads.”
