Sturgeon tells BBC: I'm serving a sentence for crime I didn't commit

Nicola Sturgeon has told the BBC she feels like she is "serving a sentence for a crime I did not commit" after her estranged husband admitted embezzling £400,000 from the SNP, the party she led for years.

In an exclusive interview with Laura Kuenssberg, Scotland's former first minister refused to apologise for the scandal and struggled to hold back tears, recalling gifts from Peter Murrell that turned out to have been purchased with stolen money.

Sturgeon told the BBC: "I am not responsible for the crimes that my former husband committed and I'm not going to apologise for somebody else's crimes."

She has consistently denied any knowledge of Murrell's wrongdoing, committed between 2010 and 2022.

The former first minister was not charged following a police investigation.

Sturgeon was SNP party leader between 2014 and 2023 and in that role shared responsibility for monitoring the party's accounts.

In the interview, broadcast on Sunday, Sturgeon said: "For my own sake, but for the sake of people out there, a lot of women who end up finding themselves blamed for the actions of the men in their lives, I'm not going to contribute to that kind of sense that I am responsible for somebody else's crimes."

She added: "I will take responsibility for the things I do, the decisions I make. I'm sitting here with you right now, answering questions because I believe strongly in that accountability.