Nicola Sturgeon announces divorce from Peter Murrell
Nicola Sturgeon has announced her divorce from her long-term partner Peter Murrell, who was previously the chief executive of the Scottish National party.Their decision to split is not unexpected: it is understood Sturgeon moved out of the couple’s home in Baillieston, Glasgow, after Murrell was arrested and later charged last year over the alleged embezzlement of donations to the SNP.Sturgeon was also arrested by Police Scotland detectives in June 2023 and officially remains under investigation as part of Operation Branchform, but has not been charged.Sturgeon, who has been writing a memoir due for publication this year, has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing over the party’s finances.In a post on Instagram, the former first minister of Scotland said: “With a heavy heart I am confirming that Peter and I have decided to end our marriage.
To all intents and purposes we have been separated for some time now and feel it is time to bring others up to speed with where we are.“It goes without saying that we still care deeply for each other, and always will.We will be making no further comment.”Murrell has not commented on the police investigation and has not yet appeared in court.Prosecutors at the Crown Office are still reviewing a Police Scotland report received in September before deciding what further action to take.
Sturgeon and Murrell were for a considerable time the most powerful couple in Scottish politics.She was SNP leader and first minister while Murrell was party chief executive – a relationship that troubled their critics and some allies.Murrell had been chief executive from 2001 and they became a couple in 2003.They married in 2010, while Sturgeon was Alex Salmond’s deputy, after living together for some years as a couple.In an interview last week with the Financial Times, Sturgeon appeared to acknowledge that had a cost.
“It was all-consuming for a long, long time,” she said,An SNP MSP since 1999, Sturgeon is not expected to stand for re-election to the Scottish parliament at the next Holyrood elections in 2026 and is preparing for a life outside mainstream politics,Her recent public appearances have been with her friend, the crime novelist Val McDermid, where the pair have held a series of in-conversation events discussing their love of books with literary guests,Further dates are planned in Glasgow in March,Her interview with the FT appeared to trigger a very rare public statement from Salmond’s widow, Moira, which reignited a simmering feud between Sturgeon and Salmond’s allies and family over his conduct towards staff and colleagues.
A Scottish government report into accusations of misconduct against him from two female civil servants was thrown out by a judge in 2019 for significant procedural irregularities and in 2020 he was cleared by a jury of 13 charges of sexual harassment involving nine women,Sturgeon expressed sympathy for the women who accused Salmond of sexual harassment and said for the first time that Salmond could be a bully,“He would be really rough on people,Many times I intervened to stop him,” she told the newspaper,“I’ve seen the impact not just of what they believe happened to them initially but also the impact of the way he then behaved,” she said about Salmond’s alleged victims.
“It’s been pretty hard.”In a statement issued by her lawyers, Moira Salmond said the family was still grieving his death.“In recent days, it has therefore caused me and the wider family great distress to read the comments of those who seem determined to damage his reputation even in death,” she said.“It is difficult for us to understand what motivates those interventions, especially when such comments are made in the knowledge that Alex cannot defend himself as he would certainly have done.“Those attacking him must know that the law does not allow us, his family, to protect his reputation from being defamed now that he is gone.
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Frasers Group says two-thirds of retail staff are still on zero-hours contracts
The owner of Sports Direct has confirmed that two-thirds of its retail workforce remain on zero-hours contracts ahead of new legislation designed to limit their use.Frasers Group told MPs who are examining plans to strengthen protection for employees that 11,500 staff were on the contracts, which do not guarantee any weekly working shifts, and did not receive compensation even if shifts were changed at the last minute.MPs on parliament’s business and trade select committee also heard that three-quarters (4,000) of the 5,200 people employed at the group’s main warehouse in Derbyshire are agency workers who can be let go without notice, more than eight years after the company promised MPs it would move them on to permanent contracts.The testimony came from Andy Brown, chief people officer at Frasers Group – which owns House of Fraser, the luxury streetwear chain Flannels, Evans Cycles and Sports Direct. He admitted the pace of change was “certainly not fast”, with an average 200 people a year shifting from agency to permanent contracts over the past three years
New year downers are becoming normal at JD Sports | Nils Pratley
It wasn’t a full-on profits warning – more of a 5%-ish trim to forecasts. But JD Sports’ trading update will feel particularly disappointing to its shareholders because this was the second January in a row that the sportswear retailer has delivered a new year downer on profit expectations. The spiel was also identical, more or less.A year ago, the group blamed “more cautious consumer spending” and “an elevated level of promotional activity during the peak trading period”. On Tuesday it cited “a challenging and volatile market that saw increased promotional activity” as revenues fell 1
US sues Elon Musk for allegedly failing to disclose early Twitter stock purchase
A US financial regulator has sued Elon Musk for allegedly failing to disclose his ownership of Twitter stock and later acquiring shares in the company at “artificially low prices”, stiffing other shareholders.The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filed suit against Musk late on Tuesday in Washington DC federal court for alleged securities violations. According to the suit, Musk did not disclose that he had acquired a 5% stake in the company in a timely manner, which allowed him “to underpay by at least $150 million for shares he purchased after his financial beneficial ownership report was due”.Alex Spiro, a lawyer for Musk, told Bloomberg that the SEC’s case amounted to “an admission” that the agency had no case. Musk, Spiro said, “has done nothing wrong and everyone sees this sham for what it is”
Chinese officials reportedly discuss sale of TikTok in US to Elon Musk
Chinese officials have reportedly held preliminary talks about a potential option to sell TikTok’s operations in the US to the billionaire Elon Musk, should the short-video app be unable to avoid an impending ban. Another option is that Musk acts as a broker in a deal to sell the app.Beijing officials prefer that TikTok remains under the control of its Chinese parent, Bytedance, but have discussed other options including a sale to Musk, Bloomberg reported. The Financial Times reported on the same day that the officials had discussed the preliminary possibility of Musk functioning as a go-between for Bytedance and any potential buyer that would prevent the app from being shut down.“We can’t be expected to comment on pure fiction,” a TikTok spokesperson said, responding to the report
Police report says former MLB pitcher Brian Matusz died at 37 of likely overdose
The former Baltimore Orioles pitcher Brian Matusz died at the age of 37 after an apparent drug overdose, according to police documents.The Orioles announced Matusz’s death last week. According to a report by the Phoenix Police Department obtained by the Baltimore Banner, Matusz’s body was found by his mother, Elizabeth, on 6 January after she went to check on him in his home. A lighter, straw and a small square of aluminum foil, often used for ingesting drugs, were near his body. The report says police are not treating the death as suspicious
Man charged with stalking Caitlin Clark disrupts court hearing
A man charged with stalking and harassing basketball star Caitlin Clark was rebuked after becoming disruptive during a court appearance on Tuesday.Michael Lewis, of Denton, Texas, was arrested on Monday at a hotel in Indianapolis, where Clark plays for the Indiana Fever, after allegedly sending threatening messages to the WNBA star, some of which were sexual in nature.The 55-year-old Lewis sat back in his chair when he entered Marion County Superior Court and said “guilty as charged”. He went on to interrupt the proceedings on several occasions, saying “I guess you got the wrong guy”. He also said “I need my medicines” when the court asked him if he had any mental health issues
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