The Scottish National Party (SNP) announced on 16 November that it would cut staff from its party headquarters from 26-16.
The SNP’s National Executive Committee (NEC) said the staff cuts were aimed to “streamline” party operations.
This comes as the Scottish Parliament elections in 2026 approach with polling indicating competition to the SNP from Labour.
Statistics have shown that funding for the SNP has dramatically decreased over the past few years.
In 2024, 81 per cent of the SNP’s finances came from membership fees compared to 2015 when memberships only made up 35 per cent in party funding.
Donations to the SNP have decreased dramatically and in August 2024 it was revealed that the SNP lost 10,000 members.
Currently the SNP is the largest party in Scotland with 65,000 members, but this is half the amount following the 2014 Independence Referendum.
The SNP is also under an ongoing finance probe following Peter Murrell, former SNP Chief Executive and husband of former First Minister First Nicola Sturgeon, being charged with embezzling funds.
Since the financing scandal erupted back in 2023, the SNP went on to lose 39 seats in the 2024 UK General Election.
Scottish Conservative Deputy leader Rachael Hamilton said the SNP’s financial troubles were not surprising:
“Given the SNP’s woeful mismanagement of the nation’s finances, it’s not surprising the party is facing money struggles of its own.”
However, SNP leader in the House of Commons Stephen Flynn defended the staff cuts, saying they were necessary “to make sure that the party’s in the best condition possible going into the 2026 elections”.
The SNP has been in power in the Scottish Parliament since 2007, but their financial stituation and declining popularity may pose additional challenges for them in the 2026 Scottish Parliament elections.
“Debating chamber, Scottish Parliament (31-05-2006)” by User:pschemp is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.