Cole-Hamilton responds to latest Scot Gov WhatsApp revelations

Responding to the First Minister suggesting that there was an official policy in place to destroy Scottish Government WhatsApp messages containing discussions of Covid policy, Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Alex Cole-Hamilton said:

“The covid rules themselves were well documented, what matters for the inquiry is how they were decided and the thought process behind them.

“Scottish Liberal Democrats and other transparency campaigners have consistently argued that ministers and advisers use WhatsApp to evade transparency requirements.

“The idea that there was an official policy to regularly destroy WhatsApp messages risks this looking like a conspiracy against the public.

“Even Richard Nixon wasn’t shameful enough to destroy the Watergate tapes.”