Former health secretary Michael Matheson is to be sanctioned by a Holyrood committee after breaching its code of conduct over an £11,000 bill he racked up on a parliamentary iPad.
The SNP MSP’s device was used to set up a wifi hotspot during a family holiday to Morocco in December 2022, which he said his children used to watch football.
Mr Matheson initially denied there had been any inappropriate use of the tablet, but later stepped down from his position under mounting pressure.
The Scottish Parliament’s standards committee will announce Mr Matheson’s punishment on Thursday.
The Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body (SPCB) published its findings following an investigation into the incident in March.
Mr Matheson, who apologised and paid the £10,935.74 bill back in full, had said the iPad was used for “parliamentary work” and blamed an “out of date” sim card when details of the charges were first made public.
A breakdown of his data usage showed he had racked up a £7,000 charge in one day.
However he later admitted how it had actually been used.
The SPCB probe found Mr Matheson had breached clauses of the MSP code of conduct which says members must “abide by its policies” and “no improper use should be made of any payment or allowance made to members for public purposes”.
Former first minister Humza Yousaf initially stood by Mr Matheson, who had served in government for 12 years.
Mr Yousaf denied he had been misled by his former health secretary, describing him as a ” man of integrity and honesty”.
However, he admitted Mr Matheson “could have handled the situation better”.
Penalties handed out by the Standards, Procedures and Public Appointments Committee could include a ban from the Scottish Parliament.
The longest banishment doled out to MSPs by Holyrood authorities is one month, which was given to SNP MSP Mark McDonald as a result of a probe into allegations of sexual harassment, and to four Scottish Socialist Party MSPs who were punished for a protest they held in the chamber during First Minister’s Questions.
Mr Matheson will likely come under pressure to resign as an MSP.
However, he previously said he would not stand down.
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