ALLEGATIONS that £1.5 million may have gone “missing” from Yes Scotland campaign coffers have been dismissed as “grossly defamatory” by a lawyer acting for its former chief.

The claims were made by former SNP branch secretary David Henry and backed by Sean Clerkin — the man whose police complaint led to the arrest and conviction of former SNP chief executive Peter Murrell.

Mr Henry met with Police Scotland officers yesterday morning to hand over a “dossier” they argue casts doubt over accounting at Yes Scotland, the official vehicle for the campaign for separation at the 2014 referendum.

Further concerns were raised by former Yes Scotland marketing director Ian Dommett in the Sunday Mail newspaper that Mr Murrell was in charge of large donations to the campaign and that there was nothing he could do “that wasn’t under Murrell’s control.”

Those claims have, however, been rubbished by Aamer Anwar, the lawyer acting on behalf of former Yes Scotland chief executive Blair Jenkins.

“All of the income received by Yes Scotland is fully accounted for and it is grossly defamatory to say otherwise,” he said.

“There appears to have been a desperate attempt to link Peter Murrell’s criminal conduct in the SNP to the financial affairs of Yes Scotland.

“To make it perfectly clear, Mr Murrell never at any time had access to Yes Scotland’s accounts.”

Pointing out that filed accounts show the £1.5m in question was in fact spent on operating costs including “salaries, the costs of YS HQ in Glasgow, events, publications, and every other expense incurred,” Mr Anwar said: “Johnston Carmichael fulfilled their duty as qualified auditors to report on the campaign spending return and stated that in their opinion it fairly represented Yes Scotland’s campaign expenditure as required by the Scottish Independence Referendum Act 2013.

“A copy of their opinion was provided to the Electoral Commission, all of which was in accordance with the law. 

“The report of the Electoral Commission can be viewed by any member of the public.

“Blair Jenkins has an impeccable reputation and cannot allow highly defamatory allegations to continue unchecked.

“On July 13, due to the falsehoods in the press, Yes Scotland on a voluntary basis provided information to Police Scotland, to assist them in their assessment of a complaint that had reportedly been made.”