The Scottish Government is being urged to “come clean” over the resignation of the chief executive of the Glasgow 2014 Commonwealth Games.
John Scott stood down from the £180,000-a-year role on Monday after breaching regulations on gifts and gratuities by failing to declare an offer from a potential supplier.
Opposition parties at Holyrood went on the attack on Tuesday as the SNP Government, who are funding around two thirds of the £500 million games, refused to disclose more information about the scandal.
Commonwealth Games minister Shona Robison, the Dundee East MSP, has been informed of the full circumstances and assured The Courier there was “nothing more to it” than has been reported.
But the 2014 operating board has refused to divulge what form the gift took and who offered it, despite being more than 80% taxpayer funded.
Scottish Lib Dem leader Willie Rennie demanded the Scottish Government give the public a “proper explanation” of what led to the resignation amid fears the Games’ reputation was at risk.
“If we are going to have confidence in the running of these games and so they don’t get caught up in the scandals of Olympics past and FIFA present, the Scottish Government needs to come clean,” he said.
Tory deputy leader Murdo Fraser also demanded clarity, calling the resignation a “serious blow” to the games.
“It is clear from the growing confusion that the SNP Government has handled this situation very badly and, by being so secretive, has in fact made it worse,” he added.
Labour’s culture spokeswoman Patricia Ferguson insisted there must be “full public disclosure” of the reasons behind the resignation.
“The public have a right to know the reasons behind the resignation of the chief executive in mysterious circumstances,” she said.
But Ms Robison told The Courier she had “full confidence” in the board.
“There is nothing more to this than has been laid out already. It is very unfortunate but should not reflect on the good work they are doing on the games.”
The Courier understands the resignation came after Mr Scott received free tax advice worth £6000, although this has not been officially confirmed.
Deputy First Minister Nicola Sturgeon later briefed her cabinet colleagues on the situation. After the briefing, a government spokesman said ministers and officials within the Scottish Government are aware of the full situation surrounding Mr Scott’s resignation.
He said Ms Robison, ministers and partner bodies “were all aware of the circumstances.”
Glasgow 2014 pledged to publish the gifts and gratuities register which had been confidential. However, the published document will not include the undeclared offer that Mr Scott accepted and failed to add to the register.
A spokeswoman said the fact that the offer was not officially declared means that it is not fit for inclusion on the register.