Michael Matheson: Scotland's health secretary quits over iPad row

Scotland's health secretary Michael Matheson has resigned ahead of a report into an £11,000 bill that was racked up on his parliamentary iPad.

Mr Matheson said he was standing down because he did not want the row over the bill to become a distraction.

The iPad charges, initially paid out of the public purse, were incurred during a family trip to Morocco in late 2022.

When details of the bill were first made public, he said the device had only been used for parliamentary work.

But he subsequently admitted that his sons had used the iPad as a data hotspot so they could watch football.

He has since paid back the bill in full and apologised.

His resignation comes ahead of the publication of an investigation into the incident by the Scottish Parliament Corporate Body - which has been examining whether Mr Matheson made an improper expenses claim.

In his resignation letter to First Minister Humza Yousaf, Mr Matheson said he had still not received the corporate body's report.

He added: "However, it is in the best interest of myself and the government for me to now step down to ensure this does not become a distraction to taking forward the government's agenda."

When news of the iPad bill first emerged in November, Mr Yousaf initially described it as a "legitimate" expense.

After Mr Matheson admitted his sons had been involved, the first minister resisted calls to sack him and denied he had been misled by the health secretary.

Mr Yousaf accepted the resignation with "sadness".

He said: "It is right that, having requested that the Scottish Parliament Corporate Body review your data roaming charges from last year, that you fully engage with that process as it comes to its conclusion.

"I agree that it is therefore best for you to now step down to ensure you are able to give the parliamentary process the attention it deserves without it becoming a distraction to taking forward the government's agenda."

Mr Matheson, who has served in government for more than 12 years, had been due to give a statement to parliament on Thursday afternoon about changes to minimum unit pricing for alcoholic drinks.

His junior minister, Elena Whitham, also resigned this week, citing health issues.

The Scottish Parliament Corporate Body (SPCB) - which is in charge of Holyrood's finances - is investigating whether an improper claim was made by Mr Matheson on parliamentary resources and whether he failed to follow parliament policies.

It said it would give the minister two weeks to review its draft conclusions.

The SPCB could refer Mr Matheson to the parliament's standards committee. It could also recommend the removal of Mr Matheson's entitlement to reimbursement of expenses.

The body said it would not comment further on the matter while it was being investigated.

In November, it was revealed that a £10,935.74 bill had been charged to Mr Matheson's iPad following a holiday to Morocco with his wife and two sons.

He agreed with parliament in March that he would pay £3,000 from his own office expenses, with the rest to be paid by parliament.

Parliament said he had given an assurance that the device had only been used for constituency business.

When the story was first reported, Mr Matheson blamed an out-of-date Sim card and agreed to pay the money back.

In a statement to parliament two weeks later, he admitted the iPad had been used as a hotspot by his sons so they could watch football.

Resisting calls to resign, Mr Matheson admitted that the issue "could have been dealt with better" but said his initial denial that anyone else had used the device was a "genuine attempt" to try to shield his family.