HEALTH Secretary Neil Gray is to make a statement to parliament amid a row over the use of chauffeur driven cars to attend football games.
The SNP MSP was given VIP seats – as a guest of the Scottish Football Association – three times, once in his current role and two when he was wellbeing economy, fair work and energy secretary.
Those include the Aberdeen v Hibernian match for the semi-final of the League Cup and the final against Rangers last year, as well as the semi-final of the Scottish Cup against Celtic this year.
Speaking on Good Morning Scotland on Monday, acting Net Zero Secretary Gillian Martin said Gray would not have been allowed to use a chauffeur-driven car to attend the games if it was not for official reasons.
Asked why all three games were being played by Aberdeen, she said: “That’s a question for him.”
Civil servants will have had to approve the use of the vehicles, and the Scottish Government has said it is standard practice for “ministers attending events in a ministerial capacity”.
However, opposition parties have been critical, and Gray will now address the Holyrood chamber on the issue on Thursday.
Scottish Conservative deputy leader Rachael Hamilton said that Gray’s “defences are getting weaker by the minute and by delaying the statement to Thursday, it looks like the SNP are buying more time to try and get their story straight”.
She went on: “This scandal reeks of the Michael Matheson affair. Once again, the public seem to be picking up the bill for an SNP minister to watch the football.”
Gray took over as health secretary from Matheson earlier in 2024 following an expenses row. Matheson had billed the taxpayer for an £11,000 iPad roaming charge that he later admitted was clocked up by his sons watching football.
A Scottish Government spokesman said: “The Scottish Government places great importance on the success of Scottish sporting events.
“Not only do they bring significant economic benefits, but they are also a key driver of improving the health and wellbeing of our citizens.
“As the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Sport, Mr Gray attends a number of sporting events such as golf, football and athletics to support workers and players.
“In the past, he has used such visits to announce and promote a number of initiatives, such as the Changing Rooms Extra Time mental health programme.
“Ministers attending events in a ministerial capacity are entitled to use government transport.
“All travel costs are in accordance with travel and subsistence policies to ensure we deliver the best value for money possible for the Scottish public.”
An SNP spokesman said: “This faux outrage from the Tories would have more credibility were it not for the fact that they themselves have repeatedly attended sporting events in their MSP capacity.
“No doubt they did so because they agree with us that it is very important for elected representatives to support Scotland’s thriving sporting events.”
