Moaning Michael Matheson has claimed the iPad scandal that got him banned from Holyrood was “blown out of all proportion”. The former SNP Health Secretary said the political climate had been “completely unforgiving” and claimed there is “no space for error sometimes”.
He also said his house had been broken into and said his children had been taken out of school.
Matheson quit as Health Secretary last year over a near £11,000 bill he racked up on a Holyrood iPad during a family holiday to Morocco. He initially pleaded ignorance and was content for the taxpayer to foot the bill for the data roaming charges.
But after facing sustained questions he finally admitted his children had used the device to stream football.
Matheson, who apologised, was banned from Holyrood for 27 sittings days and had his salary withdrawn for 54 days.
In an interview with the Institute for Government, Matheson reflected on his long ministerial career and his resignation.
He said: “The lesson I would say is recognising how unforgiving the political space is that you’re operating in. In the end, it was my desire to try and avoid the press knowing about what my son had done. It was completely unforgiving, despite the fact that when you offer it up, then they say you’re using it as a cover.”
He continued: “There is no space for error sometimes. When you’re a backbencher, if you do make an error, it’s not the same. But when you’re a minister and you’re a senior minister, you’re going to get chased down and you quite literally get chased down.”
Matheson added: “What you shouldn’t underestimate is the impact that these things can have on your family as well. Because they do have quite a significant impact on your family, particularly my children who were teenagers. For example, it’s in the public record that our house got broken into. Doing all of this: taking the children out of school; my wife becoming unwell with stress.”
“The thing that acted as a big catalyst for me was that, as soon as the general election was called, everything was put on steroids. It became a massive issue because folk saw a political advantage they could get from it. It just got completely blown out of all proportion in my view.”
Matheson had earlier been Justice Secretary and was asked about UK Ministers: “The worst justice secretary I dealt with was Michael Gove because he appeared to have no interest in the portfolio whatsoever and just saw it as being part of his own political career. He didn’t appear to have that much interest in it.”
He also said former First Minister Nicola Sturgeon was “much more interested” in the “detail” of what Ministers were doing than Alex Salmond.
John Swinney said of Matheson’s comments: “The Parliament’s worked its way through all of these issues and it’s come to its conclusions and those conclusions stand. We just have to consider that as the conclusion that Parliament has arrived at.”
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