Michael Matheson has asked parliamentary authorities for more time to respond to a critical report into his £11,000 iPad bill.
The former health secretary resigned from his government role earlier this month after months of pressure over the huge data roaming charge.
It is understood he has requested an extension to respond to the findings of a probe by Holyrood’s corporate body about his behaviour around running up the huge data roaming charge.
He was given a copy of the initial findings two weeks ago, with the report including an allegation that he misled the presiding officer, on February 8 and told he had two weeks to respond.
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His allies have said that he requires an extension to properly address the conclusions of the report.
“He needs more time to go through it,” a source close to Mr Matheson told The Times.
Mr Matheson is not believed to be in Holyrood today.
It is understood there will be an update by the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body later today.
The Herald was told there will be a statement today when the paper inquired if Mr Matheson will be given an extension to respond to the initial findings.
After the huge bill was disclosed on November 8, Mr Matheson initially claimed it was for “parliamentary business” but after a public outcry he was forced to admit it had been run up by his teenage sons watching football matches online during a family holiday to Morocco.
Douglas Ross, the Scottish Conservative leader, said Mr Matheson’s request, which was first reported by The Scotsman, appeared to be him “shamefully trying to string out the publication of this report for as long as possible, and people will rightly question why”.
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He added: “This investigation has dragged on for a ridiculous amount of time and given this centred on Michael Matheson’s phone and his own actions it’s difficult to understand what would be in the report that he needs so much more time to consider.
“He eventually resigned in disgrace a fortnight ago — months too late — having lied to parliament and the public. If he had a shred of dignity left, he would accept the findings of this report and any consequences that flow from it rather than stalling for time.”
Under parliamentary rules, Mr Matheson will receive £12,712 because he is entitled to 25 per cent of his £50,849 ministerial salary. This is £1,777 more than he eventually paid back for his iPad data bill.
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A Scottish parliament spokesman said: “For reasons of fairness to all, and confidentiality of process, we will not comment while the parliamentary investigation is ongoing. The Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body remains committed to openness and transparency and will release all material it can, when it can, in line with its legal obligations.”
A spokesman for the First Minister said today that Mr Yousaf had not seen the SPCB report into Mr Matheson's iPad bill or knew why he had asked for an extension.
A spokesman for Mr Matheson said: “Questions on process are a matter for parliament.”
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