Salmond claims ‘malicious’ SNP chiefs conspired to have him jailed
●Former First Minister names senior party figures including Sturgeon’s husband in explosive evidence ●Sturgeon insists ‘not a shred of evidence’ to support his ‘wild’ allegations in pre-emptive TV interview
Alex Salmond has demanded those involved in the botched handling of harassment complaints against him resign amid accusations those at the top of the SNP and the Scottish Government were engaged in a “deliberate, prolonged, malicious and concerted effort” to expel him from public life.
In his final submission to the Salmond inquiry, the former first minister directly accused named members of the SNP and other members of Ni cola sturgeon’ s staff of attempting to “recruit and persuade” individuals to submit police complaints against him.
Placing the blame of the failed harassmentcomplaints procedure at the foot of permanent secretary Leslie Evans, the former leader of the SNP said “any person conscious of the responsibility of holding high office would have resigned long ago”.
The Crown Office is also criticised, with Mr Salmond labelling it “simply not fit for purpose” and accusing it of behaviour that is not “of a prosecution department independent of government influence”.
The publication of his evidence comes as Mr Salmond confirmed he will give evidence to the harassment complaints committee in person tomorrow, despite what his team labelled as “unnecessary” redactions to his submissions.
Shortly before last night’s publication, Ms Sturgeon gave interviews to the BBC and STV in which she said Mr Salmond does not have “a shred of evidence” to back up his claims of conspiracy. The First Minister said it was time for her predecessor to “replace the insinuation and assertion” with evidence, something she believes he cannot do.
The committee is examining the
The head of the union for civil servants has launched a scathing attack on the MSPS at the heart of the investigation into the Scottish Government’s handling of harassment complaints against Alex Salmond.
Dave Penman, the general secretary of the FDA, criticised the handling of the Salmond inquiry by MSPS and said civil servants had been treated with “almost open hostility".
He also accused inquiry members of making“derogatory comments” about civil servants and “deliberately misquoting” oral evidence.
Mr Penman’s comments come after it was reported the Scottish Government’s permanent secretary, Leslie Evans, is set to be "thrown under a bus” by SNP members of the committee.
Ms evans is one of several civil servants who have come under serious scrutiny for their role in the development of the harassment complaints process and their handling of the complaints themselves.
The committee is examining the botched handling of harassment complaints against Mr Salmond by the Scottish Government, which led to a £500,000 legal bill after the Government conceded a judicial review challenge on the grounds of the process being “tainted by apparent bias”.
Mr Salmond was also acquitted of sexual offence charges in a trial last year.
Speaking to the scots man, mr Pen man said there was little surprise MSPS were being accused of having reached a conclusion on the matter before the inquiry had concluded its work.
He said: “From the outset, members of the Holyrood committee have operated with almost open hostility towards civil servants, including an initial attempt to seek evidence in a way that could have caused them to breach the Civil Service Code.
“They chose to operate in a quasi-judicial manner, requiringevidence under oath, yet the obligations this brings appear only to apply to witnesses and not to the committee itself.
"Committee members have made points or personal remarks during questioning, including deliberately misquoting a response on official record made by one witness when questioning another.
“They have been happy to make public comment, as well as re tweeting press articles that make derogatory comments about civil servants and their evidence.
"Is it any wonder that this leads to a perception that some of the committee members reached a conclusion long before the process was concluded?” Responding, the Scottish Conservatives, who have two members on the committee in Margaret Mitchell and Murdo Fraser, said the inquiry had become “farcical” and Mr Penman was attempting “to distract” from the issues raised.
A spokesperson said: "Our committee members have acted with courtesy and professionalism as they attempt to find out why the female complainers were failed by the SNP Government.
"The committee's work has been routinely obstructed and numerous senior civil servants, including Scotland's most senior, have been required to correct their evidence.”
Couples who have plans to be married in the next few months have been left with further uncertainty after Nicola Sturgeon warned that a return to normality for the wedding industry is unlikely in the near future.
She said people coming together in a social situation was one of the most likely ways to spread the virus.
The Scottish Wedding Industry Alliance (SWIA) has called for weddings to recommence with a minimum of 50 guests, with preventive measures in place.
Existing rules in Scotland allow wedding ceremonies to take place with up to five people, including the couple married, witnesses and the officiant.
A poll by the SWIA found that 50 is the minimum number of guests that most couples say they would be happy to go ahead with and also the number of guests the industry feels is needed to make events viable for businesses.
Ms Sturgeon warned that lockdown easing would be gradual .
She said: “Everybody wants to be the first priority and I absolutely understand that. Every sector I speak to will say ‘we can offer a Covidsecure environment’ and I don’t doubt the effort and hard work and investment that goes into that.
"But we know from experience, with the best will in the world, that when we bring groups of people together, particularly in a social setting, the virus spreads and we ignore that at our peril.”