Salmond in legal win over sex claim inquiry
FORMER first minister Alex Salmond has won a legal battle in his challenge against the Scottish Government’s handling of sexual misconduct complaints against him.
Lawyers for the 63-year-old went to the Court of Session yesterday to ask judge Lord Pentland to grant an order which would help them to prepare their case.
Mr Salmond’s legal team have been given a number of documents which detail how the Scottish Government dealt with the allegations.
But the court heard the information had been redacted because the women who made complaints against Mr Salmond had received assurances their grievances would remain confidential.
Mr Salmond’s advocate Ronnie Clancy, QC, argued the redacted data may contain vital information. He asked Lord Pentland to appoint a lawyer to examine if the data should be disclosed to Mr Salmond’s legal team.
Yesterday, Lord Pentland agreed to appoint advocate Morag Ross, QC, to the task, saying it was in ‘the interests of justice’ that the assurances of confidentiality be set aside in order for her to examine the documents.
Lord Pentland spoke at the end of a procedural hearing into the case. A full judicial review is due to take place early next year.
The review will examine how civil servants investigated two allegations of sexual harassment against Mr Salmond. He denies the claims. A separate police investigation into the allegations is ongoing.
Two complaints were made to the Government in January, relating to alleged events in 2013.
Mr Salmond said the subsequent investigation was ‘unjust’ and that he had been given no opportunity to see and ‘challenge’ the case against him.
He also alleges the inquiry was unfair because civil service guidelines state that staff who investigate harassment allegations should have had no prior contact with the people who have made the complaints.
Yesterday, Mr Clancy said the redacted documents show government staff were in contact with the complainers in December 2017 – one month before the start of the inquiry into Mr Salmond.
The QC added: ‘We need to see the material for ourselves.’
The Scottish Government’s lawyer Roddy Dunlop, QC, said his client maintained it followed its own procedures correctly.
Mr Dunlop told Lord Pentland the information within the redacted information was not different to the information which was contained in the complaints made in January of last year.
He said he was willing to provide an undertaking that this was the case and that this would result in Mr Clancy not having to see the unredacted material.
But Mr Clancy refused to accept the offer and asked to see all of the information. Miss Ross will now decide what data should be disclosed to Mr Salmond’s lawyers.
The full judicial hearing is scheduled to take place next month.
‘In the interests of justice’