Salmond hires top QCs to fight sex attack claims

ALEX Salmond has hired two leading QCs to represent him as he faces trial over alleged sex offences.

Gordon Jackson, Dean of the Faculty of Advocates and a former Labour MSP, will mastermind the former First Minister’s defence.

Shelagh McCall, QC, has acted in high-profile appeal cases including that of Lockerbie bomber Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed al Megrahi and Kim Galbraith, who shot her policeman husband dead in 1999.

Both lawyers will appear for Salmond, who was charged nearly two months ago with sex crimes including attempted rape – allegations he denies.

On January 24, Salmond appeared at Edinburgh Sheriff Court for a short private hearing in which he was charged with 14 offences.

The 64-year-old made no plea but has insisted that he is ‘innocent of any criminality whatsoever’ and has vowed to ‘defend myself to the utmost in court’.

Mr Jackson, 70, described as a ‘well-instructed and feared opponent at the Criminal Bar’ on his firm’s website, recently represented Barnardo’s at the Scottish Child Abuse Inquiry.

Mr Jackson did not appear in the list of top 20 legal aid earners for 2017-18, but figures show he collected £364,000 in 2016-17, according to the Scottish Legal Aid Board (SLAB).

Part-time sheriff Mrs McCall received legal aid earnings of £144,000 in 2017-18, up from £119,000 the previous year, according to SLAB.

Her firm’s website says she is ‘known for being innovative in developing legal argument in challenging cases’.

On her Twitter profile, she describes herself as ‘some kind of advocacy ninja’.

No date has been set for Salmond’s future court appearances.

‘Some kind of advocacy ninja’