£1m debacle at the Court of Session

IT was set to be a showdown at Scotland’s highest civil court as a battle began between a former First Minister and the administration he used to lead.

But it ended with an ‘abject surrender’ by the Scottish Government after it admitted its internal probe into claims of sexual harassment by Alex Salmond was ‘unfair’.

Ministers accepted ‘institutional’ responsibility after it emerged that the official who headed the investigation had spoken to the women involved about their concerns prior to a formal complaint. Mr Salmond had launched a judicial review to challenge the legality of the in-house investigation – but ultimately a scheduled four-day hearing was called off, after the Scottish Government conceded defeat.

Mr Salmond was able to present it as a complete vindication in January 2019 – despite a police investigation that only a fortnight later would lead to his arrest. The debacle at the Court of Session action in Edinburgh landed taxpayers with a £500,000 bill for his legal fees – though the final amount could be closer to £1million.

Meanwhile Nicola Sturgeon’s relations with her predecessor hit rock bottom as she defiantly claimed it was ‘not a victory for anybody’, and pointed out that the police investigation into Mr Salmond’s conduct continued.

She admitted she spoke to him five times while the investigation took place and confirmed that he personally raised concerns with her about the process.