Former FM accused of ‘vendetta’ against successor’s closest aide

Alex Salmond has been accused of conducting a “vendetta” against Nicola Sturgeon’s closest aide as hostilities between the SNP luminaries escalated yesterday.

It came as the First Minister faced fresh questions over a series of meetings she had with Mr Salmond while he was under investigation by the Scottish Government over claims of sexual harassment, which he denies.

A spokesman for Ms Sturgeon hit out at attacks by “the other side” – meaning Mr Salmond’s camp – directed at the First Minister’s chief of staff, Liz Lloyd, as the fallout over the sexual harassment inquiry continues.

The response came after Salmond ally Geoff Aberdein claimed Ms Lloyd revealed suspicions of a government sexual harassment inquiry in late March last year. This was before a meeting on 2 April between Mr Salmond and Ms Sturgeon when the First Minister claims she was first told about the investigation into her predecessor.

This has been denied by Ms Lloyd, with Ms Sturgeon’s spokesman suggesting she had only referred to claims of sexual harassment by the ex-first minister as a result of media inquiries.

Ms Sturgeon’s spokesman yesterday went on the offensive over a series of attacks by the Salmond camp at Ms Lloyd’s involvement.

He said: “Liz is the subject of what quite openly is now being briefed as a vendetta.”

The spokesman added: “There is an agenda at play here in terms of Liz’s involvement.

“That has been made abundantly clear by what has been briefed by the other side.”

But the spokesman refused to answer detailed questions during a briefing with journalists about how the meetings were organised and Ms Lloyd’s full involvement, insisting the issues are now the subject of a live police inquiry and an investigation into breaches of the ministerial code of conduct.

The accusation of a “briefing war” has been dismissed by sources close to the former first minister.

Mr Aberdein, who served as Mr Salmond’s chief of staff, revealed in a statement that he met Ms Lloyd twice in March last year.

At the second meeting in late March, he said Ms Lloyd confirmed “she suspected the Scottish Government had received an official complaint about Mr Salmond”.

Mr Aberdein said: “She made clear she did not know the full details of any potential complaint and had not alerted the First Minister to her suspicions about a potential complaint.”

Ms Sturgeon’s spokesman declared Ms Lloyd did not know an inquiry had been launched, but hinted she was aware of allegations of sexual misconduct against Mr Salmond as a result of media inquiries.

He said: “We, including myself in this for obvious reasons, and people who work with you guys [journalists] receiving calls on a daily basis from members of the media become aware of things that the media are asking about. Go and ponder on that.”

Mr Aberdein confirmed as “a long-standing associate and friend of Alex Salmond” he had acted as an intermediary to set up the meeting with the First Minister on 2 April.

Mr Aberdein was at Ms Sturgeon’s house when the meeting took place, along with former Nationalist MSP and Salmond ally Duncan Hamilton, now a lawyer. However, they were not party to the private talks held between Mr Salmond and Ms Sturgeon.

Ms Sturgeon told members of the Scottish Cabinet at its weekly meeting yesterday she had referred herself to the external panel on breaches of the ministerial code over the meetings with Mr Salmond.

“[Chief of staff] Liz [Lloyd] is the subject of what quite openly is now being briefed as a vendetta”

STURGEON SPOKESMAN