Sturgeon should have released legal advice

The allegations of a conspiracy made by Alex Salmond are clearly serious and must be investigated. However, they are distracting attention from the main thrust of the inquiry committee's remit, which is to investigate how the SNP government mishandled the complaints process as well as its case in the judicial inquiry. January 8 2019 the SNP finally conceded that their handling of the complaints process was unfair to Mr Salmond and "tainted with apparent bias".

At some point prior to this the SNP government's legal team must have advised them to drop the case. When? There are reports that it could have been as as early as October the previous year.

This is an issue which could be decided at a stroke by simply releasing the legal advice. Not once, but twice, a democratic vote of the Scottish parliament demanding the release of this advice has been ignored by the SNP.

Generally legal advice is regarded as confidential but this is not always the case. There are precedents for releasing it and, therefore, there is no impediment.

If the legal advice was to collapse the case earlier than January 8 2019, the First Minister needs to be called to account not only for breaching the ministerial code, but also for wasting at least £700,000 of taxpayers' money.

This could be ascertained simply and clinically with no need to judge whether you distrust Mr Salmond or Ms Sturgeon more or less.

Release the legal advice which is essential for the inquiry committee to fulfil its remit.

Then perhaps people might start to believe the SNP'S oft repeated claims to be "open and transparent".

COLIN HAMILTON Braid Hills Avenue, Edinburgh