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Alex Salmond takes Scottish government to court over sexual misconduct claims Alex Salmond takes Scottish government to court over sexual misconduct claims
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Alex Salmond has denied allegations of sexual misconduct during his tenure as first minister of Scotland. The former Scottish first minister Alex Salmond is taking Scotland’s top civil servant to court after she launched an inquiry into sexual misconduct allegations made against him by two government staff members.
The former Scottish National party leader has issued a public rebuttal over a report in the Daily Record that says the claims made by two staff members relating to incidents in 2013 have been referred to the police. Salmond is the subject of misconduct complaints over incidents that allegedly took place while he was first minister, which have since been passed to the police.
Salmond, 63, has revealed he is taking the Scottish government to court following the complaints, arguing that he had been denied the chance to properly challenge the accusations. One case centres on an alleged incident involving an employee at the first minister’s official residence, Bute House, in Edinburgh in December 2013, the Daily Record reports.
In a statement on his Twitter page, the former SNP leader described some of the allegations as “patently ridiculous”. Salmond has robustly denied the allegations and in a statement issued on Twitter said he had “tried everything, including offers of conciliation, mediation and legal arbitration to resolve these matters both properly and amicably”.
“The permanent secretary chose to deny me contact with any current civil servant, many of whom wished to give evidence on my behalf and access to documentation to allow me to properly challenge the complaints, all of which I refute and some of which were patently ridiculous,” the former MP for Banff and Buchan tweeted. He disclosed he had launched legal action on Thursday against Leslie Evans, the permanent secretary of the Scottish government, challenging her handling of the allegations. He said: “If I lose then I will have to answer to the complaints both comprehensively and publicly.”
“The procedure as put into operation by the permanent secretary is grossly unfair and therefore inevitably will lead to prejudicial outcomes. The Scottish government confirmed Salmond had begun proceedings in the court of session, Scotland’s civil court.
“It is therefore with great reluctance that I have today launched a judicial review in the court of session which will decide the issue of the lawfulness of the procedure which has been used against me.” It said those proceedings restricted what it could say in response, but in a statement added: “The Scottish government will defend its position vigorously. As a matter of principle and integrity, it is vital that any allegations of harassment are treated seriously and investigated thoroughly, regardless of the identity of the party involved.”
A spokesman for the Scottish government said it would “defend its position vigorously”. The dispute between Salmond and the Scottish government will send shockwaves through the Scottish National party, wider politics and the civil service.
“We can confirm that Alex Salmond has initiated legal proceedings against the Scottish government and as a result we are restricted in what we can say. Salmond has twice been SNP leader, from 1990 to 2000, and from 2004 to 2014, and held several parliamentary seats at both Westminster and Holyrood. After becoming first minister in 2007, he renamed the Scottish executive to the Scottish government to strengthen its identity.
“However, the Scottish government will defend its position vigorously. As a matter of principle and integrity, it is vital that any allegations of harassment are treated seriously and investigated thoroughly, regardless of the identity of the party involved.” Its powers and influence increased markedly during his period in office, with the SNP repeatedly gaining greater policy-making and tax raising powers from the UK government.
A Police Scotland spokesman said: “Police Scotland is not going to comment on whether an inquiry is ongoing.” Since quitting as SNP leader after losing the 2014 independence referendum, Salmond has taken on a political chat show on the Russian state-funded broadcaster RT in partnership with the former SNP MP Tasmina Ahmed-Sheikh.
Salmond resigned as first minister and SNP leader in November 2014 following the victory for the no campaign in the Scottish independence referendum, and was replaced by Nicola Sturgeon. It has been a source of significant tension with Nicola Sturgeon, his successor as SNP leader and first minister, with the party advising its parliamentarians not to appear on the programme given allegations that it is a mouthpiece for the government of Vladimir Putin.
He had served in the role since the SNP’s first Holyrood election victory in May 2007. In his statement, Salmond indicated he had been in protracted and intense negotiation with Evans, and suggested he had sought to avoid formal action against him.
He said: “The permanent secretary chose to deny me contact with any current civil servant, many of whom wished to give evidence on my behalf and access to documentation to allow me to properly challenge the complaints, all of which I refute and some of which were patently ridiculous.”
Claiming that was grossly unfair, Salmond said he had launched the judicial review with reluctance: “The procedure as put into operation by the permanent secretary is grossly unfair and therefore inevitably will lead to prejudicial outcomes.”
He added: “[If] the court of session finds in my favour then the administration at the senior levels of the Scottish government will have the most serious questions to answer.”
This article was amended on 24 August 2018. An earlier headline referred in error to Holyrood, the Scottish parliament. This has now been corrected to say the Scottish government.This article was amended on 24 August 2018. An earlier headline referred in error to Holyrood, the Scottish parliament. This has now been corrected to say the Scottish government.
Alex SalmondAlex Salmond
Scottish National party (SNP)Scottish National party (SNP)
ScotlandScotland
Scottish politicsScottish politics
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