Unfair, Unlawful and tainted with bias. Those are the damning words of Lord Pentland used to describe the harassment procedure used against Alex Salmond. Three years after his nightmare began and 11 months after his ordeal in court where he was acquitted on all the charges brought against him, Alexander Elliot Anderson Salmond finally responded to Scotland’s Parliamentary Inquiry into the Scottish Government’s handling of the entire fiasco.
It has been lost on most that this is not about any alleged wrongdoing by Alex Salmond. This Inquiry is supposed to be about why the SNP Scottish Government managed to make such a mess of this internal party matter that the Scottish tax payers has had to bail them out with a seven figure sum. We know that Alec Salmond received over £500,000 in legal fees and we must assume the government’s costs would be similar.
For three years now Alex and his wife Moira have had to suffer the most incredible stress and suffering imaginable. They have had to listen and live with untruths, smears and downright lies made by former so called friends and colleagues. He had to suffer the wrath and viciousness of the corrupt foreign media in Scotland. He has had to sit silently as these ‘ex-friends’ besmirched his name and reputation. He had to endure all that knowing he was innocent of all the charges laid against him.
Appearing in the High Court and clearing his name did not stop his accusers or others from spreading innuendo and smears. The accusers who had all of their evidence rejected by the jury have been painted out as the only victims in this horrific chapter. They are not the victims of a crime by an individual. They are the victims of a plot by incompetent civil servants, mediocre politicians and would be cast members of the West Wing TV show.
What has become evident ever since the trial began is that this entire farce was so avoidable. What started out as an attempt to damage a perceived political rival with sexual smears grew arms and legs. Then due to the incompetence and stupidity of the inner circle, the British State got involved. The case landed into the laps of the UK establishment. They must have believed the gods were on their side at last. The establishment grabbed the opportunity with both hands and assisted by gullible fools inside the SNP they have successfully damaged the independence movement.
We will never know the exact motivations or intentions of all the players in this tragedy. What we do know is that the only real victim is Alex Salmond. Ever since the end of the trial, he has had to listen to sniping and smearing from liars and deniers. He has had to hear the same lies being raked up by some of the accusers that hide behind their anonymity and still they make their false accusations. The anti- Scottish media loves it and is encouraging it as much as they can. Do these people not realise it is, Scotland’s cause they are harming, not Alec?
The First Minister in the past week disgraced herself, her office and the institutions of Scotland by abusing one of her Covid briefings with over 9 minutes of personal attacks on Mr Salmond. She impugned the judiciary and jury system by suggesting the verdict was wrong. This incurred the wrath of many, especially the Scottish Faculty of Advocates who reminded Ms Sturgeon of her duty as the Head of the Scottish Government. I hope she was hugely embarrassed. She should be, though having watched her I think she will be more angry at the Faculty for daring to question her! It was just another humiliating page in the saga that has so disgraced and divided the entire country.
Therefore, when Mr Salmond finally got his chance as a private citizen to put his side of the story over to a Scottish Parliamentary Committee fireworks were expected. Those of us who are lesser men than Alex Salmond expected him to gut and fillet the vicious Sturgeon. He didn’t, he once again showed he is the bigger man than any of the political pygmies that attack him incessantly. Throughout his evidence it came over that during the entire ordeal he kept trying to protect the party he spent his life growing and nurturing.
Several times during his six hours of cross examination he was offered the opportunity to attack and blame Nicola Sturgeon for this entire sad sorry spectacle. He declined on each and every occasion.
The antics of the Crown Office in all of this also needs careful examination. That will probably never happen. There are some rather shadowy players involved in all of this. These sleekit highly trained operatives have easily manipulated and massaged the entire situation to the advantage of the British Union. Gullible incompetents like Evans, Lloyd, Murrell, Ruddick, McCann were and remain just too stupid to realise they have been played and used as British State pawns.
Sturgeon could have halted all of this in April 2018 when given the opportunity and a way out by Alex and his counsel. This would not only have saved the government’s reputation but also the tax payers money. It would have given the accusers a safe secure and anonymous method of resolution. It would also not have resulted in such divisions in the entire Yes Movement. We will never know why between April, and June of that year Sturgeon changed her mind and decided not to go to mediation. Instead, she opted to go all in and double down on the original flawed procedure. It is speculated that she and her inner circle hoped the criminal investigation would save them from a cataclysmic loss in the Judicial Review.
That is why against the wishes of the complainants Leslie Evans went direct to the Crown Office, bypassing the police who declined to get involved. The accusers wishes or feelings were ignored in a frantic attempt to save Sturgeon’s reputation from the outcome of the review.
What we do know is it ended with Alex Salmond being acquitted of all 13 charges against him, a huge bill to the tax payers and a divided SNP and Yes Movement.
Yesterday with calm assuredness Mr Salmond led the Committee step by step through the events in a chronological manner that even the simplest could follow, even Alex Cole-Hamilton, Alasdair Allan and Maureen Watt.The many thousands like myself that followed the live coverage were left in no doubt that of all the witnesses that have attended this inquiry Mr Salmond was the most truthful, articulate and honest participant thus far. There was no faltering, no pauses, no failure of memory. There was no need to suggest writing to the committee later with pertinent facts. When you are telling the truth there is no need to obfuscate.
As a lifelong SNP member and voter yesterday was particularly uncomfortable. The hand picked SNP MSPs were embarrassing and blatant in their attacks on Mr Salmond. They are not there to find out if the Scottish Government failed. They are there purely to protect Nicola Sturgeon, not uphold justice, not defend the Scottish tax payer, not protect Scotland’s reputation, just save Sturgeon!
The Unionist members with the exception of Cole-Hamilton are the only ones sticking to the remit of trying to determine the truth. They know like the rest of us the truth will damage the Scottish government. That is why the Scottish government is so anxious to prevent the truth being known. It is sordid, disgusting and stupid. They say in war the first casualty is always truth it seems with the present day SNP that too is the case.
When the day ended Alex Salmond left with his dignity and good name intact. The SNP members and said ACH that tried to change the remit to make it a retrial of Salmond failed in their task abysmally. They had been given prepared written questions to ask in the hope of tripping the great man and pushing the spotlight away from Sturgeon and back on to him. They were as incompetent as the Permanent Secretary and Peter Murrell that led the original inquiry.
Over this weekend Evans, Murrell, Ruddick, Lloyd, McCann should all be considering their positions. Sadly they won’t as there is not a sliver of integrity or decency among them. They have brought the SNP, The Scottish Government, the civil service and the party machine into disrepute. If protecting Nicola Sturgeon is their main aim, then resign this weekend, that is how best to protect her before she has to face the committee.
The fall out is having a large affect on voters. The movement is divided and in all my years of voting and campaigning for the SNP I have never known such divisions. Some would have you believe it is just on social media. It is only a tiny number of dissidents involved. They know that is not true. This is much bigger. It is playing out in homes across the land. Everyone now is on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Zoom the pandemic has seen to that. This has undoubtedly damaged the SNP. It has not though benefitted the Unionists one bit.The voters of the SNP will not return to any unionist party. That will never happen. What is more likely that just as in 2017 when over half a million SNP voters remained at home that could happen again.
This case, the sacking of Joanna Cherry, the rigging of the regional lists by the NEC. GRA, the Hate Crime Bill, the abuse being meted out to female members defending Women’s Rights. The actions of the SNP leadership are all adding up to a lot of abstentions. They are literally driving away their own voters. Just as in 2017 this might just give the Unionists some gains because their vote will certainly turn out on the day.
Here is the irony though, if some of the rumours are true then one Alexander Elliot Anderson Salmond might just once more ride to the rescue of the SNP and the Scottish Independence movement. If the rumours are true this will drive up the voters numbers and a high turnout is all that can save the SNP and the cause.
However I have taken up enough of your time. That speculation is for another blog on another day.
Saor Alba gu brath.
Every word here, I agree with.
Excellent piece BB
I watched the whole thing yesterday and wondered how on Earth anyone was going to summarise such a huge presentation of fact
You did it magnificently
Great Stuff. The murrells must go.
I think the lack of £600,000 will be their thoroughly deserved downfall. Hoping for a report on that very, very soon.
P.S. Any news Mr Chapman ? Mike “nothing to see here” Russell ?
What the Scottish People witnessed at the Parliamentary Enquiry of Holyrood into Harassment Procedures initiated by the Scottish Gov was a continuation of the attempted Piloring of a man of exceptional political acumen .
A man who had fought to clear his name against the Powers that be in the Highest echelons of the Scottish political scene & those people within the the Scottish Judiciary .
A long postponed ( several times ) appearance by Alex Salmond hopefully would shed more light on the issue . Those hoping for a tirade of abuse of Nicola Sturgeon were sadly disappointed .
Alex Salmond ever the Statesman delivered his opinion in a clear & concise manner putting all those other obfuscating witnesses to shame . The Enquiry Committee should have had all relevant paperwork to hand ( they didn’t ) before one of the principal witnesses was to be questioned ( shoddy shoddy shoddy ) procedures that we have come to expect from the People responsible for providing this paperwork ( a lot of heads should roll after this Farce ends) and a proper Judicial Enquiry is instigated .
But to the man himself You left the distractors with a dilemma the enquiry are damned if they don’t request more information from your Legal Team & depend solely on that paperwork requested from the Crown office ( if they supply same in a readable format unredacted ) .
“Here is the irony though, if some of the rumours are true then one Alexander Elliot Anderson Salmond might just once more ride to the rescue of the SNP and the Scottish Independence movement. If the rumours are true this will drive up the voters numbers and a high turnout is all that can save the SNP and the cause.”
Be intrigued to hear more on these rumours you state.
I have and always will be a massive Salmond fan and I think he could play a pivotal role in any upcoming indy ref, but leader of the SNP again? Can’t see it. Quintessential Marmite politician, don’t believe he would have the pull of undecideds “soft no’s” whatever you wish to call them to get us over the line.
Hear what you are saying, undoubtedly there has and will be damage to a cause both Salmond and Sturgeon have, ironically, been committed to for so long (the glee of wallopers, like Brill Neil, Galloway et al is a horrid byproduct of this wretched saga). I do think we have to be optimistic for the bigger picture though. The Yes movement IS bigger than any individual and support for Independence is far greater than it was just as the starting gun was fired at the last indy ref. With further irony, it is because of Sturgeon and particularly Salmond that that is the case. We need to finish the job.
I don’t think he’ll try to take on the role of leader of the SNP. He can’t anyway while madam is still in situ and refusing to step down (she’s had an excellent role model in bozo). I think it’s more likely he will return as leader of his own party or take the reins of a party already established, and I believe he could garner A LOT of votes.
You’re right that he’s a bit of a marmite figure. But then… so is Sturgeon. Many don’t like her. When she was elected, I didn’t ‘get’ the antipathy toward her. I guess those people were most astute than me. Many don’t like her now. But as for the pull of ‘undecideds’, do you think you’ll get as many ‘soft no’s’ to vote for her, that will make up the number of Indy supporters that will not now back her? There are hundreds of thousands of woman who will NOT vote for her or her GRA/HC bill. These women would very likely JUMP AT THE CHANCE to vote for Independence if it is not about Nicola Sturgeon & her GRA trans units! I for one! B/c as long as she is in charge, I will not use my first vote for SNP. And I KNOW there are a great many women who feel exactly the same. We WOULD, in all likelihood, gravitate toward any party Alex Salmond headed up.
So if it comes to ‘soft no’ or ‘EXREMELY LIKELY’ voters… which would you prefer to court? Would you see Salmond taking over, as the better option? Or stick with the criminals that are Sturgeon & co.? I know which *I* would go with. But just something to consider…
Great article BB, I agree with every word.
Alex just highlighted what a bunch of political pygmies we’ve got in the SNP. Nicola’s agenda has been to ditch anyone with a modicum of talent.
Alex also showed enormous grace under fire by resisting the invitation to give Nicola the ‘booting’ she richly deserved. Interesting to see if she can get through her appearance without continuing to smear Alex.
Counterproductive if she does, she’ll just come over as nasty and vindictive.
Not a good look for a First Minister.
The evidence provided already is sufficient to justify half a dozen resignations/ sackings/ health retirements/ gardening leave etc.
They will hold on though! If they had been decent people we wouldn’t have got here in the first place.
My surprise would be if the head of the UK Civil Service and the Faculty of Advocates remain silent. They may act discreetly off camera, but they must act. I can not imagine these bodies allowing such damage to their collective reputations to be ignored.
Excellent article. Alex Salmond showed grace under fire and retained his equanimity. The Romans admired this quality and recognised it as essential to a great leader. However, the Sturgeon cabal has to be removed permanently from Scottish politics. They have embarrassed the Scottish nation in front of the whole world. I, personally, despise Sturgeon and her votaries (yes, her group has all the hallmarks of a cult). I hope Alex Salmond does return to lead the Independence movement.
Clear, concise, without emotion, without reluctance to answer and with mastery of detail Alex Salmond set out exactly why he believed their had been, and continues to be malign attempts to destroy him and do him down.
Despite all of the wrong, the absolute torture thrown at him over these last three years Mr Salmond showed exactly why he is the statesman that he is. There are few in these islands as proficient and strong as him, and certainly not so in the current Scottish Parliament.
And so he has laid it all out. Has said that everything that he has said he can back up. And so now, with his offer to the Parliament Enquiry to request copies of the evidence from his solicitors which they will readily give, those who have schemed, obfuscated, redacted, censored and lied no longer have any hiding place.
And importantly, and in many ways so much more importantly, this exposure will the allow the independence movement the opportunity to regroup and move on to take our independence much sooner than we can popularly imagine.
By his exposure of all that is rotten will we maximise our opportunity.
I like this article. I’ve liked it and shared it on Twitter and Facebook, but I still advocate SNP 1 & 2 because I feel that it’s too late for anything else. I respect peoples right to vote for whosoever they want, but VOTE don’t abstain.
No thanks Douglas. Voting once (Constituency) for a Party that does not support Women’s Rights will be hard enough. The Greens have the same approach to Women so it will be ISP for me on the list.
Hi Douglas,The problem with your prescription (in our house, at least) is that we can’t bring ourselves to ever contemplate using our democratic vote to endorse criminality. Allied to that is the fact that we have no trust or expectation that the current SNP leadership has the will to vigorously pursue Scottish independence. Finally, that we might also be responsible, albeit in a very small way, for rewarding abject mediocrity with another five years at the trough, is, for us, unconscionable.
I’m sorry Douglas, but I can’t do that. Until the Sturgeon debacle, I believed as you do, that its important to VOTE & NEVER abstain. Times & situations change. There is no party I can vote for. For the very same reasons as Josef has given, I simply can’t back a party that has acted in such a criminal manner. I just can’t. Indeed, as Josef said, that would be tantamount to ‘rewarding’ that criminal behaviour & I just can’t & won’t do that. I won’t give SNP ANY reason to believe their criminal behaviour is supported, condoned or indeed ignore it.
I also have to add that I cannot & will not support their GRA/HC bills. These will affect my family & I won’t deliberately vote for a party that harms them. If it had been a bit of a trade off, where I could vote Indy & on attaining that, we could get rid of those nasty bills, I MIGHT have considered it, given the long term benefit of Indy. But I just don’t believe for ONE MOMENT that Sturgeon has ANY intention of going for independence. So we would be well & truly stuck with those bills for a very long time. I won’t take the chance & won’t vote for that.
My plan, ATM, is to vote AFI #2 because I know they will have only ONE policy in their manifesto – INDEPENDENCE. That is what I desire, that is what I will back. And thus what I will vote for. At this moment in time, my first vote, I will destroy.
There are a few weeks to go before the election, there seems to be something ‘in the wind’ (I have heard ‘new party’) which I don’t know about – so I will be waiting, watching & ready to reassess my voting intention. Willing to be flexible is the only guarantee I can give at the moment.
A terrific summary of 6 hours – I didn’t know that could be done!
Once again I was so impressed with the man. His restraint, his refusal to condemn his successor and his mastery of the facts were all on his side. The only emotion he showed was when talking about his realisation of their betrayal from the messages on that data stick. Which made it all the more heartbreaking.
A man who has twice stepped away from the leadership of his party when he thought it was for the greater good will not be brought down by these political pygmies.
but he was always going to fight for his good name. Did they forget who they were dealing with?
It seems they did forget.
Aye, they did.
As you said, they thought they were starring in The West Wing. Actually, we’re watching Whoops Apocalypse.
Enjoyed that clear and well formed overview of yesterday’s proceeding. Thank you.
What now? I had hoped for resignations and a good clean out of the party. I can’t vote snp if NS and her cohorts are at the hell.
A braw synopsis of yesterday.
Alex Salmond was fantastic – in some ways his finest hour. Alasdair Allan and the other SNP baggage handlers has been given complex questions to read out that were designed to trip up Mr Salmond but he saw them all coming! How embarrassing to be an MSP that has to read out somebody else’s questions. Pathetic!
Personally I think Fabiani should pass over Chairing duties to her Deputy for Sturgeon’s meeting next week- NS is, after all, Fabiani’s boss!! Of course she wont…..
Excellent and thought provoking
A fine summation of events, Roddy. It has long been a favoured hobby-horse of mine to point-up the egregious nature of the Scottish establishment—the real power-in-the-land. It was, therefore, with much relish that I listened to Mr Salmond’s positive regard for our, fundamentally sound, institutions and his outright condemnation of the people who lead them. Those people, of course, bought with Westminster’s patronage, are central players in the unelected and disproportionately powerful Scottish establishment.
Alex Salmond, judging by yesterday’s performance, remains just as sharp as he ever was. Like many others, I want him back where he belongs: at the very heart of the independence struggle.
Great piece but I don’t think Lesley Evans is gullible. She reports to Whitehall. I think she is one of the figures at the heart of this. She has no loyalty to Scotland and should be sacked not promoted.
Rumours about AS coming back to the SNP would be really interesting, although it may not be the best move for him or the party. I say this, not as a critic of him, because I have always thought of him as the greatest Scottish politician that there has ever been and probably ever will be. However, I think there is already a perfect candidate for a new leader, and that is Joanna Cherry.
AS could be a backroom adviser to her team but he is unfortunately a mar-mite politician, and my experience is that many women (even indie supporting ones) do not like him. This used to drive me mad and none could give me any real reason, but it would be a distraction and best for him to take a backseat.
Joanna at the head of the Yes/Indie/SNP movement, being advised on strategy by AS, would be in my opinion the dream team, and independence would be won.
I suspect that because Alex Salmond has been out of the limelight for some time that Nicola sturgeon and co had forgotten the caliber of the man. I suspect they have now remembered and will not be feeling quite so cocksure of themselves.
Sturgeon can’t handle criticism or questioning of her decisions and she’s going to find it difficult (in spite of the easy ride she will get from the majority of the committee) to keep her cool next week. I think the mask will slip a bit more and people will increasingly see her for what she really is and will not be so blinded by her shine.
Nicola’s problem is that she can’t throw anyone to the wolves without endangering her own position, so I think she will try to tough it out to the detriment of the party and the cause of independence. She will not leave a glowing legacy when she goes. And go she will.
An excellent summation of what took place yesterday, Roddy. Well done, as usual, thank you!
What I was sooo impressed with yesterday, was the calibre of the man & his total professionalism. In spite of the years of hell he endured, he was able to get his points over in a calm, cool & collected manner, without rancour or descending into nasty, snide comment. I was reminded of the saying, ‘revenge is best served cold’. There was NOT ONE hint of taking revenge, but yesterday – he got it!
That is kind of politician Scotland needs at this moment. And while I’d normally side with him if his thoughts were to get out of the mean, back-stabbing, most often shabby, world of politics, I think Alex Salmond is a man who could steer a new, independent Scotland through the whirlpools & eddies of reformation. I’d love to see him back. Yes he is a marmite character. But then, so is Sturgeon & so would any other politician who picked up the SNP baton right now. I’d be happy to see Joanna Cherry pick it up. But I know she too has her detractors. Soooo… who?? I really doubt there is anyone with ‘mass appeal’ right at the moment. So we have to work with the best we’ve got & I believe Salmond has the political nous to do what has to be done for and in an independent Scotland.
I would back him. And I’d consider voting SNP if he was at the helm of the Lifeboat.
don’t agree that we can conclude all the players, eg Evans, are dupes
think we should at least suspect there could be brit security service assets involved
I don’t understand why you claim the British state is involved. Sturgeon is neck deep in this and obviously managing the cover-up – do you think she’s a plant?
This mess is home grown and anything that let’s Sturgeon and the rest off the hook damages Scotland for a long time.
A fabulous interpretation of the current state of affairs, surrounding the still ongoing persecution of an innocent man, who statesmanship shone bright yesterday at Holyrood. As your last sentence says here’s hoping Mr Salmond once again enters the fray and save Scotland from this vile union.
How might arbitration have worked, given the accusers all were proved to be flat-out lying?
Eddie,
Arbitration had nothing to do with the complaints themselves. (And was proposed well before the criminal accusations). It was legal arbitration – much like the judicial review – proposed to settle the legal dispute between Alex Salmond and the Scottish Government on the legality of the procedure, and the investigation, itself.
Salmond’s lawyers repeatedly wrote to Leslie Evans claiming the procedure was biased, unfair and unlawful – giving substantive reasons for those claims – and Leslie Evans repeatedly wrote back that it was fair and legal, without giving any reasons for those claims. Because she didn’t address those issues, AS proposed arbitration to settle the differences in opinion, legally and in private (better to keep confidentiality), but Leslie Evans refused that out of hand too. So the case went to judicial review – which, indeed, found that the procedure, and the investigation, were unlawful, unfair & biased.
Alex Salmond said he’d submit to the procedure – they weren’t criminal charges at that time, just workplace complaints – if that procedure was found to be legal and fair. Refusing arbitration shows Leslie Evans had no thought to resolve anything,,, and then things got out of hand with passing complaints to the Crown Office, and deciding to contest a Judicial Review her legal advice probably said they couldn’t win. Leslie Evans was given every opportunity to resolve things reasonably & confidentially – she chose the opposite.
Anyway – arbitration seems to be a legal mechanism for solving civil legal disputes without going to expensive courts – and wouldn’t have had anything to do with the substance of any complaints.
Arbitration or mediation were never going to happen. The objective of the exercise was to smear Salmond and make sure he was politically finished. When they thought Salmond may get a legal order to prevent publication of Evans report in 2018 they leaked the allegations to the Daily Record to make sure he was smeared. They then doubled down by corrupting more people to raise false accusations in a criminal trial in an attempt to suspend the Judicial Review.
It was the old political sexual smear with the modern day covering of #me too. If they are not removed this type of behaviour will only continue as they think they can get away with anything. Transphobia is getting lined up to be weaponised.
Excellent Roddy, those particularly within the SNP who continue to cheerlead for Nicola Sturgeon are driving cultism to a new and exceedingly dangerous high which if not checked will have potentially devastating consequences in the electoral prospects of the party in the forthcoming Holyrood election.