Alba Party leader Kenny MacAskill has called for a full public inquiry into what he describes as a political conspiracy against former First Minister Alex Salmond and claims Nicola Sturgeon was central to it.
Speaking on the Go Radio Politics Show with Bernard Ponsonby, MacAskill said there must be no cover up, no obfuscation, and no silence around the events that led to Salmond’s high-profile legal battles.
He said the former First Minister of Scotland had suffered a “manifest injustice” and insisted the truth must now come out in full view of the public.
MacAskill, who served as Justice Secretary in the Scottish Government during Salmond’s tenure, told listeners that what happened was “fundamentally wrong” and said it was time for an inquiry with full powers.
“There can be no cover up in Holyrood or in St Andrew’s House,” he said.
Asked directly by presenter Bernard Ponsonby whether he believed there had been a political conspiracy with Nicola Sturgeon at its heart, MacAskill replied:
“I believe so.”
He added that such a conspiracy had, in his view, real and damaging consequences for Salmond, personally and politically.
MacAskill went further, suggesting the stress and strain of the ordeal contributed to Salmond’s early death at the age of just 69.
“What he had to endure,” MacAskill said, “was wrong.”
He pointed to Salmond’s victories in both civil and criminal courts as evidence that justice had ultimately been served.
“The Scottish Government was chastised in the highest civil court in our land,” he said, “and a jury of his peers exculpated him in the criminal court.”
MacAskill accused the current administration of avoiding full accountability and said the public has a right to know who was responsible, and why.
He said a proper inquiry should determine exactly what was done, by whom, and whether political motivations played a role in the failed criminal prosecution.
He insisted that any investigation would clear Salmond’s name completely.
The Alba leader’s comments are likely to reignite long-running tensions within Scotland’s political circles, and renew calls for greater transparency over the handling of the case.
Whether Holyrood will respond with a formal inquiry remains to be seen.
