Alex Salmond inquiry: Nicola Sturgeon was as assured as ever but this is not over yet – Scotsman comment
Over nearly eight hours, there was no startling revelation or moment when she struggled to answer a forensic line of questioning by an MSP
But there remain questions about her actions that are still to be judged and about which people are understandably concerned.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide AdFor example, during the hearing, she admitted some may find it “hard to believe” she forgot about a meeting with Salmond’s former chief of staff Geoff Aberdeen in which she said he told her about a “harassment-type incident” involving her predecessor and that he wanted to speak to her about it. She had initially insisted the first she heard of the allegations was at a meeting with Salmond a few days later.
The First Minister is, after all, known for her command of detail as she showed during yesterday’s hearing.
Salmond has accused her of repeatedly misleading parliament and breaking the ministerial code, which she denies, but that was known before she took the oath at the start of proceedings, which did not produce any earth-shattering insights on that front.
However, we should get a definitive answer when James Hamilton QC concludes his investigation into her alleged breaches of the code. And the Salmond inquiry report itself may have some strong words about the fiasco that saw the Scottish government waste hundreds of thousands of pounds of taxpayers’ money in its defence of the judicial review of the flawed complaints process brought by the former First Minister. This is not over yet.
A message from the Editor:
Thank you for reading this article. We're more reliant on your support than ever as the shift in consumer habits brought about by coronavirus impacts our advertisers.
If you haven't already, please consider supporting our trusted, fact-checked journalism by taking out a digital subscription.
Comments
Want to join the conversation? Please or to comment on this article.