Monday, August 15, 2011

Alex Salmond appoints ex-Lord Advocates Angiolini (threatened media in abuse case) & Fraser (arrested on plane) to Ministerial complaints team

Alex_Salmond First Minister Salmond ‘delighted’ to welcome controversial ex Lord Advocates onto standards team. TWO highly controversial former Lord Advocates, one, Lord Fraser of Carmyllie, who was arrested at Dundee Airport in 2006 for a breach of Article 78 of the Air Navigation Order 2005, which related to "acting in a disruptive manner" and former Lord Advocate now Dame Elish Angiolini DBE QC, who threaded several media outlets with legal action over the reporting of allegations connoted with an abuse case involving downs syndrome victim Hollie Greig, have both been appointed by First Minister Alex Salmond as independent advisors to complaints made under the Ministerial code, the body which deals with complaints about the First Minister, which has seen three such complaints dealt with and closed with no action since 2008.

Profile : Lord Fraser of Carmyllie :

Lord Fraser of CarmyllieLord Fraser led the inquiry in to the building of the Scottish Parliament, which saw no one held to account for the massive overspend to £500 MILLION on the hapless Holyrood building now in a constant state of disrepair and leaking more water than the Firth of Forth during rainstorms. Earlier in June after an Al Jazera documentary exposed major flaws some may say amount to corruption within the investigation into the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland in December 1988, Lord Fraser was featured in the documentary telling a film crew he accepted a key witness in the Pan Am 103 trial had been bribed by Scottish Police, yet nothing has been done about it. Lord Fraser also went onto attack the father of one of the victims of the Lockerbie bombing, Dr Jim Swire, accusing him of suffering from ‘Stockholm Syndrome’ with regard to Dr Swire’s campaign to find out the truth behind the Lockerbie bombing.

With regard to the in-flight incident, the Daily Record newspaper reported the arrest of Lord Fraser of Carmyle, saying :

A LORD who was Scotland's top lawman has been arrested over an alleged air rage incident. Lord Fraser of Carmyllie was escorted off a flight by police at Dundee Airport. The Tory peer was Lord Advocate from 1989 to 1992.

Witnesses claimed he smelled of drink and argued with a female steward on Tuesday night's delayed ScotAirways flight from London City Airport. A passenger said: "When he got on the later one, he had been hanging around for quite a few hours. He berated a female member of the cabin crew about the delay. He was smelling strongly of drink and requested more drink but was refused. When that happened he became disruptive again and the female crew member became alarmed as did some of the other passengers."

Last night, Tayside Police confirmed that a 61-year-old man had been charged and a report sent to the procurator fiscal. It is believed to be the first time that a former Lord Advocate has been charged with a criminal offence.

Lord Fraser, born Peter Fraser, was among passengers whose ScotAirways flight was delayed for more than three hours. Fog in London led to it being cancelled and travellers were put on to a later flight. The plane's pilot called ahead for police assistance after a stewardess complained Fraser was being disruptive. Officers were waiting for the flight when it touched down in Dundee at around 9.20pm. Fraser - a former Tory minister - was asked to stay in his seat until other passengers had cleared arrivals. He was arrested and taken to police HQ at Bell Street. The QC was not held overnight. Police refused to give details of the charges against the politician, who was MP for Angus South then Angus East. He was appointed Solicitor General, the No2 job in the prosecution service, under the Thatcher government in 1982.

The case was later dropped when the Crown Office said there was “insufficient evidence” to proceed, a now familiar claim from the Crown Office on just about every controversial case it receives.

Profile : Former Lord Advocate Elish Angiolini :

NMG0505123Former Lord Advocate Elish Angiolini now Dame Elish Angiolini issued interdicts, legal threats against media reporting of abuse case involving disabled child. Scots law publication “The Firm” were forced to apologise to the then Lord Advocate Elish Angiolini in 2009 after the Lord Advocate’s lawyers threatened the publication with legal action, more on the story was reported here : ‘The Firm’ censored, now apologise over Lord Advocate 'allegations' in Hollie Greig abuse scandal as Police investigate Aberdeen Paedophile ring. Complaints were also made to the Press Complaints Commission by Levy McRae which was reported here : Lord Advocate Angiolini made complaint to Press Complaints Commission over abuse claims report by Scots law title “The Firm”

Kenny MacAskill as tight lipped as everJustice Secretary Kenny MacAskill worked at the same law firm used by then Lord Advocate Elish Angiolini to threaten media outlets. Levy McRae, the law firm used by former Lord Advocate Elish Angiolini to issue interdicts & threaten Scots law publication “The Firm” & other media outlets over their reporting of allegations stemming from the Hollie Greig abuse case, was itself linked back to Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill who had worked at Levy McRae some years ago, revealed in an earlier story here : Justice Secretary linked to Lord Advocate's lawyers after Police arrest journalist over reporting of Aberdeen Paedophile gang claims

The Crown Office & Scottish Government have deliberately obstructed Freedom of Information enquiries over how Levy McRae were paid for their services, and have failed to answer whether the law firm was paid privately or as many believe, with public funds. Scottish Law Reporter’s coverage on the case can be read HERE

First Minister Alex Salmond announces his new independent advisers for the Scottish Government’s Ministerial Code :

Ministerial Code

15/08/2011

Former Lord Advocates Lord Peter Fraser and Dame Elish Angiolini have agreed to serve as independent advisers to the Scottish Government's Ministerial Code, replacing Lord David Steel and George Reid who have demitted the post.

The Scottish Government established a system of independent advisers in 2008 to enable the First Minister to refer complaints made under the Ministerial Code. The former Presiding Officers Lord Steel and George Reid have discharged the role since 2008 - and during this time they considered three complaints against the First Minister, all of which were dismissed.In May George Reid was appointed as Her Majesty's Lord Lieutenant for Clackmannanshire, and Lord Steel indicated that he wished - after a term of three years - to demit the post of independent adviser.

First Minister Alex Salmond said : "This administration introduced independent advisers into the Ministerial Code for the very first time, and I wish to record my thanks to Lord Steel and George Reid for their service, and wish them extremely well."I am also delighted to welcome Dame Elish Angiolini and Lord Peter Fraser as new independent advisers, ensuring the continuation of the robust and transparent procedures that we have within Scotland's system of government."

5 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hmm the witnesses seem believable.What happened to them?Bumped off to stop the case going ahead?

Anonymous said...

I can see standards are not a top priority for Mr Salmond.Dont forget a lot of other scandals happened under both Angiolini & Fraser during their terms of office.
Crown Office always has and will be institutionally crooked.

Anonymous said...

Charges dropped however he still put himself in a position he was charged so there must have been something to it unless he is claiming an injustice and miscarriage?
The old boys network pays off again.

Anonymous said...

I see standards have not improved in 399 years - when the parliaments were united over 300 years ago, the Scottish Privy Council continued their pactice of torturing people in dungeons. Once Wetminster found out some time later, the disgusting practice was stopped. No doubt that precedent was carried on by allowing planes on extraordinary rendition missions to stop over with the slightest bit of remorse of conscience - what a nasty listtle country Scotland is under the veil of pomposity, scotch and tartan.

Anonymous said...

Scotlnd isn't a nasty little country, but some of the people in power there are nasty, just as in England, America, wherever.