Monday 29 February 2016

Trust and the Lord Advocate

CONTROVERSY IN THE SCOTTISH PARLIAMENT
Controversy looks likely to grow following the February 23rd meeting of the Justice Committee when the convenor Christine Grahame wrote to the Lord Advocate expressing criticism of his late response to correspondence.

‘It is a matter of concern that, despite numerous reminders, your response to the Deputy Convenor’s letter did not arrive until…..around ten minutes before the meeting…..no explanation for the late arrival of the letter was offered. Such tardiness is to only a discourtesy to the committee…..it also serves to inhibit the Committee from carrying out one of its core tasks; the timeous and effective consideration of public petitions…..which is particularly regrettable , given that dissolution is now less than a month away.’ http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/S4_JusticeCommittee/General%20Documents/20160224_CG_to_Lord_Advocate.pdf

Her comments referred to the Lord Advocate’s failure to respond to questions about Justice for Megrahi’s (JfM’s) petition calling for a public inquiry into the 2001 conviction of Abdelbasset al Megrahi for the Lockerbie Pan Am bombing and the related Police Scotland report on the major investigation into 9 criminal allegations made by JfM which is expected shortly.

The Justice Committee’s concerns highlight the growing criticism of the Lord Advocate and the Crown Office over what a growing band of commentators consider to be their consistently exhibited bias and prejudice in relation to these 9 criminal allegations. Legal and political sources have challenged them to explain how it would be constitutionally acceptable for them to consider the police report given this bias and prejudice. It is clear that a lack of trust in the Lord Advocate and Crown Office is becoming a serious issue and is only likely to grow as the Lord Advocate resists taking action.

LOCATION AND TIME
Tuesday 1st March at 10.00hrs: Scottish Parliament, David Livingstone Room (CR6) – Justice Committee meets to consider, among other matters, Petition PE1370 submitted by Justice for Megrahi. Meeting agenda can be found at: http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/S4_JusticeCommittee/Meeting%20Papers/Papers20160301Web.pdf

Ten members of the ‘Justice for Megrahi’ Committee and its signatory membership will be available for interview in the Parliament’s main reception after the meeting. Among those present will be: James Robertson author of The Professor of Truth; solicitor Len Murray; Dr Jim Swire and the Rev’d John Mosey who both lost daughters at Lockerbie; Dr Morag Kerr author of the Lockerbie exposé Adequately Explained by Stupidity?; JfM Secretary Robert Forrester and justice campaigner Iain McKie.

2 comments:

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  2. Sorry, deleted a comment put here that should have been on another thread. But it talked about the difficulty of interesting the media in new developments in the case, since 2013. And how many journalists turned up to that assignation above? Why, none at all.

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