Things look increasingly difficult this morning for prominent member of the Scottish parliament and top Trotskyist North of the border Tommy Sheridan.
The Guardian reports that a video tape of Sheridan admitting that he visited swinger’s clubs and cheated on his wife is being made available to the police today:
Mr Sheridan could face a police investigation into…claims that he lied under oath. The 40-minute tape – recorded secretly some time before the trial by George McNeilage, a former classmate and best man of Mr Sheridan – is to be handed to Lothian and Borders police this morning. The Crown Office, the public prosecutor in Scotland, is already examining transcripts from the defamation trial to decide whether any witnesses should be charged with perjury.
One prominent colleague is convinced the tape is genuine:
Last night Rosie Kane, an SSP MSP who gave evidence against her former colleague, called for Mr Sheridan to resign from the Scottish parliament. “I have listened to this tape and I know it is Tommy,” she said. ” What he says on that tape is what we said in our evidence in court and he said it was us that were liars.”
Tommy has come out fighting his accusers though:
“Yet again the News of the World has printed lies and smears against me. They have a former friend whom I haven’t spoken to for two years to tell lies about me. Mr McNeilage must be seriously hard up to lower himself to the gutter and cooperate against a former friend. A fictitious tape has been invented, concocted, and unleashed on a Scottish public sick to the back teeth of the News of the World’s constant lies.”
I suspect this one will run and run. You can’t accuse everyone else on your own parties Executive Committee of being scabs and liars – as Sheridan did in August – and not expect them to explore ways of getting their revenge.
Thanks to Montag for the tip-off.
Update via Tim: The Procurator Fiscal at Edinburgh has instructed Lothian and Borders Police to begin criminal investigations.