Defence have concluded questioning of Alex Salmond - now Alex Prentice will cross examine for the Crown
(Cross exam is going really fast - focusing on notes just now, will update thread as soon as there’s a clear moment)
Alex Prentice repeatedly asked if Alex Salmond had “any regard” for Woman B’s feelings when he tried to reenact the Christmas card. He says “it was a joke, it was high jinks”. He says he wouldn’t do it again, it’s a “good lesson” not to invade people’s personal space
Alex Prentice asks if Alex Salmond instilled a sense of fear in staff? “That’s not my belief, intent or perception”. He says some people have said they found him intimidating, but “clearly it’s not a universal belief”.
Alex Prentice asks if Alex Salmond has respect for women? “I did and I do”. Did he seek to avoid humiliating women? “Always”. Did he have a duty of care to staff? “Yes” - and he regarded sexual harassment as a serious issue.
Was Alex Salmond surprised to hear one witness claim that staff had suffered mental health issues? “I think it was unfair of him to say that. He was misleading, intentionally or otherwise.”
Alex Prentice asks if it surprised Alex Salmond to hear rotas were changed so female staff were not alone with him? “I had no knowledge at the time and it couldn’t have been put into effect without me noticing....I don’t think the arrangement could have been put into effect”.
Alex Prentice asks if Alex Salmond thought it was appropriate to touch Woman D’s hair. “I tugged her hair occasionally, it was not meant to convey anything sexual”. What about the age difference between them? “I wasn’t in any way shape or form pursuing a sexual relationship”
Did Alex Salmond consider himself so powerful that he could reach out and touch her hair in the presence of a senior civil servant, Alex Prentice asks? “I had no reason to think she would have found it offensive”. “It wasn’t a sexual thing.”
On to Woman F - Alex Prentice asks if Alex Salmond can see how “chilling” it was for the FM to ask a younger female staff member to sit down on his bed? “That’s not what happened, she went to sit there to put on her boots”.
What is a sleepy cuddle, Alex Prentice asks? Alex Salmond says “both of us were slightly tipsy and it was something that wasn’t meant to happen, it was across the bed with her feet on the floor...it wasn’t a pre-arranged anything.” He says Woman F left “in perfect order”.
Alex Prentice asks if Alex Salmond can see how demeaning it would be for a young woman to have her bottom smacked in public; he says yes, but that’s not what happened with Woman G. He says he “ushered her up a staircase”.
Alex Prentice asks if the truth is Woman H was at the dinner with the celebrity? “No it is not”.
And Alex Salmond behaved the way she has described? “No I did not.”
He attempted to rape her? “I did not.”
And Alex Salmond behaved the way she has described? “No I did not.”
He attempted to rape her? “I did not.”
Did Alex Salmond grab Woman K’s backside because he could? “No,” he says; “I didn’t grab her backside but I should have been more sensitive to the fact she apparently didn’t want her photo taken....I didn’t want to exert any power.”
After a quick bit of evidence from Alex Salmond’s former constituency worker (she says he could be “very demanding” in what was a busy office, but “never nasty”), court is finished for the day. Defence case continues tomorrow.
If you notice a deleted tweet in the middle of the thread, i mixed up an h and an f. For clarity, the defence contend Woman H was annoyed at Alex Salmond due to him not backing her political project; the final witness of the day was also questioned about this
