Salmond says the Scottish government has denied him the opportunity to properly defend himself against the claims, which relate to his behavior toward a member of staff at the official Bute House residence, according to the Daily Record of Scotland.
“It is therefore with great reluctance that I have (Thursday 23rd August) launched a Judicial Review in the Court of Session which will decide the issue of the lawfulness of the procedure which has been used against me.”
In a statement, a spokesman for the Scottish government said it would “defend its position vigorously.”
“We can confirm that Alex Salmond has initiated legal proceedings against the Scottish government and as a result we are restricted in what we can say,” he said. “As a matter of principle and integrity, it is vital that any allegations of harassment are treated seriously and investigated thoroughly, regardless of the identity of the party involved.”
Political heavyweight
He was replaced by Nicola Sturgeon, who has maintained the party’s dominance in Scotland, but not to the degree before the referendum. Indeed, one of the highest profile casualties of a swing away from the SNP was Salmond himself, who lost his parliamentary seat in the 2017 election.
UK meets #MeToo
While the #MeToo movement has had less of an impact in the UK than the US, multiple British politicians have been publicly accused of sexual misconduct.
Around the time he stood down, an unconfirmed list of inappropriate behavior by politicians was widely circulated within Parliament, similar to the “men in media” list which brought down a few prominent male journalists.
Source : Nbcnewyork
