:00:14. > :00:17.1 Newsnight Scotland tonight, the latest on the story that a Middle-
:00:17. > :00:21.East the sovereign will fund is looking at buying a large chunk of
:00:21. > :00:26.the Royal Bank of Scotland. What are the implications for the
:00:26. > :00:29.workers and the investors here in Scotland? And the obligation of the
:00:29. > :00:34.Lockerbie Commission report - how did it happen and what does it mean
:00:34. > :00:39.for the prospect of their case returning to a Scottish court?
:00:39. > :00:41.As you may have seen a few minutes ago, the BBC understands the UK
:00:41. > :00:46.Government is at an advanced stage in a deal to sell up to one-third
:00:46. > :00:50.of its Series in the Royal Bank of Scotland to a bid Abbey. The UK
:00:50. > :00:55.Government wants 82 % of the back at the moment and would make a
:00:55. > :00:59.financial loss on the deal. I am joined by a former head of Scottish
:00:59. > :01:03.Financial Enterprise, and a former editor of Scottish Business insider.
:01:03. > :01:06.Good evening.. Good evening.
:01:07. > :01:10.Watched you think is happening here? Is this serious, or is
:01:10. > :01:14.someone flying a Kate? I am sure it is serious in the
:01:14. > :01:19.sense that the Government has been talking to a big daddy and I would
:01:19. > :01:24.be surprised if they were not. They have probably been talking to
:01:24. > :01:30.anybody else who has money trying to interest them. -- talking to Abu
:01:30. > :01:34.Dhabi. From that point of view I think it is deadly serious. I am
:01:34. > :01:39.not absolutely convinced Abbie Derby would want to buy such as --
:01:39. > :01:43.as much as a third of the Royal Bank of Scotland. I would not
:01:43. > :01:49.expect a quick deal on that. But you would expect a deal, do you
:01:49. > :01:55.think? They have form, as you would say.
:01:55. > :02:01.Abid Abbey, the sovereign will fund invested in Berkeley's when
:02:01. > :02:05.Barclays was in trouble -- Barclays Bank was in trouble. They took a
:02:05. > :02:09.fairly cautious stake and then raised it later, then it sold up
:02:09. > :02:14.when the shares started writing and made a profit. It would not be
:02:14. > :02:18.unusual to want to repeat that. But say it goes ahead and they buy
:02:18. > :02:22.a chunk, perhaps not as much as a third, what would it mean for
:02:22. > :02:26.Edinburgh -- 4 Edinburgh? A don't think it would mean very
:02:26. > :02:30.much, to be honest. I think they are financial investors, they are
:02:30. > :02:34.not looking to run the bank. They would not be looking to change its
:02:34. > :02:39.strategy in any way, they would leave that to the Chief Executive.
:02:39. > :02:41.If they where to invest I think it is because they thought the
:02:41. > :02:46.strategy being fall -- followed by the chief executive at the moment
:02:46. > :02:50.is the right one, so I did not expect them to change that. The
:02:50. > :02:56.Chief Executive would remain, the headquarters would remain as it has
:02:56. > :03:01.done up until now. Would this be a bit of a bargain at
:03:01. > :03:03.the current share price, 28p? It would be a bargain in the sense
:03:03. > :03:07.that it is half the price the Government paid, but it is only a
:03:07. > :03:17.bargain if the price goes up. I don't expect the shares to suddenly
:03:17. > :03:21.
:03:21. > :03:26.zoom. I think it is I'll long-haul. It has been a quick five years
:03:26. > :03:31.since people became aware of its existence of a report questioning
:03:31. > :03:34.the guilt of the Lockerbie bomb her Abdelbaset Ali al-Megrahi. It has
:03:34. > :03:37.put together by the Scottish Criminal Cases Review Commission,
:03:37. > :03:44.which put together the basis for his appeal. That a cure was
:03:44. > :03:51.abandoned sharply before has a -- his release on compassionate
:03:51. > :03:55.grounds. One newspaper has published it online.
:03:55. > :04:01.A someone, and in this case it was the Sunday Herald, finally went and
:04:01. > :04:03.did it. There somewhere -- the summary of the report into why they
:04:04. > :04:08.might have been a miscarriage of justice in the case of the
:04:08. > :04:13.Lockerbie bomber was certainly an easier read than the original
:04:13. > :04:22.document. Its 800 pages on the case of a -- on the case of Abdelbaset
:04:22. > :04:26.Ali al-Megrahi, which suggested eight grounds of appeal, has -- has
:04:26. > :04:30.been secret until now. The Justice Minister has repeatedly claimed
:04:30. > :04:37.made it clear that while he stands by the original conviction, he
:04:37. > :04:42.wants to see it published. That is why I have written again
:04:42. > :04:45.urging that the UK Government make a decision for an exception to be
:04:45. > :04:53.made to a normal statutory data protection rules for this unique
:04:53. > :05:00.case. This will help ensure the wider public interest can be served
:05:00. > :05:04.a in ensuring that no one is in any doubt. We want the statement of
:05:04. > :05:14.reasons published and are doing all that we can within the powers of
:05:14. > :05:17.
:05:17. > :05:20.this Parliament. At BBC Scotland documentary of let
:05:20. > :05:30.to a whole host of new information and allegations seeping out,
:05:30. > :05:35.
:05:35. > :05:42.including doubts over the forensic make-up of their make-up up the
:05:42. > :05:45.bomb. Pressure to release the report was renting, we reported in
:05:45. > :05:49.this programme how more and more people in the world of politics,
:05:49. > :05:54.the law and the media, were becoming aware of the contents of
:05:54. > :05:59.the report and we ask that whether in this internet age, someone would
:05:59. > :06:06.not just simply publish it on line. At the end of last week, so if
:06:06. > :06:09.things really started moving. In a letter to the Scottish Criminal
:06:09. > :06:19.Cases Review Commission on Friday, the lord advocate Frank Mulholland
:06:19. > :06:20.
:06:20. > :06:26.said that leak -- recent selected and misleading information in the
:06:26. > :06:31.media had caused confusion. He added that no one would be
:06:31. > :06:34.prosecuted for her publishing the document. This gave the green light
:06:34. > :06:38.to the conventional media and at the weekend it was the Sunday
:06:38. > :06:44.Herald which went ahead. It less the Scottish Government in a rather
:06:44. > :06:48.strange situation of welcoming a technical breach and the loss.
:06:48. > :06:54.posthumously, an application can be made and if that is so decided it
:06:54. > :06:58.can go back to the Court of Appeal. This is an open investigation and
:06:58. > :07:03.let us remember that the committee has today upheld the hall forensic
:07:03. > :07:07.trail which led to Libya hands to not half. This is an open
:07:07. > :07:12.investigation, it has never been the argument that Abdelbaset Ali
:07:12. > :07:16.al-Megrahi acted alone, it was part of a general conspiracy. But their
:07:16. > :07:20.evidence is presented and it is good evidence then it could come to
:07:20. > :07:24.trial, in terms of other people who were involved. It would greatly
:07:24. > :07:28.benefit everyone if matters of guilt and innocence were decided in
:07:28. > :07:33.courts of law. Also responding to the publication,
:07:33. > :07:42.the Crown Office insisted that it committee's report found nothing to
:07:42. > :07:49.undermine the trial court's conclusions about the bomb fragment.
:07:49. > :07:54.It was manufactured by a Swiss company for Libya. It find
:07:54. > :07:59.inconsistencies and differences. He had travelled on a false passport
:07:59. > :08:03.on 1987. Sole, what next? The debate over
:08:03. > :08:07.Lockerbie will be better informed after having the document published,
:08:07. > :08:13.but in the absence of an appeal, allegations of miscarriages of
:08:13. > :08:17.justice for remain just that, allegations, and tested in court.
:08:17. > :08:22.I am joined now by the chief reporter of the Herald he broke the
:08:22. > :08:27.story and by their editor of the legal magazine that the firm.
:08:27. > :08:32.Did you have any qualms about publishing this? There were some
:08:32. > :08:36.concerns legally about whether there were individuals in the
:08:36. > :08:40.report he could have been defamed by its publication and we were very
:08:40. > :08:47.careful to remit in names of, for example, security agents and things
:08:47. > :08:53.like that -- remove their means. Eight needed to be in the public
:08:53. > :08:57.domain. As a journalist, we have section 32, which says, if it is in
:08:57. > :09:04.the public interest it should be in the public domain. And having read
:09:04. > :09:09.every word of it, what, in summary, is the most significant aspect of
:09:09. > :09:14.it do you think? I think the most overwhelming and perhaps, even for
:09:14. > :09:19.me, having us -- have uncovered it for such a long time, the most
:09:19. > :09:24.shocking evidence of -- shocking element of it was that there was a
:09:24. > :09:27.great deal of evidence that the Crown Court did not -- Crown
:09:27. > :09:30.Prosecution Service did not disclose to the defence team. There
:09:30. > :09:34.were many submissions which are made to the commission which where
:09:34. > :09:38.rejected, but at the same time, they were six grounds on which they
:09:38. > :09:43.said that this could have been a miscarriage of justice. Only one
:09:43. > :09:47.was required, so ultimately be seen to have a very strong case, both
:09:47. > :09:55.for a fresh appeal and perhaps for releasing it Abdelbaset Ali al-
:09:55. > :10:01.Megrahi. What did you think about this non-disclosure? A death -- it
:10:01. > :10:05.is a fundamental right of any defence that they have access to
:10:05. > :10:10.their evidence against them. There's also additional information
:10:10. > :10:16.which we know was submitted to the investigating authorities at the
:10:16. > :10:19.signed -- at the time. None of this made it as far as what was
:10:19. > :10:25.presented to the defence. They are sweets and information which have
:10:25. > :10:35.not been presented. Idea alleging that this Crown Office deliberately
:10:35. > :10:39.did not disclose? And they say they are no grounds of that. There are
:10:39. > :10:45.other interpretations of these same events which do not necessarily
:10:45. > :10:49.lead to the same conclusion. I cannot say that as a first hand
:10:49. > :10:53.observer of that, but it has been reported me, different
:10:54. > :10:57.interpretation to what the Crown has offered. The Crown do not give
:10:57. > :11:02.interviews on Lockerbie at the moment, they say it is an active
:11:02. > :11:06.case. The commission find no basis for concluding that evidence in the
:11:06. > :11:11.case was fabricated by the police, the crime, forensic scientists are
:11:11. > :11:15.any other official bodies. That is significant, is it not? I may say
:11:15. > :11:21.so. The coverage that we have done in the Herald which started a
:11:21. > :11:27.couple of weeks ago made clear that it was what this admission... What
:11:27. > :11:32.the commission was saying. Is it fair to point Tec that there is
:11:32. > :11:35.some evidence in favour of the crime as well? For example, it is
:11:35. > :11:39.misses the key concerns that everyone has a lead to as part of
:11:39. > :11:49.their concern about the forensic evidence, it suggests that that
:11:49. > :11:57.forensic evidence did lead to malt fans will be a. Also, -- did lead
:11:57. > :12:02.to Malta and Libya. There is some information in favour of the priest
:12:02. > :12:07.-- the prosecution. It is not one- sided. The commission looked at the
:12:07. > :12:13.submissions from the defence team. The Commission's report is now very
:12:13. > :12:23.historical and the recent allegations which came up end up
:12:23. > :12:25.
:12:25. > :12:28.the Big Mac only came to light a couple of years ago. -- in debate.
:12:28. > :12:35.All the late Pat was a material that the defence team asked them to
:12:35. > :12:39.look at. They did find that there were a number of things which the
:12:39. > :12:45.former police officer said that they did not find to be true.
:12:45. > :12:48.Equally, they found an awful lot of information which the Crown Office
:12:48. > :12:52.did not hand over her and which would have freed Abdelbaset Ali al-
:12:52. > :12:57.Megrahi. That is all that was needed.
:12:57. > :13:01.That's brings us on to Alex Salmond's position, which is that
:13:01. > :13:11.they should all be sorted out in court. Is there a chance of another
:13:11. > :13:15.
:13:15. > :13:19.appeal? Yes, how? The appeal that Mr Abdelbaset Ali al-Megrahi.
:13:19. > :13:23.Cannot be be investigated. There is scope for a fresh appeal to be
:13:23. > :13:29.launched, either by Abdelbaset Ali al-Megrahi's relatives on his death,
:13:29. > :13:36.a bar by those -- or by the families of those who were killed
:13:36. > :13:45.in the event. This is unfinished business is far as the committee is
:13:45. > :13:50.concerned. They did not conclude and am -- they said it was
:13:51. > :13:54.unfinished. They need an application. They cannot have one
:13:54. > :13:58.from Abdelbaset Ali al-Megrahi because he has dropped it. They
:13:58. > :14:04.will not hear one from anyone else while he is alive. He is going to
:14:04. > :14:10.die, once that happens, his own family, are at the family of those
:14:10. > :14:15.killed, can go to the High Court once again. You mention that is one
:14:15. > :14:19.option, is there another way in which that could happen? I do not
:14:19. > :14:24.believe there is another option. could have a public inquiry, that
:14:24. > :14:27.is what the relatives had been calling for for some 23 years now.
:14:27. > :14:32.It is the relatives who are grieving for those that they have
:14:32. > :14:36.lost. It should be their decision, that is what they have asked for.
:14:36. > :14:41.It should not be down to Alex Salmond or the Crown Office, it
:14:41. > :14:47.should be down to the people who have lost their loved ones.
:14:47. > :14:53.Thank you for coming in. Let us have a look at the newspapers this
:14:53. > :14:58.evening. The Scotsman says that truckers's strike threat threatens
:14:58. > :15:06.Easter chaos. The Scottish Daily Mail was with the same story. Held
:15:06. > :15:12.to ransom by 1,000 tanker drivers is their take on that strike vote.
:15:12. > :15:22.The Independent has appalled on what is bad for her -- has appalled
:15:22. > :15:23.
:15:23. > :15:33.on what is bad for her debt and debt service. Labour are 17 points
:15:33. > :15:39.
:15:39. > :15:42.ahead. That's all for now, goodbye. Good evening.
:15:42. > :15:52.Good evening. A cold start to the mining, fog in
:15:52. > :15:52.
:15:52. > :15:58.the Midlands. Compared to that chilly weekend along the eastern
:15:58. > :16:05.coast, it will feel warmer. The same across East Anglia and the
:16:05. > :16:10.Kent coast. Come inland across southern parts of England you have
:16:10. > :16:16.21 to 23 Celsius. There will be a fresh she south-east breeze coming
:16:16. > :16:21.in off the English Channel. Most of the warmth will be around Cardigan
:16:21. > :16:27.Bay. In the north coast of Northern Ireland there will be high
:16:27. > :16:31.temperatures. 19-21 Celsius. A little cooler on the western coast
:16:31. > :16:35.of Scotland, but to the east another sunny and warm one. We
:16:35. > :16:40.could again break record temperatures. In northern Scotland,
:16:40. > :16:46.things will change Tuesday into Wednesday. Some cloud and a drop in
:16:46. > :16:51.temperature. For the rest of the country, it is as you ware. A Touch