20/12/2016 Reporting Scotland

Exactly a year ago Crown Office announced it was seeking

the extradition from Australia of a former Catholic monk

at the centre of child sex allegations at a Highland school.

It followed a BBC investigation into multiple allegations of abuse

Now, one of his alleged victims says the case is no further forward

and has accused prosecutors here of dragging their heels.

Here's our investigations correspondent Mark Daly.

After the BBC uncovered allegations of decades of child sex abuse

at Fort Augustus Abbey in 2013, I confronted one of the alleged

It was around the same time, three and a half years ago,

that Hugh Kennedy first told police about the abuse he says

he suffered at the hands of Fr Alexander in the 1970s.

He has become frustrated at the delays in prosecuting his case.

The reality of this situation is we were placated.

You were written to in derogatory terms with non-answers

And after a period of time, you were expected to just disappear.

The Crown Office received the police report on Fr Alexander more

And a year ago announced plans to extradite him.

My expectations really around whether we will ever see

Denis Alexander in court have been managed down to virtually zero.

I really don't know if there is much more I can do.

Neither the Crown Office in Scotland nor the attorney general office

in Australia will give details about what stage the process is at.

But this Australian MP has taken up the case.

I want to know why after a year, this man has not been

He has written to the government asking what's taken so long.

At the same time we have a commission going on in Australia

into institutional cover-ups and institutional responses to child

sex abuse, that we wouldn't be acting with great haste in Australia

to bring our citizens to justice in a foreign jurisdiction

if the charge has been made against them.

But concerns over the extradition intensified yesterday

after Fr Alexander, visited by a BBC colleague, denied

Can you tell me what you know about the extradition?

I don't know anything about any extradition.

Would you ever go back to Scotland to put your side of the story?

I'm not prepared to do any such thing.

It has already been gone into by the church.

Fr Alexander, stripped of his priestly duties in 2013,

Today, the Crown Office issued a statement.

Meanwhile, as another year passes, Fr Alexander is another year older.

Hugh Kennedy knows he might never see his alleged abuser in court.

The First Minister has published plans showing how she believes

Scotland could stay in the single market after the UK

Theresa May said she would carefully consider proposals put forward

by the Scottish Government but warned that some plans

Our political editor Brian Taylor told us why she'd

Nicola Sturgeon promised that before Christmas she would set out details

that it would be a substantial policy package aimed at focusing UK

mines upon the Scottish dimension of Brexit. If you like, a Christmas

parcel to Downing Street. This West Lothian firm sells pizza ovens

worldwide, including two big European market. The Finnish born

boss is optimistic book anxious. We are needing to know where we can

find employees. I need to know if I can stay in the UK myself. Nicola

Sturgeon reckons Brexit undiluted... The plan is to ease the pain. We

want the UK comments to make it clear when it trickles article 50

that it intends to stay in the single market and the customs union.

If it will not do so, we want the UK Government to seek a differentiated

solution for Scotland as set out here. Two areas of focus. The

customs union, the single market. Under a customs union, members

apply, agreed tariffs to countries outside the EU. If the UK quips that

arrangement, Scotland were brief, too, but might arguably impede some

trade, but the First Minister insisted it would also remove any

need for a Customs border between Scotland and England. On power is

shared with the EU, Nicola Sturgeon want full control of devolved issues

like fisheries and agriculture, plus employment law and powers needed to

strike international bargains, including immigration. Here is the

main idea. The European economic area consists of EU member states

plus Norway, Iceland and Lichtenstein. Scotland would join

that is, retaining single market freedoms, trade, services capital

and the movement of people. But if people could travel freely from

Europe to, say, Gretna in Scotland, what is to stop them hopping over

the border to Carlisle? Nicola Sturgeon says England could tackle

that with checks on employment housing. Others retain doubts. It is

a proposal that is trying to keep Scotland in both markets as far as

possible. It creates all pairs of difficulties as to whether you can

really do that. For the plan, the chair of the expert panel advising

the First Minister. There are issues that have to be addressed in terms

of additional powers to be devolved to Scotland to manage the markets,

to adhere to single market rules, but I think it is possible and these

are important proposals to address these issues in practical terms.

This is about political strategy, too. Nicola Sturgeon is challenging

the Prime Minister. To the Westminster government I say this.

Your response to these proposals will tell us much, perhaps

everything, about whether the UK is in reality a partnership of equals

that you claim it to be. We are negotiating a UK approach and a UK

relationship with the EU. I think you have assumed an accepted

differential relationships which I don't think is right to accept. I

said when I first met the First Minister after becoming Prime

Minister that we would look very seriously at any proposals that come

forward from the devolved administrations, and there may be

proposals that are impractical. Critics say the First Minister is in

denial about the problems her plan would bring. Nicola Sturgeon admits

it is challenging but insists it is workable if the will is there. There

will be serious consideration of this by the UK Government. There may

be some concessions. I would be astonished if the UK Government

conceded all of this, consider the transfer of powers, conceded that

point about membership or access to European single market for Scotland.

I would be astonished given the Commons from conservatives in the

run-up to this. There is a strategic question here. Nicola Sturgeon

insists she is genuinely advancing this as a policy solution within the

UK. Within the ambit of the UK. If she puts forward a referendum again

on Scottish independence, at least you will be able to argue that she

seriously and thoroughly considered all options, alternatives, before

going to that prospect being put before the Scottish people.

An investigation is under way after a man was found dead in a van,

days after police were reportedly contacted over concerns

David Penman's body was found in the van by police

in Dunipace in Stirlingshire, on December the 15th.

It is understood calls had been made to police two days earlier.

The vehicle is not thought to have been involved in an accident.

The number of indoor tennis courts in Scotland is to double under plans

to build a legacy on our successes in the sport.

?15 million has been pledged over the next decade.

The Wimbledon and Paralympic champion Gordon Reid says

all of the country should benefit - including less privileged areas.

And to football - there's only one Premiership game tonight.

Celtic beat Patrick Thistle 1-0 at Parkhead.

Scott Sinclair scored the winner to give Celtic a 14-point lead

And predictably enough - with five days to go till Christmas,

the weather is turning and travel plans for the next few days

But as Steven Godden reports, there is some good news

Stornoway this morning. Ferries cancelled, roads closed, buildings

damaged. A sign of things to come as the weather deteriorates in the

run-up to the holidays. High winds over the rest of the week, peaking

on Friday and Saturday, will lead to a lot of very destruction to the

Northern Isles and the Western Isles, so that will be one area of

concern. Also a lot of delivery vehicles on the road, high sided

vehicles might be drawn to these high gusts of wind. Generally for

motorists, heavy rain, high winds combined isn't pleasant. Arriving on

Friday, storm Barbara will coincide with the busiest days for Christmas

Friday, storm Barbara will coincide travel and when it comes to bad

weather, history teaches transport ministers to be wary. I want people

to see their family, spend time with their friends on Christmas and

Christmas eve, but in order to do so they will have to plan ahead. We

will get that information out across our network as early as we can so

that people can plan. Fare air passengers, the threat of man-made

destruction has been left tonight after a planned strike by baggage

handlers that would have affected several Scottish airports was called

off. Those Christmas continues this can now be shelved. Elsewhere,

challenging few lie ahead. Well, It's over to Kawser now

with the weather outlook A spell of wet and windy weather

still as we head through the rest of the night, but then some clearer

spells developing especially across the East later and some blustery

showers by the end of the night across the North West. Tonight, as

the rain clears, those clearer skies allowed to bridge as default,

especially for inland areas, down to freezing. By the end of the night

and morning, some blustery showers coming in across the far north and

the north-west with snow down to maybe 100-200 metres. Sleet and

lower levels. Some damp weather for a time across central and lower

belt. There will be showers, but improving through the afternoon. The

rest of the UK tomorrow, and we expect some strong winds across very

far north. Some frequently true showers, and we expect some frequent

lightning by the afternoon and a Met Office yellow be aware warning is in

lightning by the afternoon and a Met force throughout the day. The rest

of the UK, some drier weather for the central swathe, but across the

south of England, some rain and milder conditions for a time. Highs

of ten or 11 degrees. Across the North, eyes of four or 5 degrees.

With the wind chill, bitterly cold. Thursday is similar. Blustery

showers, sleazy conditions down to lower levels, strong winds were very

far north. Thursday, in comparison to what's to come, is the better day

for any travel plans if you're heading out for the weekend. As we

look ahead to Friday, storm Barbara is heading towards us. A deep area

of low pressure. With its heavy rain but very strong winds and that is

the main concern as we look ahead to Friday. Those gusts reaching 50 to

70 mph widely across Scotland, a Met Office yellow be aware weather

warning is in force. An amber be prepared warning is in fourth for

the -- in force for the Northwest and the Northern Isles. Some storm

force gusts reaching up to 90 mph across the Western Isles during the

middle part of the day on Friday and this is transposed to Orkney and

Shetland by the end of the evening. Some very destructive weather to

come. That is your forecast. Our next update is during Breakfast

at 6.25 tomorrow morning. But from everyone on the late team

here in Glasgow and around