Nicola Sturgeon said it would have been easier for her to have swept allegations of harassment and sexual assault by Alex Salmond under the carpet.

The First Minister however added that she did not and that she does not regret it.

Salmond is due to appear today before the Scottish Parliament committee investigation of the Scottish Government’s unlawful handling of the claims.

Sturgeon is due to appear next Wednesday.

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She was challenged by opposition leaders at First Ministers Questions yesterday.

Labour interim leader, Jackie Baillie quizzed her on claims made by Salmond that she revealed the name of one of the female complainants to Alex Salmond’s then chief of staff at a meeting.

And by Ruth Davidson, Tory Holyrood Group leader, on her account of meetings with Alex Salmond.

Glasgow Times:

Sturgeon said: “For somebody in my position, on hearing what my predecessor, close colleague and friend of 30 years was accused of, perhaps the easier thing to have done—and perhaps what would have been done in days gone by—was to have swept the complaints under the carpet and not allowed them to be properly investigated.

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“I opted not to do that. Whatever difficulties have happened since then, and whatever pain has been caused to lots of people in this process, I do not regret not sweeping the complaints under the carpet, because that was the right thing to do.”

She said Jackie Baillie was accepting without question the claims made by Alex Salmond.

Glasgow Times:

Baillie had asked:” I understand that, astonishingly, the identity of one of the original civil service complainants was revealed to the former chief of staff and then conveyed to Mr Salmond.

“That is an extraordinary breach of confidentiality. On whose authority was contact initiated with Mr Salmond’s former chief of staff? On whose authority was the name of a complainant revealed? 

Sturgeon said she refuted Salmond’s version of events.

She said: “I will answer all those questions in detail when I appear before the committee. It seems that Jackie Baillie is standing here, before I have had the opportunity to sit before the committee, and accepting at face value Alex Salmond’s account of all this. 

“I do not accept Alex Salmond’s account of much of this, which is why, when I sit before the committee, I will go through in detail what actually happened and what did not happen. I think that that is the right and proper way of proceeding.“

Alex Salmond was found not guilty in March last year of 12 charges of attempted rape, sexual assault and indecent assault.