'Revenge is a dish best served cold' in Cardonald, Scottish news chief charged with Sheridan perjury, Tommy gets a boost but no resurrection

Dear All

One of the problems of ‘sticking it’ to someone is the chance that at a future date they may through circumstances get the chance to ‘stick it’ to you.

A former news editor of the News of the World Scotland has been arrested and charged with committing perjury during the trial of former MSP Tommy Sheridan.

Down in sunny Cardonald, the news must be greeted with joy by Tommy Sheridan as he seeks to get his political career back on track.

Douglas Wight has also been charged with conspiracy to hack telephones and there are other allegations of data protection offences to top it off.

Unfortunately, the guilt or innocence of Douglas Wight doesn’t in anyway subtract from his confession on tape or the witness statements.

So, Sheridan only hope is a technical dismissal or setting aside of the verdict as unsafe.

Sheridan has said he is innocent and given his situation he has nothing to lose and everything to possibly gain. If he was innocent that leaves his former colleagues who said he openly confessed in a sticky wicket because it means they may have committed perjury.

And another investigation would have to be set up.

We could never see the end of this, it’s like a loop, it keeps going round.

A statement from Strathclyde Police said:

"Officers of Operation Rubicon of Strathclyde Police arrested and charged an 39-year-old male with perjury before the High Court in Glasgow during the trial in 2010 of Tommy Sheridan, the former MSP, conspiracy (in Scotland) to hack telephones, multiple charges of conspiracy to obtain the personal data of members of the public in breach of the Data Protection Acts and individual offences under these Acts."

What does that all mean?

In plain language the Police think they have him bang to rights and are throwing the book at him, left out of the charges was walking on cracks in the street.

And of course, Wight may if advised by his lawyer seek to drag others into his situation as he attempts to climb out of it.

Namely, David Cameron's former communications chief Andy Coulson.

Coulson was arrested and charged with committing perjury at the same trial.

As a champagne socialist who uses the ‘brothers, sisters, and comrades’ approach to public speaking, Tommy Sheridan will be taking a keen interest to see how the plight of others can be used to help him in any appeal that he may mount.

Tommy Sheridan does bring a certain colour to a drab Scottish political scene, but any resurrection appears to be need of a miracle.
Does anyone know anyone who does miracles in the Glasgow area?

Anyone else’s guilt in the circus of Tommy Sheridan doesn’t prove his innocence just their guilt, and unfortunately it can’t be spun any other way, but good luck to him trying, someone might fall for it.

The court verdict if you subtract any alleged wrongdoing of News International people couldn’t effective the verdict because the confession on videotape and multiple witnesses to him doing it elsewhere at a meeting stands up.

And if the trial was re-run I think any jury would come to the same conclusion.

Still what else has Tommy Sheridan to do, he can’t go back and at present he can’t go forward, he is stuck.

But at lest he gets some satisfaction that he damaged News International in the same way they did to him. Someone might end up in the pokey possibly in the cell he done his bird!

Yours sincerely

George Laird
The Campaign for Human rights at Glasgow University