Andy Coulson arrives in Scotland and gets charged with perjury regarding his evidence at the trial of Tommy Sheridan, red letter day for Tommy!

Dear All

Yesterday, one of the big stories of interest was the arrest and charge of Andy Coulson.

Coulson was previously a News International employee and David Cameron's former director of communications at Number 10.

At 06:30 am, officers from Strathclyde Police arrested him at his home in London and transport him back by car to Scotland where he was interviewed at Govan Police Station.

He has been charged by police with perjury from his evidence in the trial of former MSP Tommy Sheridan.

For Tommy Sheridan, this is a red letter day in his continual fight for revenge and resurrection against the Murdoch press.

However, no matter how you spin it, any allegedly wrongdoing by the NOTW re phone hacking doesn’t prove his innocence.

If you take away that evidence I doubt if an Appeal Court would believe the evidence is substantially changed in anyway.

There is the confession in front of witnesses, the confession in front of George McNeilage and the videotape which clearly identifies Tommy Sheridan.

Sheridan says the tape was doctored and someone impersonated him, does he expect the public to believe that McNeilage is that clever?

In a statement released at 9.50pm, Strathclyde Police said:

"A 44-year-old man has been arrested in connection with alleged perjury before the High Court. A report will be submitted to the procurator-fiscal."

Then the press pack turned up at Govan and camped out waiting for Andy Coulson to arrive at the station.

At 3.20pm Coulson duly arrived in a black people carrier which swept into the car park area.

Of course, during the day, Gail Sheridan who lives on the same road just happened to be driving by the Police Station with a big smile on her face!

Tommy Sheridan has vowed to clear his name after he was released from Castle Huntly prison because he knows that he and his Solidarity Party are toxic.

Commenting on Coulson being slammed up, Sheridan said he believed it was the first step "in the journey towards the quashing of my conviction, which was unsafe and unsound".

Interesting I would have thought the first words out of his mouth would be that he is innocent.

Now, it appears he is going for a technical decision if he can ever get his appeal off the ground.

Former MSP and colleague, the current SSP leader Colin Fox last night attacked Sheridan.

He said:

"It is time Tommy Sheridan stopped shamelessly milking the public anger about the deplorable actions of the Murdoch press and started telling the truth that he lied in his libel case, was found guilty of perjury. Regardless of the outcome of the Coulson inquiries that remains the case."

Tommy Sheridan allowed his ego to rule his judgment.

It was ego that got Tommy Sheridan into trouble and it is ego that keeps him in limbo, he has a brand name but he is also painted himself into a corner.

If he wants his party, Solidarity to have any future and win seats he needs to radically reform it, change policies and attitudes and be credible.

Still yesterday was a good day for him personally if not professionally.

Yours sincerely

George Laird
The Campaign for Human Rights at Glasgow University