Tommy Sheridan: Difference between revisions
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{{Short description|Scottish politician}} |
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'''Tommy Sheridan''' is a [[Scottish]] [[socialist]] [[politician]]. Born in [[Glasgow, Scotland]] on [[March 7]], [[1964]] he is a graduate of [[Stirling University]]. He was active in the [[Militant Tendency]] inside the [[The Labour Party (UK)|Labour Party]], before leaving Labour as a member of [[Scottish Militant Labour]] (SML). He was a leading campaigner against the [[poll tax]] in Scotland, and was jailed for trying to stop a warrant sale taking place. |
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{{Other people|Thomas Sheridan}} |
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{{Use British English|date=January 2013}} |
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{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2021}} |
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{{Infobox officeholder |
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| honorific-prefix = |
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| name = Tommy Sheridan |
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| honorific-suffix = |
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| image = TommySheridan2007.jpg |
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| imagesize = |
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| alt = |
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| caption = Sheridan in 2007 |
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| office = Convenor of [[Solidarity (Scotland)|Solidarity]] |
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| term_start = 17 November 2019 |
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| term_end = December 2021 |
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| predecessor = Pat Lee<br />[[Rosemary Byrne]] |
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| successor = ''Office dissolved'' |
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| alongside1 = [[Rosemary Byrne]] |
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| term_start1 = 3 September 2006 |
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| term_end1 = 13 June 2016 |
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| predecessor1 = ''Office established'' |
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| successor1 = Pat Lee<br />[[Rosemary Byrne]] |
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| office2 = Convenor of [[Scottish Socialist Party]] |
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| term_start2 = 1998 |
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| predecessor2 = ''Office established'' |
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| term_end2 = 11 November 2004 |
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| successor2 = [[Colin Fox (political activist)|Colin Fox]] |
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| constituency_MP3 = [[Glasgow (Scottish Parliament electoral region)|Glasgow]] |
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| parliament3 = Scottish |
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| majority3 = |
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| term_start3 = 6 May 1999 |
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| term_end3 = 3 May 2007 |
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| predecessor3 = |
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| successor3 = |
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| office4 = [[Glasgow City Council|Glasgow City Councillor]] |
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| term_start4 = 7 May 1992 |
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| term_end4 = 1 May 2003 |
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| predecessor4 = E. J. Nolan |
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| successor4 = Keith Baldassara |
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| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1964|3|7|df=y}} |
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| birth_place = [[Glasgow]], Scotland |
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| death_date = |
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| death_place = |
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| birth_name = |
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| nationality = |
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| party = [[Alba Party|Alba]] (2021–present) |
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| otherparty = [[Labour Party (UK)|Labour]] (1981–1989)<br/>[[Scottish Militant Labour]] (1991–1998)<br/>[[Scottish Socialist Party|SSP]] (1998–2006)<br/>[[Solidarity (Scotland)|Solidarity]] (2006–2021) |
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| spouse = |
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| relations = |
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| children = |
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| alma_mater = [[University of Stirling]]<br>[[University of Strathclyde]]<br>[[Glasgow Caledonian University]] |
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| occupation = |
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| profession = |
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| cabinet = |
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| committees = |
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| portfolio = |
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| religion = |
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| signature = |
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| signature_alt = |
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| website = |
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| footnotes = |
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}} |
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'''Thomas Sheridan''' (born 7 March 1964)<ref>"Sheridan, Tommy", ''Who's Who in Scotland 2014'' (Kilmarnock: Carrick Media, 2014), p. 448. {{ISBN|9780956574886}}</ref><ref>{{Who's Who | title=SHERIDAN, Tommy | id = U34686 | volume = 2023 | edition = online}}</ref> is a Scottish politician who served as convenor of [[Solidarity (Scotland)|Solidarity]] from 2019 to 2021.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://solidarity.scot/press-release-tommy-sheridan-returns-as-convener-of-solidarity/|title=***PRESS RELEASE*** Tommy Sheridan Returns as Convener of Solidarity|date=17 November 2019}}</ref> He previously served as convenor of the [[Scottish Socialist Party]] (SSP) from 1998 to 2004 and as co-convenor of Solidarity from 2006 to 2016.<ref name="Scot110616">{{cite news|url=http://www.scotsman.com/news/tommy-sheridan-quits-solidarity-role-to-focus-on-bringing-down-rupert-murdoch-1-4152181|title=Tommy Sheridan quits Solidarity role to focus on 'bringing down Rupert Murdoch'|work=The Scotsman|date=11 June 2016|access-date=3 September 2016}}</ref><ref name="HG120616">{{cite news |url=http://www.heraldscotland.com/news/14551826.Sheridan_quits_as_Solidarity_leader_after_party_wins_0_6__of_Holyrood_vote/ |title=Sheridan steps aside as Solidarity leader after struggling party wins 0.6% of Holyrood vote |first=Paul |last=Hutcheon |work=Sunday Herald |date=12 June 2016 |access-date=17 July 2016}}</ref> He was a [[Member of the Scottish Parliament]] (MSP) for the [[Glasgow (Scottish Parliament electoral region)|Glasgow]] region from 1999 to 2007. |
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Sheridan was active as a [[Militant tendency|Militant]] [[entryism|entryist]] in the [[Labour Party (UK)|Labour Party]] until 1989 when Labour expelled him,<ref name ="Osler">Dave [David] Osler [http://archive.tribunemagazine.co.uk/article/30th-july-1993/4/the-tribune-interview-tommy-sheridan "The Tribune interview: Tommy Sheridan – Tartan Trot"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181001192926/http://archive.tribunemagazine.co.uk/article/30th-july-1993/4/the-tribune-interview-tommy-sheridan |date=1 October 2018 }},''Tribune'', 30 July 1993</ref> and became a member of [[Scottish Militant Labour]] (SML), which eventually became the core of the [[Scottish Socialist Party]] (SSP). He was a prominent campaigner against the [[Poll tax (Great Britain)|Poll tax]] in Scotland, and was jailed for six months for attending a [[warrant sale]] in 1991 after [[Glasgow Sheriff Court]] had served a court order on him banning his presence.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.stv.tv/west-central/221631-margaret-thatcher-remembered-by-tommy-sheridan-for-poll-tax/|title=Thatcher remembered: The 'Poll Tax' protester Tommy Sheridan|date=17 April 2013|access-date=15 June 2014|publisher=STV News|archive-date=28 May 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150528163027/http://news.stv.tv/west-central/221631-margaret-thatcher-remembered-by-tommy-sheridan-for-poll-tax/|url-status=dead}}</ref> He was elected to the [[Scottish Parliament]] in [[1999 Scottish Parliament election|1999]] as a [[Glasgow (Scottish Parliament electoral region)|Glasgow]] representative and re-elected in [[2003 Scottish Parliament election|2003]] despite, in 2000 and 2002, being jailed over the non-payment of fines levied in connection with [[breach of the peace]] convictions resulting from his actions at demonstrations against the presence of the nuclear fleet at the [[Faslane Naval Base]].<ref name="BBC250803">[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/3178117.stm "Sheridan jailed after protest"], BBC News, 25 August 2003</ref> |
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Whilst in jail Sheridan was elected a councillor to [[City of Glasgow|Glasgow City Council]] to represent the [[Pollok]] ward. He also contested the [[European Parliament]] election in [[1994]] as a SML candidate, as well as the Pollok constituency in the [[UK general election, 1992|1992 General Election]]. |
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In 2006, in the case of ''[[Sheridan v News Group Newspapers Ltd|Sheridan v News International]]'', he won an action for defamation against the ''[[News of the World]]'' and was awarded £200,000 damages. The following year, he was [[HM Advocate v. Sheridan and Sheridan|charged with perjury]] for having told lies to the court in his defamation case.<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/7146907.stm "Sheridan charged in perjury probe"], BBC News, 16 December 2007</ref> In the following weeks, six of his relatives and colleagues were also charged. In October 2010, he appeared together with his wife Gail at a [[HM Advocate v Sheridan and Sheridan|trial for perjury]]. On 23 December 2010, Sheridan was convicted of perjury, and on 26 January he was sentenced to three years' imprisonment.<ref>{{cite news|last=Carrell|first=Severin|title=Tommy Sheridan sentenced to three years in prison|url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2011/jan/26/tommy-sheridan-sentenced-three-years|access-date=26 January 2011|newspaper=The Guardian|date=26 January 2011|location=London}}</ref> The charges against his wife were withdrawn. In the light of the [[News International phone hacking scandal|''News of the World'' phone hacking affair]], the Crown Office was ordered to reassess the case in 2011.<ref>{{cite news|last=Scott|first=Kirsty|title=Evidence in Tommy Sheridan trial to be investigated amid phone-hacking revelations|url=https://www.theguardian.com/media/2011/jul/07/tommy-sheridan-evidence-investigated-phone-hacking|access-date=7 July 2011|newspaper=The Guardian|date=7 July 2011|location=London}}</ref> Sheridan left prison in January 2012 under automatic early release rules.<ref>{{cite news|title=Tommy Sheridan vows to clear name after release from jail|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-glasgow-west-16780740|access-date=30 January 2012|publisher=[[BBC News]]|date=30 January 2012|location=London}}</ref> |
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He was a leading figure in the negotations to establish the Scottish Socialist Alliance in [[1996]], which evolved into the [[Scottish Socialist Party]] (SSP) in [[1998]]. He has been the leader of the SSP since its formation, and was elected to the [[Scottish Parliament]] in [[Scottish Parliamentary Election, 1999|1999]] as a Glasgow representative. |
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==Early life== |
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He has been jailed twice as a consequence of his activities campaigning against the presence of the nuclear fleet at [[Faslane]]. |
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Sheridan's mother was Alice Sheridan, a political activist who stood as a candidate for political groups involving her son. |
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Sheridan, raised in [[Catholic Church|Roman Catholic]] faith, attended St Monica's Primary ([[Pollok]]) and [[Lourdes Secondary School|Lourdes Secondary]] before studying at the [[University of Stirling]], where he received a degree in economics. He obtained a [[Master of Science|MSc]] in Social Research at the [[University of Strathclyde]] in 2008.<ref name="StrathTele">{{cite news |
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Sheridan is known as an articulate and able orator. In his period as leader of the SSP he has seen his party's representation in the Scottish Parliament increase from just himself to six members after the [[Scottish Parliamentary Election, 2003|2003 Election]]. |
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| last = Harper |
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| first = Gareth |
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| title = Come Out, Come Out, Wherever You Are |
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| work = Strathclyde Telegraph |
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| page = 6 |
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| publisher = University of Strathclyde Student's Association |
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| date = October 2007 |
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| url = http://www.strathclydetelegraph.com/issues/editions/1-October2007.pdf |
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| access-date =17 October 2007 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20071025091139/http://www.strathclydetelegraph.com/issues/editions/1-October2007.pdf <!-- Bot retrieved archive --> |archive-date = 25 October 2007}}</ref> He studied law at [[Strathclyde Law School]], on the two-year fast track degree, graduating in 2015.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.law.ed.ac.uk/sln/blogentry.aspx?blogentryref=7543 |title=Scots Law News, Edinburgh Law School |publisher=Law.ed.ac.uk |access-date=3 December 2010 |archive-date=16 September 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120916144837/http://www.law.ed.ac.uk/sln/blogentry.aspx?blogentryref=7543 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>[http://www.heraldscotland.com/news/14023965.Tommy_Sheridan_receives_law_degree_and_sets_out_to__change_the_world_/?ref=mr&lp=9 Tommy Sheridan receives Bacheor of Law degree at University of Strathclyde] heraldscotland, accessed 3 January 2016</ref> He also played [[association football|football]] at Junior level with [[Larkhall Thistle F.C.|Larkhall Thistle]], [[Benburb F.C.|Benburb]], [[East Kilbride Thistle F.C.|East Kilbride Thistle]], [[Baillieston Juniors F.C.|Baillieston Juniors]] and [[St. Anthony's F.C.|St Anthony's]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.barrheadnews.com/news/barrhead/articles/2008/08/06/26997-old-firm-united/|title=OLD FIRM UNITED|work=Barrhead News|date=6 August 2008 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.mirror.co.uk/3am/celebrity-news/celebrity-big-brothers-tommy-sheridan-369567|title=Celebrity Big Brother's Tommy Sheridan: The Top 10 facts you need to know about the politician|author=mirror Administrator|date=6 January 2009|work=mirror}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/2860215.stm|title=BBC NEWS – UK – Scotland – CV: Tommy Sheridan|work=bbc.co.uk|date=2 April 2003}}</ref> |
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==Political career, 1983–2009== |
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===Early activism=== |
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Sheridan became a member of the [[Militant tendency|Militant]] group while a student at [[University of Stirling|Stirling University]] in around 1983, after being active in a broad-based anti-Trotskyist group including [[Liberal Party (UK)|Liberals]] and [[Communist Party of Great Britain|Communists]] as well as [[Labour Party (UK)|Labour Party]] members.<ref name="Osler"/> After graduation, he went to [[Cardonald College]] as a typing student as part of an (unsuccessful) effort on the part of Militant to recruit [[Scottish Labour Students]] in [[further education]] colleges. The Labour Party, led by [[Neil Kinnock]] at the time, found that Militant contravened the Labour Party constitution, and Sheridan himself was expelled from the [[Labour Party (UK)|Labour Party]] in 1989 for "bringing the party into disrepute".<ref name="Osler"/> |
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From within Militant, he was the public face of a mass non-payment campaign against the Community Charge in Scotland (where it was introduced a year earlier than other parts of the UK "as an experiment"). The campaign involving the refusal to pay the tax, together with resistance to [[warrant sales]] which local councils held to try to recoup the money, was ultimately successful and Sheridan became a popular political figure. Sheridan denounced those who fought the police in the large-scale [[Poll Tax Riots|riot against the poll tax]] in [[London]] – which took place on 31 March 1990, the day before the tax was introduced in England and Wales – and publicly threatened to "name names". The police widely advertised for people to tell them the names of alleged rioters, and partly as a result of police acting on such information, over 100 individuals were jailed. With [[Joan McAlpine]], he published ''A Time to Rage'' which chronicled the [[All Britain Anti-Poll Tax Federation|anti-poll tax movement]] of the late-1980s and early-1990s. McAlpine has since written about the Sheridan she became close to, with reference in particular to the [[Sheridan v News International|defamation case]]. |
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As the highest profile Militant member in Scotland, Sheridan was a leading figure in the group's split in the early-1990s. Emboldened by the success of the campaign against the poll tax, many Militant members – particularly in Scotland – argued for the abandonment of entryism and for the creation of [[Scottish Militant Labour]] and Militant Labour in England and Wales as separate political parties. |
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The argument was resolved when Sheridan and his supporters won a vote at a special conference held in [[Bridlington]] in October 1991, defeating the faction around Militant founder [[Ted Grant]] who argued against abandoning the Labour Party. The result was a split in the Militant in what has become known as the 'Scottish Turn'; Scottish Militant Labour had gained six councillors in Glasgow by 1993, including Sheridan.<ref name="Osler"/> With a strong [[Scottish National Party]] (SNP), Scottish Militant Labour argued in favour of founding a new, left-wing political party. Discussions were held with other left-wing and Scottish republican groups and a new group was formed in 1996 known initially as the [[Scottish Socialist Alliance]]. In 1998, the new [[Scottish Socialist Party]] was formed from the SSA. Differences over political strategy and priorities within the [[Committee for a Workers' International (1974)|Committee for a Workers' International]] (CWI) soon surfaced, especially on the issue of Scottish independence, leading to a split within the CWI and Sheridan along with the majority of Scottish supporters left the organisation.{{citation needed|date=April 2017}} |
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Sheridan fought two elections while in prison, coming second in the [[Glasgow Pollok (UK Parliament constituency)|Pollok]] constituency at the [[1992 United Kingdom general election|1992 general election]], gaining nearly 20%, a result ahead of three candidates, but behind the elected Labour Party MP. A few weeks later he won the [[Pollok]] ward on [[City of Glasgow (1975-1996)|Glasgow District Council]]. He contested the [[European Parliament]] election in 1994 as the SML candidate in Glasgow, and came third with 8% of votes cast. |
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===Election to the Scottish Parliament=== |
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Sheridan was a leading figure in negotiations to establish the [[Scottish Socialist Alliance]] in 1996, which evolved into the [[Scottish Socialist Party]] (SSP) in 1998. He became the convenor of the party and was elected to the [[Scottish Parliament]] in [[1999 Scottish Parliament election|1999]] as a [[Glasgow (Scottish Parliament electoral region)|Glasgow]] representative and re-elected in [[2003 Scottish Parliament election|2003]]. Together with [[Alan McCombes]] he published ''[[Imagine (book)|Imagine]]'', an outline of the principles of [[socialism]] for a modern era. |
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Sheridan was active in implementing long-needed changes in Scottish law, including the [[Abolition of Poindings and Warrant Sales Act 2001]], which he introduced as bills in [[Scottish Parliament|Holyrood]] on 6 December 2001. <ref>{{cite web |title=Abolition of Poindings and Warrant Sales Bill [AS INTRODUCED] |url=https://webarchive.nrscotland.gov.uk/20240327010432/https://archive2021.parliament.scot/parliamentarybusiness/Bills/12424.aspx |website=National Records of Scotland (archive of the Scottish Parliament website) |publisher=The Stationery Office Ltd., on behalf of the Scottish Parliament |access-date=18 June 2024}}</ref> |
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On 11 November 2004, Sheridan stepped down as convenor of the SSP, citing his wife Gail's pregnancy as a prime reason.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/4001489.stm | publisher=BBC News| title=Sheridan resigns as SSP leader | date=11 November 2004 | access-date=14 July 2006 }}</ref> The resignation was steeped in controversy. It later emerged that the party's executive committee voted unanimously to force Sheridan to resign after a 9 November meeting in which he confirmed stories printed about a then-unnamed MSP were about him,<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-glasgow-west-11626480|title=Tommy Sheridan colleague heartbroken by 'recklessness'|date=26 October 2010|access-date=6 June 2014|publisher=BBC News}}</ref> and indicated he would take legal action against the paper.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-glasgow-west-11635019|title=Tommy Sheridan asked to resign by colleague Curran|date=27 October 2010|access-date=2 June 2014|publisher=BBC News}}</ref> |
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Following Sheridan's resignation, the ''[[News of the World]]'' named him as the MSP they said had had an extramarital affair and visited a swingers' club in [[Manchester]].<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/local-news/swinton-sex-club-swings-into-spotlight-1040506|title=Swinton sex club swings into spotlight|date=10 August 2006|access-date=5 June 2014|newspaper=Manchester Evening News}}</ref> The party declined to support him in legal action against the paper. He later branded those who refused to support him as "scabs".<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.scotsman.com/news/tommy-sheridan-trial-scabs-the-cheap-insult-that-led-to-his-downfall-1-1523048|title=Tommy Sheridan trial: 'Scabs' – the cheap insult that led to his downfall|date=24 December 2010|newspaper=The Scotsman}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://weeklyworker.co.uk/worker/legacy/847/scabs-and-vengeance?q=home/weekly-worker/847/scabs-and-vengeance|title=Scabs and vengeance|date=6 January 2011|access-date=5 June 2014|publisher=[[Weekly Worker]]}}{{Dead link|date=February 2024 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> |
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The minutes of the meeting which detailed the deliberations leading to Sheridan's resignation were kept confidential until subpoenaed by [[News International]]. After he refused to release the minutes to the [[Court of Session]], [[Alan McCombes]] was jailed for twelve days by Judge [[Anne Smith, Lady Smith|Lady Smith]].<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/5014452.stm|title=SSP official jailed over papers|date=26 May 2006|access-date=2 June 2014|publisher=BBC News}}</ref> At an emergency meeting of the party's National Council, it was agreed the minutes should be handed over<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/5025346.stm|title=SSP votes to hand over documents|date=29 May 2006|access-date=2 June 2014|publisher=BBC News}}</ref> {{mdash}} with only 60 delegates opposed {{mdash}} in order to secure McCombes' release the following day.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/5027852.stm|title=Jailed SSP official is released|date=29 May 2006|access-date=2 June 2014|publisher=BBC News}}</ref> |
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The minutes included a discussion by the party's executive committee about a recent article that alleged a married MSP had visited a [[Swinging (sexual practice)|swingers']] club in Manchester. According to the minute, Sheridan admitted that he had in fact visited the club on two occasions, in 1996 and 2002, with close friends. Some of those present at the meeting gave evidence that they had heard Sheridan acknowledge he had been "reckless" in his behaviour which had, with hindsight, been "a mistake" and that "his strategy was to deny the allegations". Sheridan claimed this minute was not accurate.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/scotland/8042049/Tommy-Sheridan-admitted-visiting-swingers-clubs.html|title=Tommy Sheridan 'admitted visiting swingers' clubs'|date=5 October 2010|access-date=6 June 2014|newspaper=The Telegraph|location=London}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/glasgow_and_west/5194588.stm|title=Sheridan in swingers 'admission'|date=19 July 2006|access-date=6 June 2014|publisher=BBC News}}</ref> |
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Eleven members, including four of the party's MSPs, stated they heard Sheridan admit to visiting the swingers' club at that meeting. [[Rosemary Byrne]] [[Member of the Scottish Parliament|MSP]] and two other members of the executive committee, Graham McIver and Pat Smith, gave evidence that Sheridan made no such statement.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.workersliberty.org/node/6742|archive-url=https://archive.today/20140606200249/http://www.workersliberty.org/node/6742|url-status=dead|archive-date=6 June 2014|title=Scottish Socialists move towards split?|date=13 August 2006|access-date=6 June 2014|publisher=Workers' Liberty}}</ref> The minutes record that Sheridan left the meeting early, but before leaving, "he repeated that he did not believe there was any evidence which would prove him to be lying. He did not accept that he should admit the visits to the club and felt that no-one should comment on private lives". |
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At the annual conference of the SSP in early 2005, Sheridan was elected to the SSP executive and at the March 2006 conference, he was elected as party co-chair. However Sheridan left the SSP in August 2006, accusing the SSP of being part of "the mother of all stitch-ups" involving not only their leadership, but also [[MI5]] and [[News International]].<ref name="motherOfStitchUps">{{cite news | url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk_news/story/0,,1886865,00.html | title=Sheridan accuses MI5 and Murdoch over 'mother of stitch-ups' | author=Severin Carrell | date=4 October 2006 | work=The Guardian | access-date=4 May 2007 | location=London}}</ref> He launched a new [[political party]] called [[Solidarity (Scotland)|Solidarity]].<ref name="soli">{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/5307316.stm|title=Sheridan unveils Solidarity party|date=3 September 2006|access-date=2 June 2014|publisher=BBC News}}</ref> |
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Sheridan was originally set to re-contest the post Scottish Socialist Party convenor at the October 2006 conference,<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/glasgow_and_west/5254612.stm|title=Sheridan nominated for leadership|date=8 August 2006|access-date=2 June 2014|publisher=BBC News}}</ref> and Colin Fox claimed he had only established the new party because he did not stand a chance of winning back that role as SSP convenor.<ref name="soli" /> |
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===Activism and arrests at Faslane=== |
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Sheridan was first arrested at the [[Faslane]] nuclear base, the location of Britain's [[Vanguard-class submarine|Trident submarine]] fleet, for a breach of the peace offence committed during a demonstration in February 2000.<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/743374.stm "Sheridan denies Trident charges"], BBC News, 10 May 2000</ref> He was convicted on this count, and for resisting arrest, when the case came to trial in November, and was fined £250. Believing nuclear weapons to be illegal under international law,<ref>[http://www.heraldscotland.com/sport/spl/aberdeen/briefing-tommy-sheridan-1.206393 "Briefing: Tommy Sheridan"], ''The Herald'' (Glasgow), 9 December 2000</ref> Sheridan made it clear at the time that he had no intention of paying the fine.<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/1023002.stm "Jail looms for MSP"], BBC News, 14 November 2000</ref> He served five days of a 14-day jail sentence the next month for this reason, and was released on 22 December.<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/1082336.stm "Jailed MSP unrepentant"], BBC News, 22 December 2000</ref> |
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Sheridan was arrested again at Faslane on 22 October 2001 shortly after the protest began at 7{{nbsp}}am.<ref>Tara Womersley [https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1360222/Sheridan-held-again-in-Faslane-protest.html "Sheridan held again in Faslane protest"], ''Daily Telegraph'', 23 October 2003</ref><ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/1612409.stm "Faslane protest sparks 170 arrests"], BBC News, 22 October 2001</ref> He was cleared when the case came to court in June 2002, the Justice of the Peace said there was insufficient evidence.<ref>[http://www.heraldscotland.com/sport/spl/aberdeen/court-clears-sheridan-over-faslane-protest-1.146322 "Court clears Sheridan over Faslane protest"], ''The Herald'' (Glasgow), 26 June 2002</ref><ref>[http://www.scotsman.com/news/politics/top-stories/sheridan-is-cleared-of-faslane-demo-charge-1-610371 "Sheridan is cleared of Faslane demo charge"], ''The Scotsman'', 26 June 2002</ref> Another acquittal in October 2001, this time regarding a February 2001 protest,<ref>[http://www.scotsman.com/news/court-clears-sheridan-after-arrest-in-naval-base-anti-nuclear-protest-1-579095 "Court clears Sheridan after arrest in naval base anti-nuclear protest"], ''The Scotsman'', 9 October 2001</ref> led to an appeal by the [[Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service|Crown Office]], but this was rejected by the [[High Court of Justiciary#Appellate jurisdiction|Court of Criminal Appeal]] in Edinburgh in October 2002.<ref>Bruce McKain and Rob Crilly [http://www.heraldscotland.com/sport/spl/aberdeen/legal-victory-for-sheridan-puts-hundreds-of-peaceful-protest-convictions-in-doubt-1.136903 "Legal victory for Sheridan puts hundreds of peaceful protest convictions in doubt"], ''The Herald'' (Glasgow), 10 October 2002</ref> |
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Sheridan was one of the first to be arrested for a breach of the peace at a demonstration at Faslane on 11 February 2002.<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/1812910.stm "Politicians held in Trident protest"], BBC News, 11 February 2002</ref><ref>[http://www.scotsman.com/news/scotland/top-stories/111-held-in-faslane-protest-1-596943 "111 held in Faslane protest"], ''The Scotsman'', 12 February 2002</ref> He was found guilty in February 2003 and fined £200,<ref>[http://www.scotsman.com/news/politics/top-stories/sheridan-ready-for-jail-over-fine-1-545881 "Sheridan 'ready for jail' over fine"], ''The Scotsman'', 13 February 2003</ref> but he refused to pay and was sent to prison for non-payment on 25 August 2003.<ref name="BBC250803"/> This time, he was sentenced to seven days in jail, serving 3 days,<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/3188121.stm "Freed Sheridan remains defiant"], BBC News, 28 August 2003</ref> plus the night in custody after his arrest.<ref>[http://www.scotsman.com/news/politics/top-stories/court-jails-sheridan-for-unpaid-fine-1-662018 "Court jails Sheridan for unpaid fine"], ''The Scotsman'', 26 August 2003</ref> Before presenting himself for arrest at Glasgow police station on 24 August 2003, Sheridan had told reporters: "Nuclear weapons are a crime against humanity and should be removed from the [[River Clyde|Clyde]] and from Britain."<ref name="BBC250803"/> |
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===Split from the Scottish Socialist Party=== |
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In September 2006, Tommy Sheridan formed a new political party in Scotland named [[Solidarity (Scotland)|Solidarity]], with himself and fellow MSP [[Rosemary Byrne]] as joint convenors.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/5307316.stm | title=Sheridan unveils Solidarity party | date=3 September 2006 | publisher=BBC News| access-date=4 May 2007}}</ref> Sheridan narrowly failed to be re-elected in the [[2007 Scottish Parliament election|2007 Holyrood election]] as top of his party's list nominees for Glasgow. The party also stood a candidate in by-elections in 2008 in [[2008 Glasgow East by-election|Glasgow East]] and the [[2008 Glenrothes by-election|Glenrothes]], and Sheridan himself stood in the [[2009 Glasgow North East by-election]]. |
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Sheridan stood as a candidate in the [[2009 European Parliament election in the United Kingdom|2009 European Parliament elections]] for [[No to EU – Yes to Democracy]], a left-wing [[alter-globalisation]] coalition led by [[National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers|RMT]] union leader [[Bob Crow]].<ref>Mark Smith [http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/scottish-news/2009/03/10/exclusive-tommy-sheridan-to-stand-for-euro-elections-86908-21185994/ "Exclusive: Tommy Sheridan to stand for Euro elections"], ''Daily Record'', 10 March 2009</ref><ref>[http://www.socialistworker.co.uk/art.php?id=17465 "No To EU – RMT launches election campaign"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090327192034/http://socialistworker.co.uk/art.php?id=17465 |date=27 March 2009 }}, ''Socialist Worker'', 24 March 2009</ref> |
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Sheridan resigned as the co-convenor of Solidarity in June 2016, but returned as convener in 2019.<ref name="Scot110616"/><ref name="HG120616"/> In 2020, Solidarity signed up for [[Action for Independence]], a new pro-independence alliance.<ref>{{Cite web|title=New Independence party forced to change 'misleading' name|url=https://www.heraldscotland.com/news/18767331.new-independence-party-forced-change-misleading-name/|access-date=2021-02-06|website=HeraldScotland|date=3 October 2020 |language=en}}</ref> |
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In March 2021 he and his wife Gail joined the [[Alba Party]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.scotsman.com/news/politics/tommy-sheridan-has-joined-alex-salmonds-alba-party-3181481|title=Tommy Sheridan has joined Alex Salmond's Alba Party|first=Jane|last=Bradley|date=28 March 2021|work=The Scotsman|access-date=28 March 2021|language=en-GB}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.heraldscotland.com/news/19193656.tommy-sheridan-joins-alex-salmonds-new-party/?ref=fbshr&fbclid=IwAR34vw1XUa7Iomtqpsl_fFY27w9IayNmqnxWsQP0OrGCAN8M7IH3czjHQg0|title=Tommy Sheridan Joins Alex Salmond's New Party|first=Tom|last=Gordon|date=28 March 2021|work=The Herald|access-date=29 March 2021|language=en-GB}}</ref> |
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==Defamation action== |
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{{main|Sheridan v News Group Newspapers Ltd}} |
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Hearings in Sheridan's defamation case against the publishers of the ''[[News of the World]]'' began in the [[Court of Session]] in [[Edinburgh]] on 4 July 2006.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/5143460.stm | title=Sheridan starts defamation action | date=4 July 2006 | publisher=BBC News| access-date=4 May 2007}}</ref> Unusually in Scottish civil proceedings, the case was heard before a [[jury]]. |
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The jury heard allegations that Sheridan had visited a [[Swinging (sexual practice)|swingers]] clubs in [[Manchester]] and engaged in adulterous affairs with two women.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/glasgow_and_west/5150246.stm | title=Call girl claims Sheridan affair | date=5 July 2006 | publisher=BBC News| access-date=4 May 2007}}</ref> Sheridan, who claims to be a [[teetotaller]], reportedly drank [[Champagne (wine)|champagne]] and consumed [[cocaine]] during an extramarital liaison.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://thescotsman.scotsman.com/index.cfm?id=983512006 | title=Sheridan had an affair with former prostitute, journalist tells court | author=John Robertson | date=6 July 2006 | work=The Scotsman | access-date=4 May 2007}}</ref> Sheridan denies drinking the champagne and the claim of substance abuse. Eleven members of the [[Scottish Socialist Party|SSP]]'s executive committee testified that he admitted in an executive committee meeting to attending a swingers club with women,<ref>{{cite news | url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/glasgow_and_west/5157866.stm | title=Sheridan 'admitted' being in club | date=7 July 2006 | publisher=BBC News| access-date=4 May 2007}}</ref><ref>{{cite news | url=http://news.scotsman.com/index.cfm?id=978242006 | title=Sheridan 'admitted going to swingers club' | author=John Robertson | date=5 July 2006 | work=The Scotsman | access-date=4 May 2007 | location=Edinburgh}}</ref> but another four members of the SSP who were present at that Executive meeting backed Sheridan's claim that he made no such admission at that meeting.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/scotland/glasgow_and_west/5401830.stm | title=Sheridan ready to 'take on fight' | date=3 October 2006 | publisher=BBC News| access-date=4 May 2007 }}</ref> |
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On 14 July 2006, Sheridan sacked his legal team and began representing himself.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/glasgow_and_west/5179718.stm | title=Legal counsel sacked by Sheridan | date=14 July 2006 | publisher=BBC News| access-date=4 May 2007 }}</ref> His cross-examination of witnesses was described by one left commentator as "sickening", singling out the cross-examination of Katrine Trolle: "Sheridan questioned her about their sexual history, which included visits to Cupids with Sheridan and group sex encounters with him and his brother-in-law, Andrew McFarlane. When she stated that she was embarrassed about her past, but that she was telling the truth, Sheridan unflinching brandished her as a perjurer, plotter and gold-digger. [...] I still find it astonishing, and not a little dispiriting, that anyone on the left – any decent human being in fact – could justify traducing a female socialist's character in court, not once, but twice, in order to protect a leading socialist politician's false reputation."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.newleftproject.org/index.php/site/article_comments/the_tommy_sheridan_affair_a_scottish_tragedy|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120807041659/http://www.newleftproject.org/index.php/site/article_comments/the_tommy_sheridan_affair_a_scottish_tragedy|url-status=usurped|archive-date=7 August 2012|title=The Tommy Sheridan Affair: A Scottish Tragedy|date=3 August 2012|access-date=12 October 2014}}</ref> |
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On 4 August 2006, Sheridan won his case with a majority verdict of 7–4 and the jury awarded him maximum damages of £200,000.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/scotland/5246378.stm | title=Sheridan victory in court battle | date=4 August 2006 | publisher=BBC News| access-date=4 May 2007 }}</ref> The ''News of the World'' has appealed the verdict. In the ''[[Scottish Socialist Voice]]'' of 8 August, a letter signed by a further six leading members of the SSP claimed that Sheridan had told them that he had admitted at an SSP Executive meeting to attending the Manchester swingers club. |
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The ''[[News of the World]]'' intended to appeal against what they described as the "perverse" decision in the immediate aftermath of the trial, and a provisional date for the hearing was set for December 2007, however it was postponed until the outcome of the [[procurator fiscal]]'s perjury probe.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/6358371.stm | title=Newspaper's Tommy appeal date set | date=13 February 2007 | publisher=BBC News| access-date=4 May 2007 }}</ref> |
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===Allegations of witness intimidation=== |
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On 10 October 2006, [[BBC News]] reported that [[Grampian Police]] were investigating a claim by Fiona McGuire, who had been a witness in the trial for the ''News of the World'', that she had received a death threat through the post. In a statement to the BBC, Sheridan said: "I utterly condemn any threats to Fiona McGuire or any other individual".<ref name="threat">{{cite news | title = Sheridan witness 'threat' inquiry | publisher = BBC News| date = 10 October 2006 | url = http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/north_east/6036271.stm}} |
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</ref> |
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On 26 August 2007, the ''[[Sunday Herald]]'' reported that John Lynn had been questioned by detectives about allegations of witness tampering. Lynn is reportedly an associate of [[Paul Ferris (gangster)|Paul Ferris]], a reformed criminal who has become friendly with Sheridan. The report said Helen Allison, who claimed in court that she saw Sheridan having sex in a Glasgow hotel, had been approached by Lynn who asked her not to give evidence. Lynn was once jailed for 17 years for shooting an [[Ulster]] barman.<ref name="gunman">{{cite news | title = Sheridan case police quiz ex-gunman | work = Sunday Herald | date = 26 August 2006 | url = http://www.sundayherald.com/news/heraldnews/display.var.1644235.0.sheridan_case_police_quiz_exgunman.php}} |
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</ref> |
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===Hidden video=== |
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On 1 October 2006, the ''News of the World'' reignited controversy by publishing new evidence in support of its claim that Sheridan lied to the Court of Session. It was a video recording of Sheridan admitting he had visited a swingers club in Manchester on two occasions and further, that he had, as other senior SSP members claimed in court, admitted this at an Executive meeting of the SSP. The tape had been made without Sheridan's knowledge using a hidden camera by SSP member George McNeilage in McNeilage's house after he invited Sheridan there. McNeilage had been one of three best men at Sheridan's wedding. |
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Sheridan does not appear clearly on the video at any time. The newspaper has not been able to produce any images from the video showing Sheridan's face and Sheridan says the video is a fake. He conceded his voice was on the tape but suggested it was spliced with clips of the voice of someone else.<ref>''The Scotsman''</ref> The ''News of the World'' claimed four independent voice analysts had confirmed that the voice on the tape is that of Tommy Sheridan.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/scotland/5396828.stm | title=Sheridan rubbishes video claims | date=10 January 2006 | publisher=BBC News| access-date=2 October 2006}}</ref> However, in an interview with the BBC a forensic speech scientist, Peter French, said: "Experts should never say conclusively they have identified a person and this kind of evidence should never solely be used to bring a criminal trial".<ref>{{cite news | url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/magazine/5402832.stm | title=How accurate is voice identification? | date=4 October 2006 | work=BBC News Magazine | access-date=4 May 2007 }}</ref> |
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Sheridan then suggested that [[MI5]], someone within the SSP, [[Rupert Murdoch]] and [[Bill Gates]] had conspired to concoct the videotape to undermine his campaign for an independent socialist Scotland.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://news.scotsman.com/scotland.cfm?id=1467102006 | title=Sheridan claims to be 'victim of MI5 plot' | author=Louise Gray | date=4 October 2006 | work=The Scotsman | access-date=4 May 2007 | location=Edinburgh}}</ref> |
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===Perjury conviction=== |
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{{main|HM Advocate v Sheridan and Sheridan}} |
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[[File:HMP Barlinnie.jpg|thumb|HM Prison Barlinnie]] |
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The conflicting evidence given during the trial resulted in the judge warning several witnesses about the implications of perjuring themselves. On Monday 7 August 2006, Lothian and Borders Police said they had received two complaints of perjury, one from the former Conservative MSP [[Brian Monteith]],<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.legalprospects.com/cgi-bin/directnews_view_article.cgi?article_id=17442813&channel_page_code=LEGSEC |title=Official perjury complaint lodged following Sheridan libel victory |publisher=Legalprospects.com |access-date=3 December 2010}}</ref> the other alleged to be from the SSP's minutes secretary.<ref>{{cite news| url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/glasgow_and_west/5253328.stm | publisher=BBC News| title=SSP chiefs at war with Sheridan | date=7 August 2006 | access-date=25 May 2010}}</ref> |
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On 22 August 2006, the [[Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service|Crown Office]] instructed the Edinburgh Procurators Fiscal office to ascertain if there were grounds for a criminal investigation. On 2 October 2006, it was concluded that there were and Lothian and Borders Police were instructed to start a criminal investigation.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/glasgow_and_west/5400298.stm | title=Perjury probe over Sheridan trial | date=2 October 2006 | publisher=BBC News| access-date=4 May 2007}}</ref> On 21 February 2007, ''The Herald'' reported that the [[Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service|Crown Office]] had asked [[Lothian and Borders Police]] to undertake a full inquiry after receiving a preliminary report.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.theherald.co.uk/news/news/display.var.1206609.0.0.php | title=Sheridan perjury investigators given go-ahead for full inquiry | author=Tom Gordon | date=21 February 2007 | work=The Herald | access-date=4 May 2007 }}</ref> |
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In May 2007, it was reported that staff at Cupid's Swingers Club in Manchester had told police they had been offered bribes not to co-operate with the inquiry.<ref>Paul Hutcheon [http://www.sundayherald.com/news/heraldnews/display.var.1411859.0.police_investigate_bribery_allegation_in_sheridan_case.php "Police investigate 'bribery' allegation in Sheridan case"], ''Sunday Herald'', c.18 March 2007. Retrieved 3 August 2007.</ref> |
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On 16 December 2007, Sheridan was charged with perjury in relation to the ''News of the World'' case.<ref>{{cite news| url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/7146907.stm | publisher=BBC News| title=Sheridan charged in perjury probe | date=16 December 2007 | access-date=25 May 2010}}</ref> In a public statement outside the police station he attributed his arrest to the "powerful reach" of the Murdoch press. During February 2008, his wife Gail, former SSP MSP [[Rosemary Byrne]], former members of the SSP Executive Committee, Patricia Smith, Graeme McIver, Jock Penman, and Sheridan's father-in-law, Angus Healey, were also charged with perjury. |
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On 27 January 2009, Sheridan and his wife were indicted for perjury, and were summoned to attend a pre-trial hearing at Edinburgh High Court on 26 February.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.theherald.co.uk/news/news/display.var.2484960.0.Tommy_and_Gail_Sheridan_indicted_on_perjury_charge.php | title=Tommy and Gail Sheridan indicted on perjury charge | work=The Herald | access-date=27 January 2009 | archive-date=30 January 2009 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090130013429/http://theherald.co.uk/news/news/display.var.2484960.0.Tommy_and_Gail_Sheridan_indicted_on_perjury_charge.php | url-status=dead }}</ref> however this was postponed until 11 May.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.thefirmmagazine.com/news/1326/Sheridan_trial_postponed_for_three_months.html | title=Sheridan trial postponed for three months | work=The Firm | access-date=13 February 2009 }}{{Dead link|date=February 2024 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> |
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The trial started at Glasgow High Court on 4 October 2010. Sheridan's initial defence team included [[Donald Findlay]], who was replaced by [[Maggie Scott (advocate)|Maggie Scott]].<ref>{{cite web | url=http://thescotsman.scotsman.com/scotland/Sheridan-axes-top-lawyer-.5678971.jp | title=Sheridan axes top lawyer in run-up to perjury trial}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.heraldscotland.com/news/home-news/sheridan-drops-qc-findlay-as-perjury-trial-nears-1.922019 | title=Sheridan drops QC Findlay as perjury trial nears| date=24 September 2009}}</ref> However, a few weeks into the case, Sheridan instructed his Solicitor [[Aamer Anwar]], who had defended him since 2007, to withdraw Scott's instructions. He then conducted his own defence, with Anwar assisting him as [[amicus curiae]]. |
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On 23 December 2010 a jury found Sheridan guilty of perjury and on 26 January 2011 he was sentenced to 3 years in prison.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://news.stv.tv/scotland/west-central/223183-tommy-sheridan-jailed-for/ |title=STV 26 January |publisher=News.stv.tv |date=26 January 2011 |access-date=30 January 2012 |archive-date=14 March 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120314030530/http://news.stv.tv/scotland/west-central/223183-tommy-sheridan-jailed-for/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> |
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Initially he was held in [[Barlinnie (HM Prison)|Barlinnie]] prison in Glasgow, but after several weeks he was moved to a semi-open wing in Barlinnie, and on 21 June he was moved to [[Castle Huntly]] [[open prison]].<ref>The Herald 23 June 2011</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.scotsman.com/scotland/Sheridan-39free-by-October39.6791037.jp |title=Scotsman report |work=The Scotsman |date=24 June 2011 |access-date=30 January 2012}}</ref> Sheridan was released to a [[Home Detention Curfew]] on 30 January 2012, having served just over one year of his sentence.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.google.com/hostednews/ukpress/article/ALeqM5hmmt6ANJp5MAdxWk3GPJ1MMAiIjQ?docId=N0205201327883474937A |archive-url=https://archive.today/20240525170737/https://www.webcitation.org/654s11vh4?url=http://www.google.com/hostednews/ukpress/article/ALeqM5hmmt6ANJp5MAdxWk3GPJ1MMAiIjQ%3FdocId=N0205201327883474937A |url-status=dead |archive-date=25 May 2024 |title=Tommy Sheridan freed from prison |agency=Press Association |date=30 January 2012 |access-date=30 January 2012 }}</ref> |
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Sheridan and Aamer Anwar subsequently parted company, with Gordon Dangerfield acting as his lawyer.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Williams|first=Martin|date=2012-05-30|title=Coulson charged over Sheridan trial evidence|url=https://www.heraldscotland.com/news/13059983.coulson-charged-sheridan-trial-evidence/|access-date=2021-05-11|website=[[HeraldScotland]]|language=en}}</ref> |
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In 2015 the [[Scottish Criminal Cases Review Commission]] declined to refer the case to the High Court.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.heraldscotland.com/news/13212207.sheridans-fight-perjury-conviction-suffers-setback/|title=Sheridan's fight against perjury conviction suffers setback|website=HeraldScotland|date=3 May 2015 }}</ref> |
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====Support for Sheridan==== |
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A "Defend Tommy Sheridan" campaign was launched by sympathetic trade unionists and politicians to demand why Sheridan was being investigated. In December 2007, ''[[Sunday Herald]]'' columnist [[Iain MacWhirter]] said it was "hard not to conclude that the police's diligence has been inspired by Rupert Murdoch's News International."<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2007/dec/17/thekingoftheswingers|title=The king of the swingers?|author=MacWhirter, Iain|work=[[The Guardian]]|date=17 December 2007|author-link=Iain MacWhirter}}</ref> The campaign drew support from the politician [[George Galloway]] and leading trade unionist [[Bob Crow]] (RMT). At a June 2008 rally organised by the campaign, speakers including FBU secretary Kenny Ross, [[Paddy Hill]], and [[Gerry Conlon]] queried the motives for the investigation, questioned the role of the police and [[Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service|Crown Office]] and verbally attacked the witnesses who had given evidence unhelpful to Sheridan in the original hearing. |
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===Claims of illegal surveillance=== |
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In March 2007, [[Lothian and Borders Police]] investigated claims that Tommy Sheridan had been [[Covert listening device|bugged]] after a suspicious device was found in his car. The device was described as "not of the kind used by British security services".<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.theherald.co.uk/news/news/display.var.1280706.0.0.php | title=Police inquiry after 'bug' found in Sheridan's car | work=[[The Herald (Glasgow)|The Herald]]| date=22 March 2007 | access-date=20 March 2011 }}</ref> |
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A complaint submitted to Strathclyde Police in July 2011 lead to [[Operation Rubicon]], a major investigation involving 50 officers investigating allegations of phone hacking, breach of data protection and perjury by ''News of the World''. In May 2012, [[Andy Coulson]], editor of the ''News of the World'' from 2003 – 2007 and who gave evidence at Sheridan's trial,<ref name=guardiancoulsonhacking>{{cite news|author=Severin Carrell|author2=Nick Davies|title=Andy Coulson denies phone hacking at Tommy Sheridan trial|url=https://www.theguardian.com/media/2010/dec/09/andy-coulson-phone-hacking-sheridan|access-date=30 May 2012|newspaper=The Guardian|date=9 December 2010}}</ref> was detained "on suspicion of committing perjury before the High Court in Glasgow".<ref name=bbccoulsonperjury>{{cite news|title=Andy Coulson held in Tommy Sheridan trial perjury inquiry|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-glasgow-west-18262740|publisher=BBC News|access-date=30 May 2012|date=30 May 2012}}</ref> On 7 July 2014, following Coulson's conviction on phone hacking charges, Coulson himself faced perjury charges over Sheridan's trial,<ref>{{cite news|title=Andy Coulson to face perjury charges over the Tommy Sheridan trial|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-28199829|date=7 July 2014|publisher=BBCNews|access-date=7 July 2015}}</ref> and on 23 February 2015, a pre-evidential hearing at the High Court in Edinburgh set a trial date of 21 April.<ref name="BBC News 23 February 2015">{{cite web | title= Andy Coulson faces perjury trial |url= https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-31594152| author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.-->|date= 23 February 2015 | publisher= BBC News| access-date= 23 February 2015}}</ref> On 3 June 2015, Coulson was formally acquitted after the case against him was dismissed by a judge.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Carrell|first1=Severin|title=Andy Coulson cleared of perjury as Scottish court case collapses|url=https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2015/jun/03/andy-coulson-cleared-of-perjury-in-scottish-court|access-date=4 June 2015|newspaper=The Guardian|date=3 June 2015}}</ref> |
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===News Group appeal against defamation award (2016)=== |
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An appeal hearing at the Court of Session in Edinburgh against the 2006 defamation award in light of Sheridan's later perjury conviction began on 10 May 2016.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-36257409|title=Bid to overturn Tommy Sheridan defamation trial verdict|publisher=BBC News|location=Scotland|date=10 May 2016|access-date=19 August 2016}}</ref> New Group Newspapers (now part of [[News UK]]) lost their appeal against the award of £200,000 damages to Sheridan on 19 August 2016.<ref>{{cite news|last=Brooks|first=Libby|url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2016/aug/19/news-group-loses-bid-to-repeal-tommy-sheridan-defamation-verdict|title=News Group loses bid to repeal Tommy Sheridan defamation verdict|work=The Guardian|date=19 August 2016|access-date=19 August 2016}}</ref> |
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===Publications=== |
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Sheridan's rise and extinction are dealt with in two works of political analysis: ''Downfall'' by his erstwhile colleague Alan McCombes (2011), and ''Tommy Sheridan: From Hero to Zero?'' by Gregor Gall (2012). |
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==Later career and other activities== |
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===Scottish independence referendum=== |
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In the run-up to the [[2014 Scottish independence referendum]], Sheridan embarked on a pro-independence speaking tour under the banner "Hope Over Fear".<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.scotsman.com/news/politics/top-stories/scottish-independence-13k-to-attend-glasgow-rally-1-3570456|title=Scottish independence: 13k to attend Glasgow rally|date=12 October 2014|access-date=12 October 2014}}</ref> By June 2014, four pro-independence groups {{mdash}} [[Women for Independence]], [[Labour for Independence]], [[Generation Yes (Scotland)|Generation Yes]], and the [[Radical Independence Campaign]] {{mdash}} had adopted a policy of refusing Sheridan a platform during the campaign. According to a report in the ''Sunday Herald'', pro-independence figures "believe Sheridan is piggy-backing on the independence campaign to gain publicity for an appeal against his conviction".<ref>{{cite news|last1=Hutcheon|first1=Paul|last2=Gordon|first2=Tom|url=http://www.heraldscotland.com/politics/referendum-news/sheridan-frozen-out-of-yes-campaign.24489722|title=Sheridan frozen out of Yes campaign|date=15 June 2014|access-date=29 June 2014|newspaper=Sunday Herald}}</ref> |
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Following the defeat of the Yes campaign, Sheridan called for a [[Scottish National Party]] (SNP) vote at the [[2015 United Kingdom general election|2015 general election]] for the Westminster parliament, which he said would force a second independence referendum by 2020.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.heraldscotland.com/news/home-news/sheridans-rallying-call-to-yes-supporters-vote-snp-next-year-and-aim-for-2020-indyref.1411326140|title=Sheridan's rallying call to Yes supporters: vote SNP next year and aim for 2020 indyref|date=21 September 2014|access-date=22 September 2014|work=The Herald}}</ref> He was later a headline speaker at a Hope Over Fear rally in George Square on Sunday 12 October, where he sparked controversy by asking for donations to be sent to his home address.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://thirdforcenews.org.uk/funding-and-finance/news/cash-questions-over-sheridan-pro-indy-rally|title=Cash questions over Sheridan pro-indy rally|work=Third Force News|date=9 October 2014|access-date=9 October 2014}}</ref> He asked for cheques to be made out to a community group run by a former Solidarity candidate.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.heraldscotland.com/politics/scottish-politics/sheridan-pushed-to-present-details-of-spending-linked-to-pro-yes-event.25565005|title=Sheridan pushed to present details of spending linked to pro-Yes event|date=12 October 2014|access-date=12 October 2014}}</ref> Ahead of the rally, former MSP [[Rosie Kane]] said: "Try to understand that Tommy is a divisive and manipulative character. By all means go along, but don't for a minute imagine that this is an open, inclusive and friendly event. This is ego at its most manipulative."<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.heraldscotland.com/politics/scottish-politics/leckie-and-kane-will-never-share-platform-with-the-man-who-labelled-them-.25571436|title=Leckie and Kane will never share platform with the man who labelled them 'scabs'|date=12 October 2014|access-date=12 October 2014}}</ref> |
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===Broadcasting=== |
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Tommy Sheridan had a weekly Sunday morning show on [[Talk 107]] for 18 months, but the station did not renew his contract due to cutbacks and changes to programming that saw [[Mike Graham (journalist)|Mike Graham]] and others leave Talk107.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/glasgow_and_west/7323369.stm | title=Sheridan dropped from radio show | date=1 April 2008|access-date=30 June 2020}}</ref> He hosted a chat show during the Edinburgh fringe in 2007, which received muted reviews.{{Citation needed|date=April 2009}} He appeared in the [[Celebrity Big Brother (British series 6)|Celebrity version]] of [[Celebrity Big Brother (British TV series)|Big Brother UK]]. He was the fifth to be evicted (during the double eviction on 21 January 2009). He received mixed reactions from the crowd upon both entry and exit, and admitted during the post-eviction interview that his primary motivation for taking part was that he "needed the money".<ref>{{Cite web | url=http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/entertainment/celebrity/exclusive-im-in-big-brother-for-the-money-1003929 |title = Exclusive: I'm in Big Brother for the money, admits Tommy Sheridan|date = 3 January 2009}}</ref> |
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=== Celebrant === |
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By 30 June 2018, Sheridan trained to become a [[Humanism|humanist]] [[Marriage officiant|celebrant]].<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://twitter.com/citizentommy/status/1013186007582302208|title=Tommy Sheridan on Twitter|work=Twitter|access-date=2018-07-10|language=en}}</ref> Sheridan cited the reason as his occasional role presiding over funerals.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-scotland-politics-44765301|title=From Holyrood to humanism|date=2018-07-09|publisher=BBC News|access-date=2018-07-10|language=en-GB}}</ref> |
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==Elections contested== |
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'''UK Parliament elections''' |
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{| class="wikitable" |
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! Date of election !! Constituency !! Party !! Votes !! % |
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|- |
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| [[1992 United Kingdom general election|1992]] || [[Glasgow Pollok (UK Parliament constituency)|Glasgow Pollok]] || [[Scottish Militant Labour|SML]] || 6,287 || 19.26 |
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|- |
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| [[1997 United Kingdom general election|1997]] || [[Glasgow Pollok (UK Parliament constituency)|Glasgow Pollok]] || [[Scottish Socialist Alliance|SSA]] || 3,639 || 11.09 |
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|- |
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|| [[2010 United Kingdom general election|2010]] || [[Glasgow South West (UK Parliament constituency)|Glasgow South West]] || [[Solidarity (Scotland)|Solidarity]] ([[Trade Unionist and Socialist Coalition|TUSC]]) || 931 || 2.9 |
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|- |
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|} |
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'''Scottish Parliament elections''' |
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{| class="wikitable" |
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! Date of election !! Region !! Party !! Votes !! % !! Results |
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|- |
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| [[1999 Scottish Parliament election|1999]] || [[Glasgow (Scottish Parliament electoral region)|Glasgow]] || [[Scottish Socialist Party|SSP]] || 18,581 || 7.2 || Elected |
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|- |
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| [[2003 Scottish Parliament election|2003]] || [[Glasgow (Scottish Parliament electoral region)|Glasgow]] || [[Scottish Socialist Party|SSP]] || 31,216 || 15.2 || Elected |
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|- |
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| [[2007 Scottish Parliament election|2007]] || [[Glasgow (Scottish Parliament electoral region)|Glasgow]] || [[Solidarity (Scotland)|Solidarity]] || 8,544 || 4.1 || Not elected |
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|- |
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| [[2016 Scottish Parliament election|2016]] || [[Glasgow (Scottish Parliament electoral region)|Glasgow]] || [[Solidarity (Scotland)|Solidarity]] || 3,593 || 1.4 || Not elected |
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|- |
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|} |
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{| class="wikitable" |
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! Date of election !! Constituency !! Party !! Votes !! % |
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|- |
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| [[1999 Scottish Parliament election|1999]] || [[Glasgow Pollok (Scottish Parliament constituency)|Glasgow Pollok]] || [[Scottish Socialist Party|SSP]] || 5,611 || 21.5 |
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|- |
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| [[2003 Scottish Parliament election|2003]] || [[Glasgow Pollok (Scottish Parliament constituency)|Glasgow Pollok]] || [[Scottish Socialist Party|SSP]] || 6,016 || 27.9 |
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|- |
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|} |
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'''European Parliament elections''' |
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{| class="wikitable" |
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! Date of election !! Constituency !! Party !! Votes !! % !! Notes |
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|- |
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| [[1994 European Parliament election in the United Kingdom|1994]] || [[Glasgow (European Parliament constituency)|Glasgow]] || [[Scottish Militant Labour|SML]] || 12,113 || 7.6 || Single member constituency |
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|- |
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|} |
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{| class="wikitable" |
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! Date of election !! Region !! Party !! Votes !! % !! Results !! Notes |
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|- |
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| [[2009 European Parliament election in the United Kingdom|2009]] || [[Scotland (European Parliament constituency)|Scotland]] || [[No2EU]] || 9,693 || 0.9 || Not elected || Multi-member constituency |
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|- |
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|} |
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==References== |
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{{reflist}} |
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==External links== |
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*[http://www.solidarityscotland.org Solidarity Scotland Official Site] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061028115614/http://www.solidarityscotland.org/ |date=28 October 2006 }} |
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* {{SP-MSP}} |
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{{1999 Scottish Parliament election|state=collapsed}} |
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{{2003 Scottish Parliament election|state=collapsed}} |
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{{Authority control}} |
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Sheridan, Tommy}} |
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[[Category:1964 births]] |
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[[Category:Living people]] |
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[[Category:Alumni of the University of Stirling]] |
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[[Category:Alumni of the University of Strathclyde]] |
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[[Category:British perjurers]] |
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[[Category:Leaders of political parties in Scotland]] |
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[[Category:Members of the Scottish Parliament 1999–2003]] |
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[[Category:Members of the Scottish Parliament 2003–2007]] |
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[[Category:Militant tendency supporters]] |
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[[Category:People educated at Lourdes Secondary School]] |
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[[Category:Politicians from Glasgow]] |
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[[Category:Prisoners and detainees of Scotland]] |
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[[Category:Scottish politicians convicted of crimes]] |
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[[Category:Scottish Socialist Party MSPs]] |
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[[Category:Solidarity MSPs]] |
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[[Category:Larkhall Thistle F.C. players]] |
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[[Category:Benburb F.C. players]] |
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[[Category:East Kilbride Thistle F.C. players]] |
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[[Category:Baillieston Juniors F.C. players]] |
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[[Category:St Anthony's F.C. players]] |
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[[Category:Scottish Junior Football Association players]] |
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[[Category:Scottish men's footballers]] |
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[[Category:Scottish humanists]] |
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[[Category:Men's association football players not categorized by position]] |
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[[Category:Alba Party politicians]] |
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[[Category:Criminals from Glasgow]] |
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[[Category:Expelled members of the Labour Party (UK)]] |
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[[Category:British political party founders]] |
Latest revision as of 00:10, 13 November 2024
Tommy Sheridan | |
---|---|
Convenor of Solidarity | |
In office 17 November 2019 – December 2021 | |
Preceded by | Pat Lee Rosemary Byrne |
Succeeded by | Office dissolved |
In office 3 September 2006 – 13 June 2016 Serving with Rosemary Byrne | |
Preceded by | Office established |
Succeeded by | Pat Lee Rosemary Byrne |
Convenor of Scottish Socialist Party | |
In office 1998 – 11 November 2004 | |
Preceded by | Office established |
Succeeded by | Colin Fox |
Member of the Scottish Parliament for Glasgow | |
In office 6 May 1999 – 3 May 2007 | |
Glasgow City Councillor | |
In office 7 May 1992 – 1 May 2003 | |
Preceded by | E. J. Nolan |
Succeeded by | Keith Baldassara |
Personal details | |
Born | Glasgow, Scotland | 7 March 1964
Political party | Alba (2021–present) |
Other political affiliations | Labour (1981–1989) Scottish Militant Labour (1991–1998) SSP (1998–2006) Solidarity (2006–2021) |
Alma mater | University of Stirling University of Strathclyde Glasgow Caledonian University |
Thomas Sheridan (born 7 March 1964)[1][2] is a Scottish politician who served as convenor of Solidarity from 2019 to 2021.[3] He previously served as convenor of the Scottish Socialist Party (SSP) from 1998 to 2004 and as co-convenor of Solidarity from 2006 to 2016.[4][5] He was a Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for the Glasgow region from 1999 to 2007.
Sheridan was active as a Militant entryist in the Labour Party until 1989 when Labour expelled him,[6] and became a member of Scottish Militant Labour (SML), which eventually became the core of the Scottish Socialist Party (SSP). He was a prominent campaigner against the Poll tax in Scotland, and was jailed for six months for attending a warrant sale in 1991 after Glasgow Sheriff Court had served a court order on him banning his presence.[7] He was elected to the Scottish Parliament in 1999 as a Glasgow representative and re-elected in 2003 despite, in 2000 and 2002, being jailed over the non-payment of fines levied in connection with breach of the peace convictions resulting from his actions at demonstrations against the presence of the nuclear fleet at the Faslane Naval Base.[8]
In 2006, in the case of Sheridan v News International, he won an action for defamation against the News of the World and was awarded £200,000 damages. The following year, he was charged with perjury for having told lies to the court in his defamation case.[9] In the following weeks, six of his relatives and colleagues were also charged. In October 2010, he appeared together with his wife Gail at a trial for perjury. On 23 December 2010, Sheridan was convicted of perjury, and on 26 January he was sentenced to three years' imprisonment.[10] The charges against his wife were withdrawn. In the light of the News of the World phone hacking affair, the Crown Office was ordered to reassess the case in 2011.[11] Sheridan left prison in January 2012 under automatic early release rules.[12]
Early life
[edit]Sheridan's mother was Alice Sheridan, a political activist who stood as a candidate for political groups involving her son.
Sheridan, raised in Roman Catholic faith, attended St Monica's Primary (Pollok) and Lourdes Secondary before studying at the University of Stirling, where he received a degree in economics. He obtained a MSc in Social Research at the University of Strathclyde in 2008.[13] He studied law at Strathclyde Law School, on the two-year fast track degree, graduating in 2015.[14][15] He also played football at Junior level with Larkhall Thistle, Benburb, East Kilbride Thistle, Baillieston Juniors and St Anthony's.[16][17][18]
Political career, 1983–2009
[edit]Early activism
[edit]Sheridan became a member of the Militant group while a student at Stirling University in around 1983, after being active in a broad-based anti-Trotskyist group including Liberals and Communists as well as Labour Party members.[6] After graduation, he went to Cardonald College as a typing student as part of an (unsuccessful) effort on the part of Militant to recruit Scottish Labour Students in further education colleges. The Labour Party, led by Neil Kinnock at the time, found that Militant contravened the Labour Party constitution, and Sheridan himself was expelled from the Labour Party in 1989 for "bringing the party into disrepute".[6]
From within Militant, he was the public face of a mass non-payment campaign against the Community Charge in Scotland (where it was introduced a year earlier than other parts of the UK "as an experiment"). The campaign involving the refusal to pay the tax, together with resistance to warrant sales which local councils held to try to recoup the money, was ultimately successful and Sheridan became a popular political figure. Sheridan denounced those who fought the police in the large-scale riot against the poll tax in London – which took place on 31 March 1990, the day before the tax was introduced in England and Wales – and publicly threatened to "name names". The police widely advertised for people to tell them the names of alleged rioters, and partly as a result of police acting on such information, over 100 individuals were jailed. With Joan McAlpine, he published A Time to Rage which chronicled the anti-poll tax movement of the late-1980s and early-1990s. McAlpine has since written about the Sheridan she became close to, with reference in particular to the defamation case.
As the highest profile Militant member in Scotland, Sheridan was a leading figure in the group's split in the early-1990s. Emboldened by the success of the campaign against the poll tax, many Militant members – particularly in Scotland – argued for the abandonment of entryism and for the creation of Scottish Militant Labour and Militant Labour in England and Wales as separate political parties.
The argument was resolved when Sheridan and his supporters won a vote at a special conference held in Bridlington in October 1991, defeating the faction around Militant founder Ted Grant who argued against abandoning the Labour Party. The result was a split in the Militant in what has become known as the 'Scottish Turn'; Scottish Militant Labour had gained six councillors in Glasgow by 1993, including Sheridan.[6] With a strong Scottish National Party (SNP), Scottish Militant Labour argued in favour of founding a new, left-wing political party. Discussions were held with other left-wing and Scottish republican groups and a new group was formed in 1996 known initially as the Scottish Socialist Alliance. In 1998, the new Scottish Socialist Party was formed from the SSA. Differences over political strategy and priorities within the Committee for a Workers' International (CWI) soon surfaced, especially on the issue of Scottish independence, leading to a split within the CWI and Sheridan along with the majority of Scottish supporters left the organisation.[citation needed]
Sheridan fought two elections while in prison, coming second in the Pollok constituency at the 1992 general election, gaining nearly 20%, a result ahead of three candidates, but behind the elected Labour Party MP. A few weeks later he won the Pollok ward on Glasgow District Council. He contested the European Parliament election in 1994 as the SML candidate in Glasgow, and came third with 8% of votes cast.
Election to the Scottish Parliament
[edit]Sheridan was a leading figure in negotiations to establish the Scottish Socialist Alliance in 1996, which evolved into the Scottish Socialist Party (SSP) in 1998. He became the convenor of the party and was elected to the Scottish Parliament in 1999 as a Glasgow representative and re-elected in 2003. Together with Alan McCombes he published Imagine, an outline of the principles of socialism for a modern era.
Sheridan was active in implementing long-needed changes in Scottish law, including the Abolition of Poindings and Warrant Sales Act 2001, which he introduced as bills in Holyrood on 6 December 2001. [19]
On 11 November 2004, Sheridan stepped down as convenor of the SSP, citing his wife Gail's pregnancy as a prime reason.[20] The resignation was steeped in controversy. It later emerged that the party's executive committee voted unanimously to force Sheridan to resign after a 9 November meeting in which he confirmed stories printed about a then-unnamed MSP were about him,[21] and indicated he would take legal action against the paper.[22]
Following Sheridan's resignation, the News of the World named him as the MSP they said had had an extramarital affair and visited a swingers' club in Manchester.[23] The party declined to support him in legal action against the paper. He later branded those who refused to support him as "scabs".[24][25]
The minutes of the meeting which detailed the deliberations leading to Sheridan's resignation were kept confidential until subpoenaed by News International. After he refused to release the minutes to the Court of Session, Alan McCombes was jailed for twelve days by Judge Lady Smith.[26] At an emergency meeting of the party's National Council, it was agreed the minutes should be handed over[27] — with only 60 delegates opposed — in order to secure McCombes' release the following day.[28]
The minutes included a discussion by the party's executive committee about a recent article that alleged a married MSP had visited a swingers' club in Manchester. According to the minute, Sheridan admitted that he had in fact visited the club on two occasions, in 1996 and 2002, with close friends. Some of those present at the meeting gave evidence that they had heard Sheridan acknowledge he had been "reckless" in his behaviour which had, with hindsight, been "a mistake" and that "his strategy was to deny the allegations". Sheridan claimed this minute was not accurate.[29][30]
Eleven members, including four of the party's MSPs, stated they heard Sheridan admit to visiting the swingers' club at that meeting. Rosemary Byrne MSP and two other members of the executive committee, Graham McIver and Pat Smith, gave evidence that Sheridan made no such statement.[31] The minutes record that Sheridan left the meeting early, but before leaving, "he repeated that he did not believe there was any evidence which would prove him to be lying. He did not accept that he should admit the visits to the club and felt that no-one should comment on private lives".
At the annual conference of the SSP in early 2005, Sheridan was elected to the SSP executive and at the March 2006 conference, he was elected as party co-chair. However Sheridan left the SSP in August 2006, accusing the SSP of being part of "the mother of all stitch-ups" involving not only their leadership, but also MI5 and News International.[32] He launched a new political party called Solidarity.[33]
Sheridan was originally set to re-contest the post Scottish Socialist Party convenor at the October 2006 conference,[34] and Colin Fox claimed he had only established the new party because he did not stand a chance of winning back that role as SSP convenor.[33]
Activism and arrests at Faslane
[edit]Sheridan was first arrested at the Faslane nuclear base, the location of Britain's Trident submarine fleet, for a breach of the peace offence committed during a demonstration in February 2000.[35] He was convicted on this count, and for resisting arrest, when the case came to trial in November, and was fined £250. Believing nuclear weapons to be illegal under international law,[36] Sheridan made it clear at the time that he had no intention of paying the fine.[37] He served five days of a 14-day jail sentence the next month for this reason, and was released on 22 December.[38]
Sheridan was arrested again at Faslane on 22 October 2001 shortly after the protest began at 7 am.[39][40] He was cleared when the case came to court in June 2002, the Justice of the Peace said there was insufficient evidence.[41][42] Another acquittal in October 2001, this time regarding a February 2001 protest,[43] led to an appeal by the Crown Office, but this was rejected by the Court of Criminal Appeal in Edinburgh in October 2002.[44]
Sheridan was one of the first to be arrested for a breach of the peace at a demonstration at Faslane on 11 February 2002.[45][46] He was found guilty in February 2003 and fined £200,[47] but he refused to pay and was sent to prison for non-payment on 25 August 2003.[8] This time, he was sentenced to seven days in jail, serving 3 days,[48] plus the night in custody after his arrest.[49] Before presenting himself for arrest at Glasgow police station on 24 August 2003, Sheridan had told reporters: "Nuclear weapons are a crime against humanity and should be removed from the Clyde and from Britain."[8]
Split from the Scottish Socialist Party
[edit]In September 2006, Tommy Sheridan formed a new political party in Scotland named Solidarity, with himself and fellow MSP Rosemary Byrne as joint convenors.[50] Sheridan narrowly failed to be re-elected in the 2007 Holyrood election as top of his party's list nominees for Glasgow. The party also stood a candidate in by-elections in 2008 in Glasgow East and the Glenrothes, and Sheridan himself stood in the 2009 Glasgow North East by-election.
Sheridan stood as a candidate in the 2009 European Parliament elections for No to EU – Yes to Democracy, a left-wing alter-globalisation coalition led by RMT union leader Bob Crow.[51][52]
Sheridan resigned as the co-convenor of Solidarity in June 2016, but returned as convener in 2019.[4][5] In 2020, Solidarity signed up for Action for Independence, a new pro-independence alliance.[53]
In March 2021 he and his wife Gail joined the Alba Party.[54][55]
Defamation action
[edit]Hearings in Sheridan's defamation case against the publishers of the News of the World began in the Court of Session in Edinburgh on 4 July 2006.[56] Unusually in Scottish civil proceedings, the case was heard before a jury.
The jury heard allegations that Sheridan had visited a swingers clubs in Manchester and engaged in adulterous affairs with two women.[57] Sheridan, who claims to be a teetotaller, reportedly drank champagne and consumed cocaine during an extramarital liaison.[58] Sheridan denies drinking the champagne and the claim of substance abuse. Eleven members of the SSP's executive committee testified that he admitted in an executive committee meeting to attending a swingers club with women,[59][60] but another four members of the SSP who were present at that Executive meeting backed Sheridan's claim that he made no such admission at that meeting.[61]
On 14 July 2006, Sheridan sacked his legal team and began representing himself.[62] His cross-examination of witnesses was described by one left commentator as "sickening", singling out the cross-examination of Katrine Trolle: "Sheridan questioned her about their sexual history, which included visits to Cupids with Sheridan and group sex encounters with him and his brother-in-law, Andrew McFarlane. When she stated that she was embarrassed about her past, but that she was telling the truth, Sheridan unflinching brandished her as a perjurer, plotter and gold-digger. [...] I still find it astonishing, and not a little dispiriting, that anyone on the left – any decent human being in fact – could justify traducing a female socialist's character in court, not once, but twice, in order to protect a leading socialist politician's false reputation."[63]
On 4 August 2006, Sheridan won his case with a majority verdict of 7–4 and the jury awarded him maximum damages of £200,000.[64] The News of the World has appealed the verdict. In the Scottish Socialist Voice of 8 August, a letter signed by a further six leading members of the SSP claimed that Sheridan had told them that he had admitted at an SSP Executive meeting to attending the Manchester swingers club.
The News of the World intended to appeal against what they described as the "perverse" decision in the immediate aftermath of the trial, and a provisional date for the hearing was set for December 2007, however it was postponed until the outcome of the procurator fiscal's perjury probe.[65]
Allegations of witness intimidation
[edit]On 10 October 2006, BBC News reported that Grampian Police were investigating a claim by Fiona McGuire, who had been a witness in the trial for the News of the World, that she had received a death threat through the post. In a statement to the BBC, Sheridan said: "I utterly condemn any threats to Fiona McGuire or any other individual".[66]
On 26 August 2007, the Sunday Herald reported that John Lynn had been questioned by detectives about allegations of witness tampering. Lynn is reportedly an associate of Paul Ferris, a reformed criminal who has become friendly with Sheridan. The report said Helen Allison, who claimed in court that she saw Sheridan having sex in a Glasgow hotel, had been approached by Lynn who asked her not to give evidence. Lynn was once jailed for 17 years for shooting an Ulster barman.[67]
Hidden video
[edit]On 1 October 2006, the News of the World reignited controversy by publishing new evidence in support of its claim that Sheridan lied to the Court of Session. It was a video recording of Sheridan admitting he had visited a swingers club in Manchester on two occasions and further, that he had, as other senior SSP members claimed in court, admitted this at an Executive meeting of the SSP. The tape had been made without Sheridan's knowledge using a hidden camera by SSP member George McNeilage in McNeilage's house after he invited Sheridan there. McNeilage had been one of three best men at Sheridan's wedding.
Sheridan does not appear clearly on the video at any time. The newspaper has not been able to produce any images from the video showing Sheridan's face and Sheridan says the video is a fake. He conceded his voice was on the tape but suggested it was spliced with clips of the voice of someone else.[68] The News of the World claimed four independent voice analysts had confirmed that the voice on the tape is that of Tommy Sheridan.[69] However, in an interview with the BBC a forensic speech scientist, Peter French, said: "Experts should never say conclusively they have identified a person and this kind of evidence should never solely be used to bring a criminal trial".[70]
Sheridan then suggested that MI5, someone within the SSP, Rupert Murdoch and Bill Gates had conspired to concoct the videotape to undermine his campaign for an independent socialist Scotland.[71]
Perjury conviction
[edit]The conflicting evidence given during the trial resulted in the judge warning several witnesses about the implications of perjuring themselves. On Monday 7 August 2006, Lothian and Borders Police said they had received two complaints of perjury, one from the former Conservative MSP Brian Monteith,[72] the other alleged to be from the SSP's minutes secretary.[73]
On 22 August 2006, the Crown Office instructed the Edinburgh Procurators Fiscal office to ascertain if there were grounds for a criminal investigation. On 2 October 2006, it was concluded that there were and Lothian and Borders Police were instructed to start a criminal investigation.[74] On 21 February 2007, The Herald reported that the Crown Office had asked Lothian and Borders Police to undertake a full inquiry after receiving a preliminary report.[75]
In May 2007, it was reported that staff at Cupid's Swingers Club in Manchester had told police they had been offered bribes not to co-operate with the inquiry.[76]
On 16 December 2007, Sheridan was charged with perjury in relation to the News of the World case.[77] In a public statement outside the police station he attributed his arrest to the "powerful reach" of the Murdoch press. During February 2008, his wife Gail, former SSP MSP Rosemary Byrne, former members of the SSP Executive Committee, Patricia Smith, Graeme McIver, Jock Penman, and Sheridan's father-in-law, Angus Healey, were also charged with perjury.
On 27 January 2009, Sheridan and his wife were indicted for perjury, and were summoned to attend a pre-trial hearing at Edinburgh High Court on 26 February.[78] however this was postponed until 11 May.[79]
The trial started at Glasgow High Court on 4 October 2010. Sheridan's initial defence team included Donald Findlay, who was replaced by Maggie Scott.[80][81] However, a few weeks into the case, Sheridan instructed his Solicitor Aamer Anwar, who had defended him since 2007, to withdraw Scott's instructions. He then conducted his own defence, with Anwar assisting him as amicus curiae.
On 23 December 2010 a jury found Sheridan guilty of perjury and on 26 January 2011 he was sentenced to 3 years in prison.[82] Initially he was held in Barlinnie prison in Glasgow, but after several weeks he was moved to a semi-open wing in Barlinnie, and on 21 June he was moved to Castle Huntly open prison.[83][84] Sheridan was released to a Home Detention Curfew on 30 January 2012, having served just over one year of his sentence.[85]
Sheridan and Aamer Anwar subsequently parted company, with Gordon Dangerfield acting as his lawyer.[86]
In 2015 the Scottish Criminal Cases Review Commission declined to refer the case to the High Court.[87]
Support for Sheridan
[edit]A "Defend Tommy Sheridan" campaign was launched by sympathetic trade unionists and politicians to demand why Sheridan was being investigated. In December 2007, Sunday Herald columnist Iain MacWhirter said it was "hard not to conclude that the police's diligence has been inspired by Rupert Murdoch's News International."[88] The campaign drew support from the politician George Galloway and leading trade unionist Bob Crow (RMT). At a June 2008 rally organised by the campaign, speakers including FBU secretary Kenny Ross, Paddy Hill, and Gerry Conlon queried the motives for the investigation, questioned the role of the police and Crown Office and verbally attacked the witnesses who had given evidence unhelpful to Sheridan in the original hearing.
Claims of illegal surveillance
[edit]In March 2007, Lothian and Borders Police investigated claims that Tommy Sheridan had been bugged after a suspicious device was found in his car. The device was described as "not of the kind used by British security services".[89]
A complaint submitted to Strathclyde Police in July 2011 lead to Operation Rubicon, a major investigation involving 50 officers investigating allegations of phone hacking, breach of data protection and perjury by News of the World. In May 2012, Andy Coulson, editor of the News of the World from 2003 – 2007 and who gave evidence at Sheridan's trial,[90] was detained "on suspicion of committing perjury before the High Court in Glasgow".[91] On 7 July 2014, following Coulson's conviction on phone hacking charges, Coulson himself faced perjury charges over Sheridan's trial,[92] and on 23 February 2015, a pre-evidential hearing at the High Court in Edinburgh set a trial date of 21 April.[93] On 3 June 2015, Coulson was formally acquitted after the case against him was dismissed by a judge.[94]
News Group appeal against defamation award (2016)
[edit]An appeal hearing at the Court of Session in Edinburgh against the 2006 defamation award in light of Sheridan's later perjury conviction began on 10 May 2016.[95] New Group Newspapers (now part of News UK) lost their appeal against the award of £200,000 damages to Sheridan on 19 August 2016.[96]
Publications
[edit]Sheridan's rise and extinction are dealt with in two works of political analysis: Downfall by his erstwhile colleague Alan McCombes (2011), and Tommy Sheridan: From Hero to Zero? by Gregor Gall (2012).
Later career and other activities
[edit]Scottish independence referendum
[edit]In the run-up to the 2014 Scottish independence referendum, Sheridan embarked on a pro-independence speaking tour under the banner "Hope Over Fear".[97] By June 2014, four pro-independence groups — Women for Independence, Labour for Independence, Generation Yes, and the Radical Independence Campaign — had adopted a policy of refusing Sheridan a platform during the campaign. According to a report in the Sunday Herald, pro-independence figures "believe Sheridan is piggy-backing on the independence campaign to gain publicity for an appeal against his conviction".[98]
Following the defeat of the Yes campaign, Sheridan called for a Scottish National Party (SNP) vote at the 2015 general election for the Westminster parliament, which he said would force a second independence referendum by 2020.[99] He was later a headline speaker at a Hope Over Fear rally in George Square on Sunday 12 October, where he sparked controversy by asking for donations to be sent to his home address.[100] He asked for cheques to be made out to a community group run by a former Solidarity candidate.[101] Ahead of the rally, former MSP Rosie Kane said: "Try to understand that Tommy is a divisive and manipulative character. By all means go along, but don't for a minute imagine that this is an open, inclusive and friendly event. This is ego at its most manipulative."[102]
Broadcasting
[edit]Tommy Sheridan had a weekly Sunday morning show on Talk 107 for 18 months, but the station did not renew his contract due to cutbacks and changes to programming that saw Mike Graham and others leave Talk107.[103] He hosted a chat show during the Edinburgh fringe in 2007, which received muted reviews.[citation needed] He appeared in the Celebrity version of Big Brother UK. He was the fifth to be evicted (during the double eviction on 21 January 2009). He received mixed reactions from the crowd upon both entry and exit, and admitted during the post-eviction interview that his primary motivation for taking part was that he "needed the money".[104]
Celebrant
[edit]By 30 June 2018, Sheridan trained to become a humanist celebrant.[105] Sheridan cited the reason as his occasional role presiding over funerals.[106]
Elections contested
[edit]UK Parliament elections
Date of election | Constituency | Party | Votes | % |
---|---|---|---|---|
1992 | Glasgow Pollok | SML | 6,287 | 19.26 |
1997 | Glasgow Pollok | SSA | 3,639 | 11.09 |
2010 | Glasgow South West | Solidarity (TUSC) | 931 | 2.9 |
Scottish Parliament elections
Date of election | Region | Party | Votes | % | Results |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1999 | Glasgow | SSP | 18,581 | 7.2 | Elected |
2003 | Glasgow | SSP | 31,216 | 15.2 | Elected |
2007 | Glasgow | Solidarity | 8,544 | 4.1 | Not elected |
2016 | Glasgow | Solidarity | 3,593 | 1.4 | Not elected |
Date of election | Constituency | Party | Votes | % |
---|---|---|---|---|
1999 | Glasgow Pollok | SSP | 5,611 | 21.5 |
2003 | Glasgow Pollok | SSP | 6,016 | 27.9 |
European Parliament elections
Date of election | Constituency | Party | Votes | % | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1994 | Glasgow | SML | 12,113 | 7.6 | Single member constituency |
Date of election | Region | Party | Votes | % | Results | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2009 | Scotland | No2EU | 9,693 | 0.9 | Not elected | Multi-member constituency |
References
[edit]- ^ "Sheridan, Tommy", Who's Who in Scotland 2014 (Kilmarnock: Carrick Media, 2014), p. 448. ISBN 9780956574886
- ^ "SHERIDAN, Tommy". Who's Who. Vol. 2023 (online ed.). A & C Black. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
- ^ "***PRESS RELEASE*** Tommy Sheridan Returns as Convener of Solidarity". 17 November 2019.
- ^ a b "Tommy Sheridan quits Solidarity role to focus on 'bringing down Rupert Murdoch'". The Scotsman. 11 June 2016. Retrieved 3 September 2016.
- ^ a b Hutcheon, Paul (12 June 2016). "Sheridan steps aside as Solidarity leader after struggling party wins 0.6% of Holyrood vote". Sunday Herald. Retrieved 17 July 2016.
- ^ a b c d Dave [David] Osler "The Tribune interview: Tommy Sheridan – Tartan Trot" Archived 1 October 2018 at the Wayback Machine,Tribune, 30 July 1993
- ^ "Thatcher remembered: The 'Poll Tax' protester Tommy Sheridan". STV News. 17 April 2013. Archived from the original on 28 May 2015. Retrieved 15 June 2014.
- ^ a b c "Sheridan jailed after protest", BBC News, 25 August 2003
- ^ "Sheridan charged in perjury probe", BBC News, 16 December 2007
- ^ Carrell, Severin (26 January 2011). "Tommy Sheridan sentenced to three years in prison". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 26 January 2011.
- ^ Scott, Kirsty (7 July 2011). "Evidence in Tommy Sheridan trial to be investigated amid phone-hacking revelations". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 7 July 2011.
- ^ "Tommy Sheridan vows to clear name after release from jail". London: BBC News. 30 January 2012. Retrieved 30 January 2012.
- ^ Harper, Gareth (October 2007). "Come Out, Come Out, Wherever You Are" (PDF). Strathclyde Telegraph. University of Strathclyde Student's Association. p. 6. Archived from the original (PDF) on 25 October 2007. Retrieved 17 October 2007.
- ^ "Scots Law News, Edinburgh Law School". Law.ed.ac.uk. Archived from the original on 16 September 2012. Retrieved 3 December 2010.
- ^ Tommy Sheridan receives Bacheor of Law degree at University of Strathclyde heraldscotland, accessed 3 January 2016
- ^ "OLD FIRM UNITED". Barrhead News. 6 August 2008.
- ^ mirror Administrator (6 January 2009). "Celebrity Big Brother's Tommy Sheridan: The Top 10 facts you need to know about the politician". mirror.
- ^ "BBC NEWS – UK – Scotland – CV: Tommy Sheridan". bbc.co.uk. 2 April 2003.
- ^ "Abolition of Poindings and Warrant Sales Bill [AS INTRODUCED]". National Records of Scotland (archive of the Scottish Parliament website). The Stationery Office Ltd., on behalf of the Scottish Parliament. Retrieved 18 June 2024.
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- ^ "Scabs and vengeance". Weekly Worker. 6 January 2011. Retrieved 5 June 2014.[permanent dead link ]
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- ^ "Tommy Sheridan 'admitted visiting swingers' clubs'". The Telegraph. London. 5 October 2010. Retrieved 6 June 2014.
- ^ "Sheridan in swingers 'admission'". BBC News. 19 July 2006. Retrieved 6 June 2014.
- ^ "Scottish Socialists move towards split?". Workers' Liberty. 13 August 2006. Archived from the original on 6 June 2014. Retrieved 6 June 2014.
- ^ Severin Carrell (4 October 2006). "Sheridan accuses MI5 and Murdoch over 'mother of stitch-ups'". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 4 May 2007.
- ^ a b "Sheridan unveils Solidarity party". BBC News. 3 September 2006. Retrieved 2 June 2014.
- ^ "Sheridan nominated for leadership". BBC News. 8 August 2006. Retrieved 2 June 2014.
- ^ "Sheridan denies Trident charges", BBC News, 10 May 2000
- ^ "Briefing: Tommy Sheridan", The Herald (Glasgow), 9 December 2000
- ^ "Jail looms for MSP", BBC News, 14 November 2000
- ^ "Jailed MSP unrepentant", BBC News, 22 December 2000
- ^ Tara Womersley "Sheridan held again in Faslane protest", Daily Telegraph, 23 October 2003
- ^ "Faslane protest sparks 170 arrests", BBC News, 22 October 2001
- ^ "Court clears Sheridan over Faslane protest", The Herald (Glasgow), 26 June 2002
- ^ "Sheridan is cleared of Faslane demo charge", The Scotsman, 26 June 2002
- ^ "Court clears Sheridan after arrest in naval base anti-nuclear protest", The Scotsman, 9 October 2001
- ^ Bruce McKain and Rob Crilly "Legal victory for Sheridan puts hundreds of peaceful protest convictions in doubt", The Herald (Glasgow), 10 October 2002
- ^ "Politicians held in Trident protest", BBC News, 11 February 2002
- ^ "111 held in Faslane protest", The Scotsman, 12 February 2002
- ^ "Sheridan 'ready for jail' over fine", The Scotsman, 13 February 2003
- ^ "Freed Sheridan remains defiant", BBC News, 28 August 2003
- ^ "Court jails Sheridan for unpaid fine", The Scotsman, 26 August 2003
- ^ "Sheridan unveils Solidarity party". BBC News. 3 September 2006. Retrieved 4 May 2007.
- ^ Mark Smith "Exclusive: Tommy Sheridan to stand for Euro elections", Daily Record, 10 March 2009
- ^ "No To EU – RMT launches election campaign" Archived 27 March 2009 at the Wayback Machine, Socialist Worker, 24 March 2009
- ^ "New Independence party forced to change 'misleading' name". HeraldScotland. 3 October 2020. Retrieved 6 February 2021.
- ^ Bradley, Jane (28 March 2021). "Tommy Sheridan has joined Alex Salmond's Alba Party". The Scotsman. Retrieved 28 March 2021.
- ^ Gordon, Tom (28 March 2021). "Tommy Sheridan Joins Alex Salmond's New Party". The Herald. Retrieved 29 March 2021.
- ^ "Sheridan starts defamation action". BBC News. 4 July 2006. Retrieved 4 May 2007.
- ^ "Call girl claims Sheridan affair". BBC News. 5 July 2006. Retrieved 4 May 2007.
- ^ John Robertson (6 July 2006). "Sheridan had an affair with former prostitute, journalist tells court". The Scotsman. Retrieved 4 May 2007.
- ^ "Sheridan 'admitted' being in club". BBC News. 7 July 2006. Retrieved 4 May 2007.
- ^ John Robertson (5 July 2006). "Sheridan 'admitted going to swingers club'". The Scotsman. Edinburgh. Retrieved 4 May 2007.
- ^ "Sheridan ready to 'take on fight'". BBC News. 3 October 2006. Retrieved 4 May 2007.
- ^ "Legal counsel sacked by Sheridan". BBC News. 14 July 2006. Retrieved 4 May 2007.
- ^ "The Tommy Sheridan Affair: A Scottish Tragedy". 3 August 2012. Archived from the original on 7 August 2012. Retrieved 12 October 2014.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link) - ^ "Sheridan victory in court battle". BBC News. 4 August 2006. Retrieved 4 May 2007.
- ^ "Newspaper's Tommy appeal date set". BBC News. 13 February 2007. Retrieved 4 May 2007.
- ^ "Sheridan witness 'threat' inquiry". BBC News. 10 October 2006.
- ^ "Sheridan case police quiz ex-gunman". Sunday Herald. 26 August 2006.
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- ^ "How accurate is voice identification?". BBC News Magazine. 4 October 2006. Retrieved 4 May 2007.
- ^ Louise Gray (4 October 2006). "Sheridan claims to be 'victim of MI5 plot'". The Scotsman. Edinburgh. Retrieved 4 May 2007.
- ^ "Official perjury complaint lodged following Sheridan libel victory". Legalprospects.com. Retrieved 3 December 2010.
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- ^ "Tommy and Gail Sheridan indicted on perjury charge". The Herald. Archived from the original on 30 January 2009. Retrieved 27 January 2009.
- ^ "Sheridan trial postponed for three months". The Firm. Retrieved 13 February 2009.[permanent dead link ]
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- ^ "Sheridan drops QC Findlay as perjury trial nears". 24 September 2009.
- ^ "STV 26 January". News.stv.tv. 26 January 2011. Archived from the original on 14 March 2012. Retrieved 30 January 2012.
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- ^ "Tommy Sheridan freed from prison". Press Association. 30 January 2012. Archived from the original on 25 May 2024. Retrieved 30 January 2012.
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- ^ MacWhirter, Iain (17 December 2007). "The king of the swingers?". The Guardian.
- ^ "Police inquiry after 'bug' found in Sheridan's car". The Herald. 22 March 2007. Retrieved 20 March 2011.
- ^ Severin Carrell; Nick Davies (9 December 2010). "Andy Coulson denies phone hacking at Tommy Sheridan trial". The Guardian. Retrieved 30 May 2012.
- ^ "Andy Coulson held in Tommy Sheridan trial perjury inquiry". BBC News. 30 May 2012. Retrieved 30 May 2012.
- ^ "Andy Coulson to face perjury charges over the Tommy Sheridan trial". BBCNews. 7 July 2014. Retrieved 7 July 2015.
- ^ "Andy Coulson faces perjury trial". BBC News. 23 February 2015. Retrieved 23 February 2015.
- ^ Carrell, Severin (3 June 2015). "Andy Coulson cleared of perjury as Scottish court case collapses". The Guardian. Retrieved 4 June 2015.
- ^ "Bid to overturn Tommy Sheridan defamation trial verdict". Scotland: BBC News. 10 May 2016. Retrieved 19 August 2016.
- ^ Brooks, Libby (19 August 2016). "News Group loses bid to repeal Tommy Sheridan defamation verdict". The Guardian. Retrieved 19 August 2016.
- ^ "Scottish independence: 13k to attend Glasgow rally". 12 October 2014. Retrieved 12 October 2014.
- ^ Hutcheon, Paul; Gordon, Tom (15 June 2014). "Sheridan frozen out of Yes campaign". Sunday Herald. Retrieved 29 June 2014.
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- ^ "Sheridan dropped from radio show". 1 April 2008. Retrieved 30 June 2020.
- ^ "Exclusive: I'm in Big Brother for the money, admits Tommy Sheridan". 3 January 2009.
- ^ "Tommy Sheridan on Twitter". Twitter. Retrieved 10 July 2018.
- ^ "From Holyrood to humanism". BBC News. 9 July 2018. Retrieved 10 July 2018.
External links
[edit]- Solidarity Scotland Official Site Archived 28 October 2006 at the Wayback Machine
- Scottish Parliament profiles of MSPs: Tommy Sheridan
- 1964 births
- Living people
- Alumni of the University of Stirling
- Alumni of the University of Strathclyde
- British perjurers
- Leaders of political parties in Scotland
- Members of the Scottish Parliament 1999–2003
- Members of the Scottish Parliament 2003–2007
- Militant tendency supporters
- People educated at Lourdes Secondary School
- Politicians from Glasgow
- Prisoners and detainees of Scotland
- Scottish politicians convicted of crimes
- Scottish Socialist Party MSPs
- Solidarity MSPs
- Larkhall Thistle F.C. players
- Benburb F.C. players
- East Kilbride Thistle F.C. players
- Baillieston Juniors F.C. players
- St Anthony's F.C. players
- Scottish Junior Football Association players
- Scottish men's footballers
- Scottish humanists
- Alba Party politicians
- Criminals from Glasgow
- Expelled members of the Labour Party (UK)
- British political party founders