This item was published during the term of a previous administration that ended in April 2007
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No legal proceedings against Henry McLeish
21/03/2003
No further action is to be taken into allegations relating to the sub-let of Henry McLeish's constituency office in Glenrothes, the Crown Office has announced.
The results of the police investigation, by Fife Constabulary under the direction of the Area Procurator Fiscal at Dundee, were reported to and considered by Crown Counsel.
Crown Counsel have instructed that no further action should be taken as they were satisfied there was no evidence of criminal intent.
The allegation was that Mr McLeish, a Fife MSP and former First Minister, had failed to declare the rental income which he had received for the sub-let of part of the constituency office when submitting his claim to the House of Commons Fees Office for an allowance to cover the running costs of his constituency office.
Neither of the Law Officers - the Lord Advocate and the Solicitor General - were involved in directing the investigation or in deciding that no further action should be taken. The decision was taken independently by Crown Counsel after careful consideration of the Procurator Fiscal's report.
The investigation was led by Mr Barry Heywood, Tayside Area Procurator Fiscal as he was the Regional Procurator Fiscal for Tayside, Central and Fife when the investigation began.