THE First Minister has spoken out for the first time following the arrest of Alex Salmond.
When asked by media at Holyrood for a response to the news, she replied: “Obviously this news this morning will be a shock to many people.
“But as Police Scotland have made clear this morning, these are now live criminal proceedings, and that means now more than ever it would be completely inappropriate for me or anybody else for that matter to make any comment on the situation.
“I hope, both you as members of the media and indeed the wider public, will understand the reasons for the fact that I cannot and will not comment any further at this stage.”
She concluded: “I think this will be a shock for many people, but for the reasons I’ve just outlined I’m not going to comment further.”
The former Scottish first minister Alex Salmond was arrested and charged by police on Wednesday evening.
No further details of the charge have been released by the force.
A Police Scotland spokeswoman said: "We can confirm that a 64-year-old man has been arrested and charged, and a report will be sent to the procurator fiscal.
"Proceedings are now live under the contempt of court act."
Salmond, from Linlithgow, West Lothian, was the Scottish first minister from 2007 to 2014.
Salmond had been under investigation by Police Scotland following claims of sexual harassment against him.
He strenuously denies the allegations.
Earlier this month, the former SNP leader won a procedural case against the Scottish Government over its investigation into harassment allegations brought by two women.
The Scottish Government's handling of the allegations against Salmond was ruled unlawful by Scotland's highest civil court.
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