JACKSON Carlaw’s leadership campaign was boosted by a £5000 donation from a former Labour donor who lives in an overseas tax-haven.

Details of the gift from Jersey-based property tycoon Alan Massie were revealed yesterday on the Tory MSP’s register of interests.

Other donations for his successful bid to replace Ruth Davidson included £5000 from former Scottish Tory treasurer James Stewart and £10,000 from Peak Scientific, a Renfrewshire company which makes electric motors, generators and transformers.

The firm run by Robin MacGeachy has previously donated to the Scottish Tories and Better Together.

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Massie, a director of Aberdeen property developers Carlton Rock, used to be one of Labour’s top private donors.

He handed the party more than £400,000 between 2011 and 2016, and also made three donations worth a total of £20,000 to an Aberdeen LibDem branch in 2006 and 2007.

The businessman revealed that he had switched to the Tories because Labour could not be “trusted with the Union”.

Last year Massie helped the former Aberdeen South MP Ross Thomson after he found himself in a spot of legal bother after joking that Ian Blackford was a “simple arms dealer”.

The jibe followed reports that the SNP’s Westminster leader had profited from defence deals.

After Blackford threatened to sue, Massie picked up an £1800 bill for Thomson to consult a QC.

The Tory subsequently apologised in a private phone call to Blackford and the matter was dropped.

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Though a successful property developer, his track record on backing winners in politics is patchy. Last year he donated £10,000 to Michael Gove’s unsuccessful campaign for the Tory leadership.

He had previously donated to politicians including Kezia Dugdale, the former Scottish Labour leader, Owen Smith, who lost a leadership challenge against Jeremy Corbyn in 2016, and Jim Murphy, who presided over the 2015 election in which his party lost 40 of its 41 Westminster seats.

Carlaw was named the new Tory leader last week, after defeating rival Michelle Ballantyne.

He unveiled his new shadow cabinet on Tuesday, promoting a number of the party’s newer MSPs.