Alex Salmond accused of '˜vendetta' against Nicola Sturgeon's closest aide

Alex Salmond has been accused of conducting a 'vendetta' against Nicola Sturgeon's closest aide as hostilities between the SNP big guns escalated today.

Nicola Sturgeon and Alex Salmond in 2012. Picture: Jane Barlow

A spokesman for Ms Sturgeon today hit out at attacks by “the other side” - Mr Salmond’s camp - on the First Minister’s chief of staff Liz Lloyd as the fallout over last week’s botched sexual harassment probe continues.

It came after Salmond ally Geoff Aberdein claimed Ms Lloyd revealed suspicions of a Scottish Government’s sexual harassment probe in late March last year. This was before an April 2 meeting between Mr Salmond and Ms Sturgeon when the First Minister claims she was first told about the probe into Salmond.

This has been denied by Ms Lloyd, with Ms Sturgeon’s spokesman suggesting she had only referred to claims of sexual harassment by the ex-First Minister as a result of media inquiries.

And Ms Sturgeon’s spokesman went on the offensive over a series of attacks by the Salmond camp over Ms Lloyd’s involvement.

“Your talking about Liz here - Liz is the subject of what quite openly is now being briefed as a vendetta,” he said.

The spokesman added: “There is an agenda at play here in terms of Liz’s involvement - that has been made abundantly clear by what has been briefed by the other side.”

The accusation of a briefing war have been dismissed by sources close to the former First Minister.

Mt Aberdein, who served as Mr Salmond’s chief of staff during his time in office, revealed in a statement last night he met Ms Sturgeon’s aide Liz Lloyd twice in March last year.

At the second meeting in late March he said Ms Lloyd confirmed “she suspected the Scottish Government had received an official complaint about Mr Salmond”.

Mr Aberdein said: “She made clear she did not know the full details of any potential complaint and had not alerted the First Minister to her suspicions about a potential complaint.”

Ms Sturgeon’s spokesman made it clear today that Ms Lloyd did not know an inquiry had been launched, but hinted she was aware of allegations of sexual misconduct against Salmond as a result of media inquiries.

He said: “We, including myself in this for obvious reasons, and people who work with you guys (journalists) receiving calls on a daily basis from members of the media become aware of things that the media are asking about. Go and ponder on that.”

Mr Aberdein confirmed as “a long-standing associate and friend of Alex Salmond” he had acted as an intermediary to set up the meeting with the First Minister on April 2.

Mr Aberdein was at Ms Sturgeon’s house when the meeting took place, but were not party to the private talks between Mr Salmond and Ms Sturgeon.

Ms Sturgeon told members of the Scottish cabinet at its weekly meeting that she had referred herself to the external panel on breaches of the ministerial code over her meetings with Salmond. But she wassnot quizzed by her team of cabinet secretaries about it and there were no “substantive talks” on the issue.