Labour peer charged with hotel fire-raising

• Labour party suspends Lord Watson after charge of fire-raising at hotel

• Glasgow MSP allegedly set fire to curtain after politicians’ award ceremony

• Fire-raising charge can carry sentence of six months to life

Key quote

"I have seen part of the CCTV footage which certainly does not show any wrong-doing on my part, and I categorically deny that" - Lord Watson

Story in full THE political career of Labour peer Mike Watson was hanging by a thread last night after he was charged by police following a fire at an Edinburgh hotel.

Lord Watson of Invergowrie, the MSP for Glasgow Cathcart, was arrested following claims that a curtain was set on fire at the five-star Prestonfield House Hotel during a parliamentary awards ceremony attended by the First Minister and a host of Scottish politicians.

It is understood he has been charged with wilful fireraising and reckless conduct to the endangerment of life and will appear in court in the next two weeks. The charges can carry a prison sentence of between six months and life, depending on the seriousness of the offence, although if little damage is done and no lives lost, the penalty could be as little as 18 months’ probation.

Watson, who travelled to an Edinburgh police station to be charged, has been released on condition that he attends court when required to by the procurator-fiscal, who will write to him in the next few days.

The Labour Party moved immediately to suspend Watson, pending the outcome of the legal process.

A party spokesman said that meant he could continue sitting as a Labour peer in the House of Lords and as an MSP in the Scottish Parliament. However, in both cases, he will be without the Labour whip and therefore unable to attend Labour group meetings. But he can attend his local party’s branch meetings.

The police inquiry was mounted after the alleged incident at the Scottish Politician of the Year Awards on Thursday.

The former minister for tourism, culture and sport, who was dressed in a kilt, was one of hundreds of guests at the ceremony.

The fire started shortly after 2am when curtains went up in flames. The incident was captured by the hotel’s CCTV cameras, and footage appeared to show a distinctively-dressed man crouching down next to some curtains shortly before they went on fire. Shortly afterwards, a man is seen inspecting the flames.

Lord Watson, who spent Saturday afternoon watching Dundee United, of which he is a director, emphatically rejected suggestions he was involved in a fireraising incident.

"I categorically deny any wrong-doing," he said.

"I have seen part of the CCTV footage which certainly does not show any wrong-doing on my part, and I categorically deny that."

Lord Watson, a former Labour MP for Glasgow Central, left Westminster politics when his constituency disappeared as part of boundary changes.

He then lost a bitter candidate selection contest with Mohammed Sarwar for the Glasgow Govan seat prior to the 1997 general election.

He was made a life peer as Lord Watson of Invergowrie shortly afterwards, but returned to elected politics in 1999 when he became the MSP for Glasgow Cathcart.