Tommy Sheridan represents himself in court

Former Socialist MSP Tommy Sheridan began his own defence at his perjury trial today after dismissing his legal team.

The politician dispensed with the services of his QC Maggie Scott and junior counsel on Monday, a week into the criminal case.

Sheridan and his wife Gail, both 46, are on trial at the High Court in Glasgow accused of perjury.

Judge Lord Bracadale told the jury as they returned to the court today: "I'm sorry to have been kept waiting this morning. There were a number of legal issues that I was required to address. These have been dealt with now.

"So we are ready to proceed with the evidence."

The trial was adjourned until today after Sheridan dismissed his legal team.

He has retained solicitor Aamer Anwar but will conduct his own defence in the case.

On Monday, Lord Bracadale told jurors there had been "some developments" in the case earlier that morning.

He said: "Miss Scott and junior counsel are no longer here.

"Mr Sheridan has instructed his solicitor to withdraw counsel's instructions.

"Mr Sheridan will now conduct his own defence. An accused person is entitled to do that."

The couple, from Glasgow, are accused of lying under oath during Sheridan's successful 2006 defamation action against the News of the World. They deny the allegations against them.

Sheridan, a former contestant on Celebrity Big Brother, won 200,000 in damages after the newspaper printed allegations about his private life.

The trial, which started on October 4, has already heard from several witnesses.

Evidence was heard throughout last week from former Scottish Socialist Party (SSP) members.

Several witnesses told the jury that Sheridan admitted during an executive committee meeting of the SSP in 2004 that he had visited a swingers' club.

Former SSP leader Colin Fox also told jurors that Sheridan had asked him to lie about minutes of the meeting where he allegedly admitted visiting the club.

The jury was shown part of a video in which a man identified by witnesses as Sheridan admitted visiting the club, called Cupid's.

The seven-page indictment against the Sheridans contains three charges in total, two of which are broken down into a number of sub-sections.

Sheridan denies lying to the courts during his case, which followed the newspaper's claims that he was an adulterer who had visited a swingers' club.

It is alleged he made false statements as a witness in the defamation action on July 21 2006.

One of the charges alleges that he had sexual relationships with Katrine Trolle between January 2000 and December 2005 and with Anvar Khan between January 1994 and September 2002, though during the defamation action he said he did not.

He also denies another charge of attempting to persuade a witness, Colin Fox, to commit perjury shortly before the 23-day legal action got under way.

Gail Sheridan denies making false statements on July 31 2006, after

being sworn in as a witness in the civil jury trial at the Court of Session in Edinburgh.