Wife of missing Scottish sailor Timmy MacColl gives birth to their new baby

The wife of missing Scottish sailor Timmy MacColl has given birth to their daughter without her husband at her side.

Rachael MacColl, 25, who made an emotional visit to Dubai in June to retrace her husband’s last-known steps, has named the baby Eriskay after the Hebridean island.

Speaking from hospital, she said: “She is a beautiful gift from Timmy.”

Mr MacColl 27, from Killin, Perthshire, went missing while on shore leave in Dubai in the early hours of 27 May.

Shipmates say they pre-paid a taxi driver to take him from the Rock Bottom Café in Bur Dubai to Port Rashid, where his ship, HMS Westminster, was docked. Authorities in Dubai have said they are investigating whether his disappearance was connected with a motorcycle gang.

A Bring Timmy Home campaign has been launched to try to trace the leading seaman.