Officials quizzed over billing and email history

POLICE quizzed Holyrood officials last week about Tommy Sheridan's phone records and emails as part of their perjury probe into last year's notorious News Of The World defamation trial.

Holyrood bosses were asked about gaps in the MSP's itemised phone bills that were flagged up during the sensational court case.

Detectives have also questioned the three women who claim to have had affairs with the Glasgow MSP.

The police activity is the latest twist in the investigation into whether lies were told during the Sheridan case.

Sheridan, former leader of the Scottish Socialist Party (SSP), had sued the tabloid newspaper after it claimed he was an adulterer and a swinger.

Last summer's trial, which gripped the nation with weeks of salacious details, ended with the jury rejecting the paper's claims and awarding the MSP £200,000 in damages. He subsequently left the SSP to form a new left-wing party, Solidarity.

But the trial was marked by contradictory evidence - nearly a dozen of Sheridan's colleagues testified against him - which led to the perjury probe by Lothian and Borders Police.

Officers conducted several interviews with witnesses before Christmas and were recently given the go-ahead by the Crown Office to step up their investigation.

One of the first things the police did was meet Holyrood officials last week to discuss Sheridan's mobile phone records and emails.

In the weeks leading up to last year's trial, the parliament handed over details of Sheridan's phone calls, but officials could only submit incomplete records. Police want the missing itemised bills to gain a full picture of the MSP's call history.

Detectives also used their Holyrood visit to ask IT officials about Sheridan's emails. One theory is that MSPs' emails from as far back as 1999 can be located from the parliament's server.

In a related development, police also questioned court witness Fiona McGuire last week about her evidence during the trial.

McGuire claimed to have had sex with Sheridan over a four-year period, including a five-in-a-bed orgy at a hotel near Aberdeen in late 2000.

These developments mark a gear change in a police investigation many people thought had stalled until the Crown Office recently instructed officers to resume their enquiries.

Other witnesses questioned so far include the two other women who claimed to have had affairs with the MSP - Katrine Trolle and journalist Anvar Khan. In addition, Sheridan's former assistant, Felicity Garvie, as well as SSP member Denise Morton, have also been visited by police.

It is understood that none of the police interviews so far conducted have taken place under caution.

A Scottish parliament spokesman said: "It would not be appropriate for the parliament to comment."

A spokesman for Lothian and Borders Police confirmed: "Enquiries are ongoing in this investigation."

Tommy Sheridan did not return calls last night.