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Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed Al Megrahi
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An appeal by the man convicted of the Lockerbie bombing will put further pressure on the Scottish court system where workloads are already at crisis point, according to Scotland's most senior judge.
A spokeswoman for the Scottish Courts Service said earlier today an intimation of notice of intent to appeal had been sent to the Justiciary Office in Edinburgh.
If an appeal is heard five judges would be taken away from dealing with other business in the courts system for the appeal by Libyan agent Abdelbaset Ali Mohmed Al Megrahi.
Scottish deputy justice minister Mr Iain Gray, speaking before the Justice 2 Committee in the Scottish Parliament, today told Scottish parliamentarians an appeal would have a further impact on the court system and it was for the Lord President to consider whether any action needed to be taken.
He said: "The timescale of an appeal would be much shorter than the trial. But it will certainly have an impact on the system. It is for the Lord President to consider where he or we need to take any action to cope with that, and what the impact will be on the service."
PA