So Alex Salmond has been found innocent of all 13 charges of sex offences brought against him (Daily Telegraph, 24 March 2020, p. 15).
Two years ago, when the accusations first surfaced, students at Heriot-Watt University were polled by their union to find out whether they wished the plaque commemorating his previous visit as (then) First Minister of Scotland to the Riccarton Campus removed. A clear majority replied that it should remain, on the basis that an individual is innocent until proven guilty.
Senior clergy in the Church of England might learn from this. They were quick to condemn the late Bishop George Bell on the basis of a single unsubstantiated allegation of child sexual abuse and, despite the conclusions of two extensive legal investigations that it was indeed unfounded, have been extremely reluctant to restore his name and reputation both within Chichester and beyond. What a pity they were not educated at Heriot-Watt University.
The Bell Society 