Former Scotland First Minister Alex Salmond Speaks to G&T on the Alba Party and More

Scotland's former First Minister has spoken to Times Radio about the creation of the Alba Party, the defection of two SNP MPs and his relationship with Nicola Sturgeon.

The interview can be heard on G&T on Sunday with Gloria De Piero and Tom Newton Dunn from 11am this morning.

On the defection of Kenny MacAskill and now Neale Hanvey to Alba:

I hope and believe that Scottish Nationalists at Westminster will be looking to the day that he or she would be transferred to the Scottish Parliament and it's quite reasonable that Kenny MacAskill and Neale Hanvey think that that is going to be within this term of the parliament given the political opportunity that we now sense.

On what may need to happen to achieve another independence vote:

We should be negotiating as a parliament as quickly as possible using that array of independence supporting parties in that parliament to give the authority to say Scotland's parliament, newly elected, representative, Scotland's people want you to start negotiating about Scotland's independence. And then we'll see what comes out of that negotiation, whether it be a section 50 referendum, whether it be a plebiscite organised by the Scottish Parliament, whether it be mobilising international opinion and international legal opinion, on Scotland's right of self determination. Whether it be peaceful street demonstrations, whether it be the galvanization of Scottish opinion. Any and all of these things are tactics to achieve the strategy, which is to achieve Scottish independence.

On whether he could or should "forgive" Nicola Sturgeon:

I'm not saying forgive. I'm saying these sorts of things - when it's the future of a country at stake - you have to put the past behind you, and campaign for the future. So it's not about the differences, you will help people. It's whether you can establish a common aim, a common goal for the nation and be prepared to put that first. Whatever personal differences have come entirely second, and I'm saying that is what I would do. And incidentally I believe that's exactly what Nicola Sturgeon would do as well. Because some things are a lot bigger than personalities or individual disagreements and the future of a country is certainly one of these.