Are sections of certain security services planning to carry out acts of fake terror in Scotland?

Scotland on Sunday, 19 March 2006, has a news story entitled: Scots terror team draws up plans for national disasters

According to Murdo MacLeod of Scotland on Sunday, Scottish civil servants are to have contingency plans in place to deal with acts of terror.

The civil servants are thinking about attacks on cities, nuclear plants, nuclear convoys and oil rigs.

According to Scotland on Sunday:

A team headed by Gregor Lindsay, a civil servant and RAF reservist, is working in Perth...

An Executive insider said: "The view is that the international situation means Scotland is more of a target for terror. Irish terrorists were less of an issue here during the Troubles because they supposedly had a thing about not attacking their 'fellow Celtic people'. That doesn't apply to the new breed of international terrorists."

(If you were a powerful Iraqi leader would you want to play golf at St Andrews or would you want to blow up Auchtermuchtie? Yes, play golf.)

Scenarios which the unit has plans for include:

• Terrorists setting off a bomb in Edinburgh.

• Extremists taking over a North Sea oil rig.

• A lethal bird flu pandemic sweeping across Scotland.

• An airliner flying over the Edinburgh City Bypass losing an engine which falls on a nuclear convoy and the fallout spreads across the city.

• Scotland's main oil refinery at Grangemouth being put out of action.

• Dounreay nuclear reactor blowing up.

• A conventional flu epidemic gripping Scotland, causing a staffing crisis in hospitals and other public services.

• Protesters blocking the motorways heading into Glasgow.

The Executive insider added: "You might think the idea that an airliner engine falls on a nuclear convoy on Edinburgh City Bypass and wind blows fallout over the city is far-fetched but the point is that by studying the implications you can draw lessons for anything similar..."

A senior source in Scottish policing said: "There is a fear that because London is seen by terrorists as increasingly hard to crack because of the extra security, terrorists will instead look to Scotland to get the maximum publicity for an attack. If you can't 'do' London, then you still want something high-profile and internationally prestigious, Scotland is second to London in that respect."