Russell Findlay ‘pleased’ after acid attacker is denied parole

Scottish Tory leader Russell Findlay has said he is “pleased” the man who threw acid in his face was refused parole.

Mr Findlay was informed on Wednesday that the Parole Board had decided not to recommend the release of William Burns.

The Tory MSP said: “Burns has caused untold harm to many people during a depraved criminal career spanning decades.

“He has never shown any interest in rehabilitation.”

Mr Findlay added: “For the sake of public safety, I’m pleased that this highly dangerous criminal will remain behind bars for a few months longer.”

However Burns, who attacked the MSP back in 2015 when he was working as an investigative journalist, could still be freed from prison in July 2026 – which is his earliest date of liberation.

He was sentenced in 2017, with the judge ordering Burns to spend 10 years in custody before spending five years under supervision after his release.

He had posed as a postman before throwing sulphuric acid at Mr Findlay at his Glasgow home in what Judge Lord Matthews described as being a “vicious, premeditated attack” linked to something Mr Findlay had written.

Burns, from Paisley, Renfrewshire, had denied the attack but was found guilty of assault to severe injury and danger of life following a trial at the High Court in Glasgow.

While Mr Findlay was told the outcome of the parole hearing via email, he had previously complained he had not been allowed to know where the meeting was taking place or who was involved in it.

After being informed of the outcome he said he was “grateful” for the board’s decision, but went on to insist that “Scotland’s entire criminal justice system, including the parole process, needs radical overhaul”.

The Tory argued that a “starting point” for this “would be to start treating victims with respect and ending the entrenched culture of secrecy”.

The Scottish Government said changes are being made to the system as part of the Victims, Witnesses and Justice Reform Bill, which was passed by Holyrood this year.

A public consultation is also being carried out into parole reforms focused on “key areas” of communication and transparency, a government spokesperson said.