Alex Salmond’s coffin was draped in a Saltire ahead of the plane bringing him home to Scotland taking off. Mr Salmond died on Saturday from a heart attack while speaking at a conference in the city of Ohrid in North Macedonia.

Mr Salmond’s body will return to the north east of Scotland, close to his home in Strichen, Aberdeenshire, and the seats he represented at both Westminster and Holyrood, this afternoon. Plans are being put in place for a private family funeral along with a more public memorial service.

The body of former Scottish First Minister, Alex Salmond was repatriated on a plane flying from North Macedonia to Aberdeen International Airport on Friday afternoon. Salmond was speaking at the Academy of National Diplomacy conference in south east Europe just minutes before he suffered a serious heart attack.