The Scottish Parliament has been debating the decision by Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill to release Lockerbie bomber Abdelbaset al-Megrahi.

The decision to send terminally ill Megrahi home to Libya on compassionate grounds sparked an international row, with some world leaders criticising the decision along with families of those who died in the 1988 atrocity.

Megrahi is the only man ever to be convicted of carrying out the Lockerbie bombing in December 1988, which left 270 people dead, many of whom were American. Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill allowed his release on compassionate grounds on account of the advanced nature of his cancer.

On Tuesday both the UK and Scottish Government’s released correspondence surrounding the release, in a bid to end speculation that the Scottish Government had come under pressure from Westminster to ensure the release went ahead on account of lucrative trade deals with Libya.

However, the Prime Minister has come under more pressure as the documents included notes taken by a Scottish Government delegation of a meeting with Libya's minister for Europe when the Libyan minister insisted he had been told that Gordon Brown and Foreign Secretary David Miliband did not believe Megrahi should die in prison.

During the course of this morning's debate, Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill maintained that the move was in accordance with the law, and followed due process.

He said there had been 31 occasions when requests for compassionate release were made, and on seven times release was turned down, but there was not a single case of it being turned down by a minister when a recommendation for it came from a prison governor.

Mr MacAskill also defended the decision to meet with Megrahi in Greenock Prison. He said: "Mr al-Megrahi chose to make representations in person, in the same way that others did - the families of victims and the US, UK and Libyan governments all made their representations directly to me.

"When Mr al Megrahi chose to make representations in person, clear advice was given to me that this could hardly be denied."

However, opposition said that MacAskill failed to follow due process, and had marshalled evidence to support a decision that had already been made.

Scottish Labour justice spokesman Richard Baker said: "The decision to release Megrahi had been made well before Mr MacAskill formally announced that he would be freed.

"More and more it become clear that well before he made the formal announcement of his decision the cabinet secretary had already come to the conclusion that he would free Megrahi back to Libya and then marshalled the evidence as best he could to justify that decision.

"That flies in the face of due process and is something which this Parliament should not accept."

Speaking at the conclusion of the debate, First Minister Alex Salmond said: "Opinion is divided, but I am proud and happy to have the support within Scotland of the Church of Scotland and the support of Archbishop Mario Conti of the Catholic church, and I am even prouder to have the support of Nelson Mandela which indicates the support for a Scottish judicial decision across this planet."

Watch Alex Salmond's statement in video>

The parliament will vote this evening on the matter, and in all likelihood the opposition will gather around a proposed amendment and the government will be defeated.

However, the Justice Secretary will remain in his position, but the Scottish parliament's disapproval of the decision will have been expressed.