The UK Government has been urged to allow freedom of information laws to cover banks which have been bailed out with taxpayers' money.

The plea came from Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Tavish Scott.

The Shetland MSP has lodged a motion in the Scottish Parliament calling for banks that are owned or controlled by the taxpayer to be subject to freedom of information legislation.

Mr Scott has also written to the Scottish Secretary Jim Murphy urging him to take the campaign to the UK Ministry of Justice on behalf of the Scottish taxpayer.

Mr Scott said: "Directors' salaries and bonuses are coming out of public funds. We need to see that the rewards they are given match the needs of the economy and jobs, and most importantly, get lending to businesses moving.

"The UK Government has poured millions of pounds into two major Scottish banks. But at the moment we can't find out what these banks are doing with our money.

"The taxpayer should not have to sign up to a blank cheque granting ministers sweeping powers and providing little information. I don't accept that ministers can have these powers and at the same time build themselves a legal brick wall to block information getting back to the public.

"The principle of the freedom of information rules is that taxpayers can approach a public body and find out what it is up to.

"These banks are now largely owned by the public with millions of pounds of our money at stake.

"Confidential commercial information is already exempt from freedom of information laws, which is a good reason for everything else to be open to scrutiny.

"It is wrong for the Government to prevent the public gaining information and debating how our money is being used."

The Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 gave citizens the right, with certain exemptions, to access information held by public bodies.