Labour MP Tam Dalyell has demanded that evidence belonging to victims of the Lockerbie bombing should be retained by the Crown Office.

The luggage and personal effects of those who died in the 1988 atrocity are due to be returned to relatives or destroyed.

The Linlithgow MP made his comments in the House of Commons, the day after former South African president Nelson Mandela visited the man convicted of the bombing in prison in Glasgow.

Mr Mandela called for a fresh appeal for the bomber Abdelbaset ali Mohmed al-Megrahi.

Megrahi: Appeal failed

The New York-bound Pan Am Flight 103 exploded over Lockerbie in December 1988, killing all 259 people on board and 11 more on the ground.

Thousands of items of luggage and clothing were painstakingly recovered by police from miles of Dumfries and Galloway countryside.

Much of it was given back to the victims' relatives but some which was, or might have been, used as evidence was held back.

However, items are to be handed back following the dismissal in March of the appeal by Megrahi against his murder conviction.

Crucial artefacts

Father of the House of Commons, Mr Dalyell warned that the UK Government could be seen to be involved in a cover-up by handing over belongings to their families too quickly.

He raised the issue with Advocate General Lynda Clark during Scottish Questions at Westminster.

He urged ministers to put a "moratorium on handing over the crucial artefacts".

"What is the hurry after 13 years and what does the Crown Office have to hide in this matter?" Mr Dalyell said.

Barlinnie Prison

Dr Clark said the issue was a matter for the Lord Advocate and she had "no role in relation to the way the Lord Advocate exercises his discretion".

Megrahi was found guilty in January 2001 following a trial under Scottish law in the Netherlands.

His co-accused, Al Amin Khalifa Fhimah, was found not guilty at the original hearing.

Megrahi's appeal against his conviction was rejected by judges at the special Scottish court on 14 March this year and he was then transferred to Glasgow's Barlinnie Prison.

Mr Mandela visited Megrahi in Barlinnie on Monday.