THE disgraced Renfrewshire MSP Derek Mackay will not be charged by police after he bombarded a schoolboy with unwanted messages, it has been reported. 

The Daily Record reported that Police Scotland consulted the Crown Office and drew the conclusion that no laws were broken by Mackay who resigned as Finance Secretary on February 5. 

A source told the newspaper: “It was felt the trail of messages itself was ­inappropriate given the imbalance in power and the difference in age between the two parties.

READ MORE: Tories and Labour join forces to call for Derek Mackay to resign

“The messages were not highly ­sexualised and, in any case, the boy was 16 and of age. But consideration was given as to whether the messages could have caused fear and alarm or distress.

“Could there have been an aggravated breach of the peace or would some sort of sexual aggravation or grooming charge be justified? But all things considered, the consensus was that the threshold of criminality had not been reached.”

READ MORE: The rise and fall of SNP's golden boy

The news comes as anger grows over Mr Mackay's absence from his Renfrewshire North and West constituency. 

Surgeries have been cancelled and the former leader of Renfrewshire Council has not been seen in public since the scandal broke earlier this month. 

In a Gazette poll, more than 90 per cent of those who responded said Mr Mackay could not continue as an MSP. 

Read all the latest from Renfrewshire and beyond