A man sent poisonous parcels to public figures as part of a terrorist plot to force the British Government out of Scotland, a court has heard.

Wayne Cook also threatened to kill English people "with no hesitation or compunction" by poisoning the country's water supply, Manchester Crown Court was told yesterday.

Cook, aged 45, of Robert Street, Hindsford, is charged with two counts of using noxious substances or things to cause harm and intimidate, under the Anti-terrorism, Crime and Security Act 2001.

The unemployed father of three is accused of sending miniature bottles of vodka filled with caustic soda to Blackburn and Darwen councillor John Wright and Scottish journalist Myra Philp on April 25, 2007, as part of a campaign by the Scottish National Liberation Army (SNLA).

The packages had postmarks from the Bolton, Bury and Wigan area.

Paul Taylor, prosecuting, told the court the caustic soda was sufficiently concentrated to have killed the recipients if they had drunk it. The bottle sent to Cllr Wright was intercepted by sorting office staff who became suspicious.

Mr Taylor said: "The prompt action and intelligence of the Royal Mail staff in identifying the suspicious package averted a potential tragedy because the concentration of caustic soda in the Vladivar bottle was enough to kill."

The second package, to Ms Philp, was accompanied by a letter which read: "Dear Myra. Exclusive. This bottle is full of lethal caustic soda. Any chemist will immediately confirm this by a simple test.

"A very large number of similarly poisoned items have just been sent to political figures all over England. An example is councillor John Wright who will be getting his at the Town Hall, King William Street, Blackburn. Perhaps you might warn him?

"Pity you cannot warn the other targets individually, but we want to demonstrate our intent to kill English people at random and with no discrimination or compunction.

"This is necessary to convince the British Government that we will lethally poison England's water supplies, if they do not withdraw totally from Scotland."

It was signed "SNLA", standing for Scottish National Liberation Army.

Mr Taylor told the court that Ms Philp had been targeted by the SNLA before and was helping police with an inquiry into their activities.

He said: "They are a terrorist organisation. You can gauge their agenda from the letter - total withdrawal from Scotland by the British Government.

"The objective was to be achieved not by democratic means but by threats of mass murder."

He added: "The idea of swallowing caustic soda doesn't bear thinking about. It would be like swallowing a very strong bleach.

"As well as posing a danger to Mr Wright and Ms Philp, the miniature bottles could easily have been damaged in transit and anyone whose skin came into contact with the liquid could have been burned, perhaps even disfigured."

Police began an investigation into the packages. Cook had gone on the run but was arrested in May last year.

During Mr Taylor's opening statement, the jury was shown the two bottles of vodka - one Smirnoff, one Vladivar - that had been sent through the post.

They had to be handled by an exhibits officer wearing two pairs of latex gloves due to the danger they still posed, Mr Taylor said.

Ms Philp is a journalist working for the Scottish Daily Express in Glasgow. She is due to give evidence during the trial.

Cook denies both charges against him.

The case continues.