A Yes campaigner told a court he saw an MP hitting a colleague on the day of the Scottish independence referendum.

Marie Rimmer, the representative for St Helens and Whiston in Merseyside, is accused of assaulting Patricia McLeish by kicking her on the shin.

The 69-year-old Labour member is also on trial at Glasgow Sheriff Court accused of behaving in an abusive manner towards other Yes campaigners at a polling station in Shettleston, Glasgow, on September 18, 2014.

During the second day of her trial on Tuesday, Yes campaigner Stuart Coleman, a self-employed health and safety training instructor, told the court he saw Rimmer kick Ms McLeish.

Mr Coleman, 46, said: "Ms Rimmer was getting a bit heated about the whole thing. It was quite aggressive. The lady lost her temper and kicked out."

He was asked by depute fiscal Adele McDonald: "How many times did you see her try to kick out before she struck?" He replied: "Once, twice, maybe."

Mr Coleman added: "Patricia said she had kicked her and she denied it and Patricia said she was going to the presiding officer."

Before the alleged kick, Mr Coleman said there had been a heated discussion about politics. He said he was annoyed that "someone not from the country should have those views."

Under cross-examination by defence lawyer Liam Ewing, representing Rimmer, Mr Coleman was asked what he meant.

He replied: "For an English person to come to Scotland, which is a different country, and have aggressive views."

Mr Coleman admitted he told police shortly after the incident that in his view it was "nothing but nonsense, very childish, both from the action and the reaction, and a storm in a teacup".

When asked who he thought had been childish he said: "Ms Rimmer."

He denied a suggestion he was downplaying the part played by Miss McLeish.

Ms McLeish, who is a Unison convener and member of Solidarity and the Socialist Party, also gave evidence at the trial.

She was asked by the defence lawyer if she had made the whole incident up as part of a political campaign. She replied: "Certainly not."

The 52-year-old was accused of chanting: "Vote Yes and get Tories and Red Tories out" during the incident.

She told the court she would have used the phrase: "New Labour Tories", adding: "I wasn't shouting. I had swollen glands that day."

The public sector employee said Rimmer asked her where she worked and was "in her face."

She denied a suggestion there had been a heated argument on both sides which had been sparked by talk of Liverpool politics in the 1980s when Militant Tendency ran the council.

She told the court: "The accused came in to my face twice. She asked me if I was a shop steward and I replied 'yes'.

"The next piece of conversation was 'where do you work'. I said local government and she said she was the leader of St Helens Council.

"I thought after she claimed to be the leader of a council that she obviously had mental health difficulties."

She told the court she was kicked on the left shin by Ms Rimmer and reported the incident to the presiding officer.

Ms McLeish was asked by Mr Ewing if she had said to one of her colleagues to call Solidarity leader Tommy Sheridan as "he'll know what to do."

She replied: "Somebody else may have said that. I can't recall that conversation. I didn't say call Tommy."

Rimmer denies the charges against her. The trial before Sheriff Kenneth Hogg continues.