The arrangement for gaining access was that they would arrive at the property, explain to the tenants who they were and be let into the property by the tenant. He said Tobin had let him and a colleague into the house. It would have been first thing in the morning, generally around 8am. Tobin’s son was also in the house and was about three to four years old.

Mr Doig described the work that had been carried out which would include fitting new circuit breakers and running earth wires to various points in the house.

He said they needed access to the hall cupboard because the main circuit board was there. He had been in the bathroom and kitchen. He said he had not been in the loft of the house and he did not think his colleague had been. He did not think there would be any need to go into the loft. He said there had been a problem because the cupboard they needed access to wasn’t cleared out.

“I asked Mr Tobin why the cupboard was still full. He said we weren’t getting in there because he wasn’t told. We said we needed to get in there and we had a discussion about it.”

Solicitor General Frank Mulholland QC asked if it was a friendly discussion and Mr Doig said, “No. The discussion became quite heated. And he accused me of swearing at him.”

Asked what Tobin’s demeanour was like, Mr Doig replied, “Very nervous, edgy, agitated and argumentative.” The witness said he had managed to clear the cupboard and worked in the house on the first day. The other electrician went back the next day.

“I didn’t go back the next day because during our discussion I was threatened,” said Mr Doig.

Mr Doig was shown a knife by Mr Mulholland and said he had never seen it before and didn’t see it in the house when carrying out the work.

Cross-examined by Donald Findlay QC, Mr Doig agreed he and Tobin fell out and the principal reason for that was that Mr Doig had sworn at the other man.

Mr Doig agreed that he went into the cupboard and swore. He further agreed that this was inappropriate.

Mr Findlay said it was the swearing that had caused the argument and Mr Doig said, “I think it was developing before that.”

Mr Findlay put it to the witness that “not everybody cares to have strangers traipsing about their homes” and Mr Doig agreed. Mr Findlay said people did not have the choice and people often felt uncomfortable with strangers in their homes, and the witness agreed. Mr Findlay continued saying there were several reasons for people not liking workmen being in the house, including workmen stealing things and not doing the job properly. Mr Doig agreed.

It was put to Mr Doig that he and his colleague were in the property for the best part of the day and in these circumstances when the householder was out strangers could have free access, going into the attic or snooping about.

Re-examined by Mr Mulholland, Mr Doig said Tobin had been out of the house for five to ten minutes on several occasions. Mr Mulholland asked Mr Doig if he had “snooped”, gone into the garden, looked in any sheds or gone into the loft and witness replied in the negative to each question.

Mr Doig said he had used the swear word under his breath and sworn into the cupboard.

Asked about what had happened in the house, Mr Doig said, “I was angry because I felt Mr Tobin was being deliberately awkward and trying to stop us from doing our work.”

The trial continues.