Opening Ceremony to mark the Seventh Session of the Scottish Parliament - 27 June 2026

5 [music] >> [music] [music] >> Hey. [music] [bell] >> [music] [music] >> Bye-bye. Thank you. >> [music] [music] >> Heat. Heat. Heat. [music] Heat. [music] >> [music] [music] >> Your Majesties, distinguished guests, On behalf of my fellow MSPs, thank you for joining us as we mark the opening of the seventh session of the Scottish Parliament. Your presence on this important occasion reflects a continuing relationship between the Crown, Parliament, and the people of Scotland. We are honored that you join us to mark the beginning of a new session, and we warmly welcome you today. That warm welcome is extended to all members of the Scottish Parliament, both new and returning, and to their guests. This is a day of great significance for our parliament and I trust it be one that each of you will remember for many years to come. This parliament has 65 new MSPs. It's the first time since parliament reconvened in 1999 that a majority of members are serving here for the very first time. That makes this both an historic moment and an exciting one, bringing with it new voices, ideas, fresh perspectives, and the renew renewed opportunities to shape Scotland's future. As we reflect on this occasion, we remember the words of the late Winnie Yuing who said, "The Scottish Parliament adjourned on the 25th day of March in the year 1707 is hereby reconvened." Those words captured a moment of hope, optimism, and expectation. That same spirit of hope and optimism must continue to guide our work in making a real difference to the lives of the people we represent and serve. The principles underpinning this parliament are as meaningful now as they have ever been. Power sharing, accountability, accessibility, transparency, and equal opportunity. They are embodied in the values represented by the mace before us. Wisdom, justice, compassion, and integrity. In a changing world, these values remain a constant source of direction and purpose for us all. Every parliamentary session develops its own distinct character and faces its own unique challenges. Following my election as presiding officer, I've already implemented reforms to parliamentary business to enhance scrutiny, ensure parliament is responsive, effective, dynamic, and delivers for the people we all represent. The strength of any parliament lies in its willingness to reflect, innovate, and adapt. Continuous improvement is vital if we are to serve the people of Scotland as effectively as possible to the best of our abilities. Vigorous debate is the lifeb blood of democracy with regard for one another at its heart. My belief is that in this session we will work collaboratively wherever we can and where differences inevitably arise. Engage with each other respectfully and the civility always keeping the interests of those we serve at the forefront of our minds. Our parliament belongs to all the people of Scotland. Its strength depends on members maintaining close and meaningful connections with their constituents and communities, listening to the people who elected us and ensuring their voices are reflected through our work. Parliament must reach out and connect with communities across every part of Scotland, ensuring that people see this institution as their parliament working in their interests and in their behalf. I'm pleased that as I look around the chamber today, we are joined by local heroes and young people that represent those who go above and beyond in the service of their communities. Their presence reminds us of the extraordinary contribution made every day by people across Scotland, often without recognition or reward. Scotland is known throughout the world as an outward-looking and welcoming nation. We will continue to embrace visitors from every corner of the globe and leave a positive and lasting impression wherever we go. A wonderful example of that was the conduct and spirit of our legendary tartan army supporters at the World Cup who but for a couple of dodgy penalty decisions in the Morocco game would now be enjoying an extended stay in North America. Their warmth, good humor and generosity was again admired, showcasing the very best of our people on a global stage. Robert Burns wrote that man to man the world over shall brothers be for all that. Those words speak to fellowship, mutual respect, and our shared humanity. Your majesties, today marks the beginning of a new and exciting chapter for Scotland. A chapter shaped by fresh ideas, positivity, innovation, and renewed sense of purpose. above all may be a session that delivers lasting benefits and a brighter future for all the people of Scotland. Thank you. [applause] I now ask his majesty to address the chamber. Presiding officer, first minister, members of the Scottish Parliament, it gives me the greatest pleasure to join you once again for the opening of a new session of the Scottish Parliament. From its proud history and treasured customs to the remarkable beauty of its land, it is the warmth and spirit of the people of Scotland that leave the deepest impression upon us and continue to inspire our admiration. That is why in opening the first session of the new Scottish Parliament in 1999, my beloved mother spoke of the heavy burden of responsibility carried by its members on behalf of the Scottish people. Ever since this parliament has stood as a powerful expression of Scotland's democratic tradition. As you assemble to begin this new session, you do so at a time when many across the land are struggling and all of us are facing an uncertain world. I know that you will be keenly aware that the decisions taken in this chamber will be felt far beyond its walls. In a global situation of rapid and seemingly accelerating challenge, there will inevitably be some aims which can be attained and others even with the best efforts which will remain ambitions only. But while the outcome might not always be yours to deliver, the manner in which it is pursued lies always within your power. With that in mind and in the knowledge that you are custodians of the democratic traditions long nurtured in these islands, traditions of which uh the honors of Scotland set before us are are a powerful reminder. Let us continue to show by example that debate can be carried out with respect and courtesy, that disagreement is possible while honoring one another's dignity. And it is recognized, whatever views may exist as to the means, that all those engaged in public service are seeking the same end, the good of the society we serve. Of course, as well as looking to this parliament as an example of civil debate, people across Scotland look for leadership and for practical action to help to build a fair, resilient, and prosperous society. Meeting that expectation demands resolve, cooperation, and an honest, unwavering focus on the priorities that matter most to those you represent. Part of that work involves protecting Scotland's extraordinary natural environment. When I spoke in this uh chamber on the 25th anniversary of the creation of this parliament, I referred to the challenges we all share as inhabitants of a planet whose climate is changing dangerously and whose biodiversity is being seriously depleted. I make no apology for referring again to the incredible importance of protecting Scotland's precious natural capital, something, as you know, I have cared about deeply throughout my life. It has long been my most fundamental belief that the natural world and human communities are not competing interests, but deeply interwoven ones. that there is an essential harmony between the health of our planet, the natural systems on which we depend and the health of the people that live upon the earth. That is why on this and so many other important issues, the enduring values which guide this parliament's beginnings and sustain its future are not simply to be admired but to be lived. They shape your deliberations and inform the decisions that will touch the lives of all whom you serve. Indeed, uh, it is through the consistent expression of these values that Scotland has built its reputation far beyond its borders. Presiding officer, when I was um in Washington DC recently to help celebrate the 250th anniversary of American independence, I was reminded of the strong and enduring links which exist between the people of Scotland and the people of North America and the regard with which the Scots are held across the Atlantic, perhaps even now with the Tartan Army in the United States. not just for their rich culture and friendliness, but also for the ingenuity and determination that have made their mark on the continent. Indeed, the American philosopher Herbert W. Schneider famously called the Scottish Enlightenment probably the most potent single tradition in the intellectual formation of early America. As I look around uh this chamber today, I am especially pleased to see local heroes from communities across Scotland. You will know better than I, ladies and gentlemen, that the term local hero is not merely the title of a fondly remembered 1980s film. Uh it is also a term rightly applied to these individuals here today. Nominated by members of this parliament for their dedication and service who exemplify the very best of civic spirit and the very best of Scotland. They have every reason to take pride in their achievements and the queen and I very much look forward to meeting them. Presiding officer, first minister, members of the Scottish Parliament, the Queen and I offer you our warmest good wishes for the session to come, one we shall follow with close and abiding interest. As you take up your great responsibilities, we share every hope for the continued contribution of this parliament to the well-being, confidence, and prosperity of Scotland, its land, and all its people. [applause] Scotland. Okay. When will we see your like like anywhere we see your wee bit Hill and Glenn all the time and stood against it to think I think we'll think again cuz there's more than one Scotland. There's more than one story to tell. and more than one way to tell a story. >> To not be reduced to one single thing, but to be all the people that we are. To be us in all the places that we are. the urban, the rural, >> the Scots, the GIC, the Highland, the land, the from here, the not from here, the yes, the no, the in, the out, and all of the above or none of it. >> To tell ourselves in our own image, know what somebody else tells us. It's no so much to see ourselves as others see us but mayor to see ourselves as we want to be seen >> because it can happen you know it can happen if we work at it can happen and it can happen again and it can keep happening and that's when it starts happening. >> Imagine that you were told to ignore the myths. Imagine that you were told that your history wasn't good enough and it was replaced by a better one. Imagine you didn't know anything about the country you came from. Imagine that somebody somewhere decided what you should know. Imagine you did they know if it was GIC or Gaelic. Imagine your culture was taken, bundled up, deconstructed, rebranded, marketed, and sold back at you a premium price. But imagine you started asking questions. Imagine you started talking to folk and reading and learning. Imagine you started valuing they folk and valuing who they were. >> Imagine that you could just replace one myth with another. Could you imagine that? Can you imagine that? Imagine that. E >> go all over the world and you'll meet a Scott. How's that? Eh, always on the right side of history. We were >> Oh, yeah. You mean the British Empire? >> Not that side of history. The uh the other side of history. Oh, you mean the plantations? >> No, not that side of history. The the other side of history. >> Oh, right. The racism. >> Uh, no, not that side of history. The other side of history. >> Oh, you mean Darion, the new world, the ship building. >> Ah, the ship building >> for the slaves. >> No, not that side of history. The the other side of history. It's not what I meant. You're twisting my words, suiting yourself, telling your own version, not the right version. >> Well, what is the right version? >> Those days are passed now. And in the past, they must be remembered. >> But we're still rising and being a nation again and again and again >> and stood against them. Against who? The changes, the challenges. >> Seeking ourselves in what we see. the story that we want to be, what we could be. >> That we could fix it through the telling of it. That we can make it that wee bit better. That we could start and that we could keep going. >> That we could be bigger. That we could be bigger than we think we are. That we could be listened to. That we would be in front of people. >> That we would be a voice for the voiceless. >> That we would take the story to the people. >> That we could be good enough. That we are we are good enough. >> That we are good enough. >> That we are appreciated even if it doesn't feel like it. >> That we could be good even though we didn't know it. >> That we are happy with our lot. >> That we will get better even if it takes a bit of time. >> That we could be bigger. >> That we would be in front. >> That we would >> that we would take the story. >> That we could be good. >> That we will get better. that we were. >> But that we are, that we were, >> but that we will be. >> That we should be. >> That we can be. >> That we are not. But we are. But not that. >> But that we could >> that we should. >> That we could >> That we can >> That >> we will [applause] >> [applause] >> Thank you to National Theater of Scotland and the young performance from the Lysm Youth Theater. The National Youth Choir of Scotland marks its 30th anniversary, nurturing generations of young vocal talent across Scotland. Today I'm delighted for the first time members of the National Youth Choir of Scotland's Edinburgh Regional Choir will perform alongside the British Sign Language Youth Choir, The Beat of a Different Drum by Sarah Quarter. >> [music] >> Tickle tickle tickle tickle tickle tickle [singing] tickle tickle tickle tickle tickle [music] tickle ding [singing] as I hear a sound that I heard [singing] before [music] wondering what it would be I'm listening [singing] longing for Rles are close to my ears are starting [music and singing] to echo in me. Making [music] a mark on my heart with a beat of [singing] a different drum. Tickle tickle tickle tickle tickle tickle dick [music] tickle tickle tickle tickle tickle my ears my [music] own [singing] I [singing] [music] [singing] to [music] him a song that is your Baby [singing] [music] [singing] to the beat of a [music] different drum. Tickle tickle tickle tickle tickle tickle [music] dick tickle tickle tickle tickle tickle [music] [singing] [music] [singing] tick tick tick [music] tick tick tick dum [singing] tick tick tick tick tick tick Sing [music] me a song that is yours and I'll play my rhythm beside [music and singing] you today to the beat of [music and singing] our dum tick tick tick tick tick tick tick tick [music] tick tick [singing] dick tick tick tick tick tick dick tick tick tick tick tick >> [applause] [applause] >> Thank you to both choirs for such a wonderful performance. I now invite first minister the right honorable John Swinny MSP to respond to his majesty's address. >> Your majesty's presiding officer in his collection of poems entitled the asylum dance. John Burnside wrote, "It's some inevitable end that one house echoes another. We are a new parliament with new faces, new mandates, people filled with new hopes and ambitions for this nation that we all love. But we're also the same parliament that was voted for, celebrated, welcomed by millions of our fellow Scots almost three decades ago. Progress rarely happens in straight lines. But again and again, we find ourselves back at some version of the same starting point. Time and again we sow and we reap. We sleep and we wake the same but different because we trust that the intervening moments have brought new wisdom, new opportunities and challenges. We come back to the beginning with the ability to start a fresh. We've had seven electoral cycles and each time we come back to this same ceremonial moment. Last time we welcomed a deeply respected Elizabeth, Queen of Scots. This time we welcome with the same respect Charles, King of Scots, a new monarch rooted in the deep rich ground of the sovereignty of a people and a place that goes back many, many generations. We a parliament whose chap news chapter can be counted in decades alongside a crown whose story is told in centuries indeed a millennium. This Scotland of today is a nation born of multiple identities. A nation created out of the union of different peoples. We are among the oldest nations in Europe. But we are young yet, situated on the solid foundation of rocks that reach back to the world's dawn. A landscape shaped by millennia of tides and waves, by deep geological movement. And whether sand on our shores or towering summits, it is a landscape that speaks of a deep resilience, a capacity to absorb and to overcome all and every passing storm. As we mark today the start of a seventh session of our nation's parliament, I'm struck by the fact that only four current members remain from our very first session. Personal connection to personal memory of our beginnings may be weakening, but the passion and the principles indeed the palpable sense of common purpose which led to this parliament being restored should not must not ever be forgotten. The outcome of the recent election requires a new politics of cooperation, of renewal, if we are to improve the lives of our people. I will work for that. New politics is of course an old idea. But given the realities of the world around us, a time of growing turbulence, uncertainty, fueling deep personal anxiety, powerful forces bent on division, new politics is for us the basis for a renewed hope. The question today is will we collectively live out the new culture of politics that was part of the founding promise indeed the founding spirit of this place. A spirit, as you have said, presiding officer, captured not only by the four words interwoven with the thistles of our mace, wisdom, justice, compassion, integrity, but the by the principles carefully chosen to underpin our very way of working. Accountability, equality of opportunity, accessibility and participation, power sharing. If we choose to live by these principles, to give them every effect in our every action, then we will be a parliament that meets the needs and the expectations of this moment. Because we stand as a parliament on the solid ground of founding principles that are as important today as they were when first written for this parliament. Founding values that must be the primary determinant of how we daily engage. founding values that keep us true to all that the people of our nation want this parliament, this great project of national self-government to be. Opera Anish Ruin. Our people need us to work together to improve their lives to bring them hope. That is what we must now do. [applause] Thank you, First Minister. Scotland's national poet, our marker, Dr. Peter Mai will now recite a specially commissioned gic poem. Gmbantala She and Fu. Let this hall be full of noises. Fore! [music] Foreign! Foreign! Arnold is wick wig townish garlic shetland sha Dutch Arabic Arcadian Polish Frankish Hindi Mandarin coher for [music] catch and she change and engine [music] confirmed a then crown then I was hospitalian [music] California burns Michael Mullen, Jacob Allen, young father [music] foreshim. Fore session. Greek [music] is a jurisd all of you in this seventh session. More new faces and roles your majesties than almost ever before. There may be more noises here than you can handle. The measure then is what you listen to. Tact tent. Be wise, kind, and open. Not recondite. Find words to clarify, assuage, check, and lead. Don't be feared. Bear the weight. Do what's right. [applause] >> [applause] >> Thank you, Maka, for that powerful contribution. Our final performance today brings together two outstanding young traditional musicians. Rachel Groves on Clarac and Ellie Beaton vocalist. Recent winners of the BBC Radio Scotland Young Traditional Musician of the Year will perform my favorite Robert Burns song, a fond kiss. [music] We [singing] care son. Then we sever [music] if [singing] it we [music] forever deepen [singing] heart tears I'll [music] pledge thee. foring [singing] sigh and groans I lead thee. Who [music] shall [singing] see that forune [music] grieves him? While the star [singing] of hope she leaves her mean a [singing] cheerful twinkle lights me dark [music] despair [singing] around the night me [singing] [music] I'll never blame [singing] my partial fancy. Nothing could resist my Nancy [music and singing] but to see how he love her. Love [singing] but her and [music] love forever. [singing] Had we never [singing] loved see [singing] we never loved say blindly [singing] never met and [music] never parted. We had near [music and singing] been broken. Fear the wheel [singing] thou first and fest. Fear the wheel [singing] thou best and [music] dearest. Thine be [music] joy and treasure, peace and [singing] joy and love and pleasure. [music] A font kiss and then we s we [singing] last forever. [music] Deepen heart drunk [music] tears I'll pledge thee. boring [singing] [music] sigh and groans. I'll [singing] thee. I'll [singing] [music] thee. I'll thee. [music] >> [applause] [applause] >> Thank Thank you, Rachel, Ellie, and all our performers, and the many young people from across Scotland who have been at the heart of today's ceremony. Your presence and participation reflect the hope we share for the future of our parliament and country, highlighting the talent, creativity, and commitment of so many young people across Scotland. It has been a privilege to mark the opening of the seventh session of Parliament in this way. I now close this meeting of Parliament. >> [music] [music] >> Heat. [music] Heat. [music] >> [music] [music]