YOUR GUIDE TO EDINBURGH'S FESTIVALS
This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful.
ED2014 News ED2014 Spoken Word
Referendum debates run throughout much of the 2014 Festival Of Politics
By Chris Cooke | Published on Sunday 20 July 2014
In a year when politics – and one political debate in particular – is at the top of most agendas in Scotland, the full line-up for Edinburgh’s annual Festival Of Politics was announced on Friday, with the upcoming referendum on Scottish independence unsurprisingly a theme running throughout the three-day programme of talks and debates.
Scottish journalists George Kerevan and Alan Cochrane will discuss the various issues around Scottish independence, expanding on their combined book on the topic, in which the former advocated yes to Scotland splitting from the United Kingdom, and the latter set out the case for no. Meanwhile, looking beyond coverage of the independence debate in Scotland and the rest of the UK, Isobel Fraser will chair a panel of international journalists exploring how the referendum campaign is being viewed elsewhere around the globe. And James Naughtie will lead a discussion on what Scotland might look like in six years time with either outcome.
Not every session is entirely referendum focused mind, though sessions on immigration, poverty and Scottish identity may all also touch on what impact a break-away from the UK could have in Scotland. Either way, the Festival Of Politics is set to raise many an interesting topic as it takes over the Scottish Parliament in Holyrood from 15-17 Aug.
Launching this year’s programme, the Presiding Officer of Parliament Tricia Marwick MSP told reporters: “When the Festival opens, it will be just over one month to go until the referendum. It is only right that we use the Festival Of Politics to give people the space to gather and discuss the implications of the important decision being made. From oil to currency, Europe to the economy and immigration to poverty, we are offering three days of thought provoking and inspiring sessions within our unique building”.
LINKS: www.festivalofpolitics.org.uk
