AUTHOR AND POLITICAL HEAVYWEIGHTS AT THIRD DAY OF FESTIVAL
20 August 2009
The economy and gender equality are among the topics
being discussed today at the Scottish Parliament's Festival of
Politics. Two former Labour Party heavyweights, Clare Short and Dennis
Canavan, will give individual talks about their colourful careers. Now
independent MP for Birmingham Ladywood, Clare Short will discuss the
issues both from home and abroad which are important to her. These
include the war in Iraq, international development and climate change.
Deputy Presiding Officer Alasdair Morgan MSP will ask how she would
make "politics fit for purpose". Later in the day, former Labour MP and
Independent MSP Dennis Canavan will give an audience in the Debating
Chamber an overview of his life in politics. The long-time supporter of
devolution will talk to Deputy Presiding Officer Trish Godman MSP about
why he championed the abolition of corporal punishment and why he
believes sport is important to a nation.
Booker Prize-winning novelist
James Kelman also appears at Holyrood to talk about how, if at all,
devolution has reshaped Scotland. He will be joined by a number of
experts from the world of the arts for the Devolution and the Arts: To
be yersel's and to mak that worth bein event.
In Committee Room 1, there will be an hour-long session on how
Scotland has pioneered research into diabetes. The session will also
look back at how author HG Wells and Aberdeen-based Dr RD Lawrence, who
set up the Diabetic Association, helped transform the lives of people
with diabetes. Other events include festival favourite Parliamentary
Questions, when MSPs Michael McMahon, Shirley-Anne Sommerville, Derek
Brownlee, Hugh O'Donnell and Patrick Harvie will take part in a lively
debate chaired by The Scotsman's Peter MacMahon on a range of topics
making the news. The economic challenges facing Scotland will be
discussed during Scotland's Economy: Changing Needs or Needing Change?
event. And another afternoon session, Climate for Change From Economic
Crash to Eco Recovery will look at whether the credit crunch could
provide an opportunity to build a sustainable future. Later, gender
equality will be discussed at Has Devolution Delivered for Women?
Participation, Representation and Power which will question why 2007
saw the first drop in the number of female MSPs.
Programme availability and tickets
Online from www. festivalofpolitics.org.uk
By telephone: 0131 473 2000 (calls via RNID Typetalk:
18001 0131 473 2000) By post: to the Festival of
Politics, Hub Tickets, The Hub, Castlehill, Edinburgh, EH1 2NE.
In person: The Scottish Parliament or The Hub. While
most events are free, a small number of events will charge £6 (£3.50
concession) with those wishing to attend advised to book in advance.
Full details of the festival programme.
Festival Partners
This year's Festival of Politics is delivered in formal partnership with:
Carnegie UK Trust and the Carnegie Dunfermline Trust
The Law Society of Scotland
The Scotsman
EAE Leaflet Marketing Specialists
The Lighthouse, Scotland's Centre for Architecture, Design and the City
For further Information on the Festival of Politics:
www.festivalofpolitics.org.uk For further Information on World Press Photo:
www.worldpressphoto.org For public information enquiries, contact:
Telephone: 0131 348 5000 / 0800 092 7500 (Public Enquiries) / 0131 348 5395 (Gàidhlig)
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