Tag: Holyrood Hustings

Spokes public meeting: Holyrood Hustings on Monday 16th March

Spokes/CUK Election Hustings

#Holyrood2026

Spokes and Cycling UK are holding a joint election hustings, on Monday 16 March, for the 2026 Scottish Parliament election, to hear from Holyrood candidates on cycling and related policies.

Rather than the usual hustings approach, which can be rather boring, our meeting will comprise several sections, with speakers undertaking Initiation, Interrogation, Combination, Clarification and Education, as in the agenda below.

Speakers

All the main parties currently represented at Holyrood have been invited to send along a candidate for an Edinburgh, Lothians or Lothians List seat.  So far, we have…

  • Conservative – awaited
  • Green – Chas Booth [councillor, Lothians List candidate, councillor, Spokes member]
  • Labour – Daniel Johnson [MSP, standing again in Edinburgh Southern]
  • LibDem – awaited
  • Reform – awaited
  • SNP – Kate Campbell [councillor, Edinburgh Eastern, Musselburgh & Tranent candidate]
  • Chair/Maestro – Brendan Paddy, Spokes member, Director of Ramblers Scotland

Provisional agenda

  • Initiation – each candidate speaks for up to 3 mins on what they and their party would do for cycling and its wider policy context
  • Interrogation – each candidate in turn is questioned by the audience & chair for 5 minutes, on what they have said
  • Combination – two or three important questions are put to all candidates
  • Clarification [if time] – audience follow-up reactions or questions to any candidate
  • Education – each speaker has 2 minutes to say what they have learned and will take away with them

Arrangements

  • Date Monday 16 March
  • Time  Starts 7.30, Ends 9.30.  Doors open 6.45 for coffee, stalls and chat, including a special stall to join Spokes or renew your membership
  • Online We hope to live broadcast on our youtube channel – confirmation nearer the time – and make the recording available a few days later

Submit a question

If you have a question for all candidates (“Combination” section above) please email it in advance to spokes@ spokes.org.uk with the subject line hustings question. Note that questions to individual candidates (“Interrogation”) can only be asked in person at the meeting, after their Initiation speech.

Background

Check out the Holyrood 2026 manifesto signed by over 60 Scottish organisations, including Spokes. Commitments we’d like to see from parties include 10% of the transport budget going to active travel, and reorganised street space with well maintained, accessible networks of walking and cycling routes.