Tag: Scottish Parliament elections 2026

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.

Holyrood elections looming: Register to Vote!

It’s now just 99 days to the Scottish Parliament elections on 7 May.

Here’s are the key dates to make sure you can vote in this election:

– register to vote by Monday 20 April

– apply for a postal vote by Tuesday 21 April

– apply for a proxy vote by 28 April (if you can’t vote in person).

Remember, if you’re aged 16 on the day of the election, you can vote too.

And foreign nationals from another country who are permitted to enter or stay in the UK can also vote.

Register today.

Don’t forget, if you’ve moved home, update your registration too to make sure you get your polling card.

https://www.mygov.scot/voting-in…/register-to-vote

Foysol Choudhury aims to return to Holyrood as a constituency MSP

LABOUR LIST MSP SEEKS CONSTITUENCY NOMINATION

Foysol Choudhury MSP aims to return to Holyrood as a Scottish Labour MSP. He has been shortlisted as a candidate for the new Edinburgh Northern seat twinned with Edinburgh South Western.

Since his election in 2021, Foysol Choudhury has served as a regional MSP for Lothian, making history as the first Scottish Bangladeshi elected to Holyrood and the first ethnic minority MSP outside of Glasgow.

As one of the few ethnic minority voices in the Scottish Parliament, he brings crucial lived experience to national politics and has been a tireless advocate for equality, representation, and inclusion. His presence continues to challenge the status quo and push for a more diverse and reflective democracy in Scotland.

Now, drawing on his parliamentary experience and strong record of public service, Mr. Choudhury is seeking re-selection as Scottish Labour’s candidate for the newly formed seat of Edinburgh Northern twinned with Edinburgh South Western.

He is standing as a shortlisted candidate in the party’s internal selection process, and will take part in upcoming hustings, where local Labour members will vote to determine who will represent the party in the 2026 Scottish Parliament election.

“It was an honour of my life to represent the people of Lothian,” he said. “Now I am seeking to be the Labour candidate for the twinned seats of Edinburgh Northern & Edinburgh South Western, to continue giving a voice to our communities in Holyrood.”

“I’m honoured to be shortlisted to represent the parts of Edinburgh that have truly shaped my life,” said Choudhury. “I moved here as a teenager, went to Drummond High, built my family and my business in this city, and began my journey as a community activist here. I know the challenges our people face, and I’m ready to keep fighting for them.”

He has spoken out for Drylaw and Wester Hailes, from calling for urgent action housing issues in the region, on the deteriorating Drylaw Shopping Centre to defending essential mental health services like Redhall Walled Garden. He has been a visible and active campaigner on housing, healthcare, education, and environmental justice.

Choudhury currently serves as Scottish Labour’s Shadow Minister for Culture, Europe, and International Development, where he highlights the role of culture in bringing people together and supports international solidarity.

A proud member of Unite the Union and the Co-operative Party, Foysol’s politics are shaped by a strong belief in community, fairness, and standing up for people through collective action.

“I’ve always stood with working people,” he said. “With the backing of ASLEF, the CWU, Co-operative Party, and community organizations, I’m ready to win in 2026, and keep fighting to put power back in the hands of working people.

“That’s what our Labour movement is about, and that’s the fight I’m proud to lead.”

FOYSOL CHOUDHURY MBE MSP_ Leaflet (1)Download

Stuart Dobbin aims for Holyrood selection

SNP Forth Ward councillor, Stuart Dobbin, has announced he has put his name forward to represent the new Edinburgh Northern constituency at the next  Scottish Parliament election  next May.

Having been living with his wife, Rosanna, in Inverleith for several years, he knows Northern Edinburgh very well. 

As a local councillor he has represented Forth Ward since 2022, and before returning to Scotland worked internationally in business for over a quarter of a century. 

As councillor, he is an active presence in the community and recognised by residents and third sector organisations as an energetic and active advocate for them. 

He is proud of the success he has had in pressuring the council to change how they respond to tenants living in damp and mould-ridden homes. It shows how he can challenge institutions to achieve outcomes, in this case, that change peoples’ lives for the better and healthier. 

Stuart said “This election is about Scotland’s place in the UK, in Europe and, ultimately, in the world.  Our country faces challenges that are of a scale radically different to those we face locally. 

“Having rid ourselves of the Tory government, we find a Labour Prime Minister who clearly treats Scotland with contempt and is doing nothing to protect our pensioners, the disabled or the workers at Grangemouth.  All promises broken.

“I bring a wealth of professional and lived experience.  I spent quarter of a century in leadership positions, living and working across Asia, engaging with commercial and government organisations and managing through some very tough times. 

“I have proven my commitment and ability to represent my constituents, with the drive and energy to affect change within institutions, with the temperament and broad professional and lived experience that would make me an effective advocate to stand up in the Scottish Parliament to represent Edinburgh Northern  and our national interests.”