Scottish Parliament Reviews (Edinburgh, Scotland)

Government Center

Petersburg, Virginia

June 26, 2011

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Ask any local about the Parliament building, and you get a passionate answer - some like it and some hate it. It is located in front of Holyrood Palace and Salisbury Crags. It was designed by Enric Miralles, and opened in 2004. It is filled with ...Read more

From journal The Scotland Ghostour

Home Of The Scottish Government

by Denise Scotland

Scotland, United Kingdom

December 12, 2009

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Best of IgoUgo Holyrood has been home to the Scottish Government since 2004 and the building designed by Catalan architect Enric Miralles was the subject of much controversy because of the massive amounts of money spent on building it and many hated the modern ...Read more Holyrood has been home to the Scottish Government since 2004 and the building designed by Catalan architect Enric Miralles was the subject of much controversy because of the massive amounts of money spent on building it and many hated the modern design. I was invited to the parliament building as part of a group by my local MSP and after we had a meeting we were given a tour of the building by her researcher. My experience will be slightly different to most visitors as we visited on a day when the parliament was sitting, public tours normally only take place on non business days. Visit the Scottish government website for more details about what days and time tours take place.

Holyrood is at the bottom of the Royal Mile near to Arthur’s seat, it is a lovely walk through the lovely cobbled old streets from the city centre to the parliament building but a regular bus service also operates, unless you are disabled it is best to leave the car at home as parking is extremely limited and very expensive.

The first thing that struck me when I first saw Hollyrood was how different the building looks in the flesh rather than the pictures on TV. The wooden roof beams look much softer and friendly than they do on the TV and there are also nice water features just outside the building. It is hard to fully appreciate the building from the outside, many of the features like the leaf shaped buildings and the merging of old and new are only fully apparent once you enter the building.

To enter the building you need to go through airport style security. There is a shop and visitor centre telling the story of Scotland on the ground floor which is open to visitors all the time, to explore the building further you need to take one of the guided tours.

The first port of call for us on our visit was one of the huge meeting rooms which was tastefully furnished with lots of wood and leather. Our next port of call was a conference room where we were told about the IT systems and where MSPs hold press conferences.

Much of the interior of the building seems very drab, a lot of the concrete staircases reminded me of a tower block for instance although I suppose they were perfectly functional. My MSPs office was similarly pretty drab, a tiny office with a terrible view of concrete pillars from the window.

The most interesting part of the tour was learning more about the history of the devolved parliament and government in Scotland from the middle ages to the present day. There is a room in the building where the old and new meet where the new parliament was built joining onto the ancient Queensbury house which was first built in 1681 and now houses a memorial to the founder of the present parliament Donald Dewar. The garden room will be familiar to anyone who has seen interviews with politicians on the TV and is also where you enter the main debating chamber. The design of the chamber is spectacular and it was great to see where the action happens, the design reflects the fact that politicians in the parliament are meant to work together rather than the traditional benches at Westminster where opponents face each other in debate. You can also book tickets to watch debates in action.

Like many Scots I was delighted when the Scottish Parliament buildings opened, for the first time since 1707 our country had a parliament. I am someone who has a keen interest in Scottish history and politics and I enjoyed my tour of the parliament but for somebody without the same passion for the subject it could be pretty dull. There is a lot of walking during the tour and a lot of stairs to climb so if you are disabled it is best to contact the parliament first to see if they can help you with access. A free crèche is also available to all visitors with advance booking. I’m glad that I visited the parliament buildings so that I could see for myself where the decisions about my country are made and it is a place I recommend all visitors to Edinburgh visit if they have an interest in history, architecture or politics.

MSP = member of the Scottish parliament.

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From journal The Athens Of The North

The Scottish Parliament

by Drever

Ayr, Scotland, United Kingdom

November 16, 2007

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Best of IgoUgo In 2004, after a gap of 297 years during which the British Parliament governed Scotland, Scotland had once again its own parliament. It is now housed at the foot of the Royal Mile close to the Queen's official residence in Scotland, the Palace of ...Read more In 2004, after a gap of 297 years during which the British Parliament governed Scotland, Scotland had once again its own parliament. It is now housed at the foot of the Royal Mile close to the Queen's official residence in Scotland, the Palace of Holyrood.

Strangely a Catalan architect, Enric Miralles, designed the building - he died before its completion. He aimed to produce a poetic union between the Scottish landscape, its people, its culture and the city of Edinburgh. This approach won the parliament building many awards and the description "a tour de force of arts and crafts and quality without parallel in the last 100 years of British architecture".

The result is a collection of low-lying buildings intended to blend in with the surrounding rugged scenery and existing buildings. They have many features connected to nature and land, such as the leaf shaped motifs of the roof in the Garden Lobby of the building. The most distinctive characterisation is the roof of the Tower Buildings - reminiscent of upturned boats on the shoreline. Inside the buildings the use of Scottish rock such as gneiss and granite in the flooring and walls and oak and sycamore in the furniture reinforces the connection to the land.

The debating chamber contains an elliptical horseshoe of seating for the Members of the Scottish Parliament (MSPs), with the governing party or parties sitting in the middle of the semicircle and opposition parties on either side. The layout blurs political divisions and hopefully encourages consensus among MSPs. There are 131 desks and chairs on the floor of the chamber for the elected members and other members of the Government. The desks have a lectern, a microphone and in-built speakers as well as electronic voting equipment. Galleries above the main floor hold 255 members of the public, 18 guests and 34 members of the press.

The most notable feature of the chamber is the roof. Laminated oak beams joined with 112 stainless steel connectors suspended on steel rods support the roof. It enables the debating chamber to span over 30 metres (100 ft) without any supporting columns. In entering the chamber, MSPs pass under a stone lintel, the Arniston Stone, once part of the pre-1707 Parliament building. It symbolises the connection between the historical Parliament and the present-day Parliament. Natural light diffuses by glass fins, which run down from light spaces in the ceiling, enters the chamber.

There is a wide variety of artwork and sculptures in the Scottish Parliament ranging from commissioned pieces to official gifts from overseas parliamentary delegations.
The Main Hall of the Parliament contains a sculpture modelled on the Scottish crown, sceptre and the sword of the state. The parliamentary mace of silver and inlaid with gold panned from Scottish rivers is displayed in a glass case in the debating chamber. It has a formal, ceremonial role during meetings of the Parliament.

Despite its many awards many Scots consider the building a shambles – visit and decide!
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From journal Exploring Edinburgh’s Royal Mile

Scottish Parliament

by TaylorMM

Boise, Idaho

December 27, 2006

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I stumbled upon this building, but I was really surprised by the interest and enjoyment the Parliament brings (to toddlers to grannies and to hipsters)! It looks like the Gaudi playing with driftwood and sticky-tack, which is not too far off the ...Read more

From journal Fringe Festival in Edinburgh!

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