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HRH attends the Kirking of the Scottish Parliament

7th May 2007

The Duke of Rothesay, as The Prince of Wales is known in Scotland, attended the Kirking of the Scottish Parliament at St Giles Cathedral in Edinburgh today.

The Kirking of the Parliament ceremony is ahead of the Third Session at Holyrood and is an ecumenical service of blessing. A service and reception were held to mark the opening of the new parliamentary session.

Both events were also attended by newly elected Members of the Scottish Parliament, representatives of Scotland's faiths and other guests from across Scotland.

In the cathedral the National Youth Orchestras of Scotland played classic jazz tunes, including All Of Me And Four and Have You Met Miss Jones? before the service, which included hymns and readings.

There was no sermon but Scotland's church and faith leaders offered prayers and blessings for the new Parliament.

These included a plea from Ephraim Borowski, director of the Scottish Council of Jewish Communities: "Put a spirit of wisdom and understanding into their hearts and into the hearts of all their advisers so that they uphold the peace of the nation, advance the welfare of its people, and deal kindly and truly with all who abide here."

The prayers included one from the Koran, and the church leaders included Cardinal Keith O'Brien, leader of Scotland's Roman Catholics, who asked that the politicians serve "the common good".

George Reid, who is about to stand down after serving four years keeping order in Parliament as Holyrood's Presiding Officer, also gave a reading.

Outside the cathedral, The Duke met members of the public before going to a reception, held at Edinburgh’s Signet Library, where he was welcomed by the four main party leaders.

His Royal Highness was greeted by the First Minister and leader of the Scottish Labour Party Jack McConnell, Scottish National Party leader Alex Salmond, Scottish Conservative Party leader Annabel Goldie, and Liberal Democrat leader Nicol Stephen.

The Duke shook hands and conversed with the Scottish party leaders for several minutes, in evident good humour, before going into the reception.

The third session of the Scottish Parliament will also be marked on Saturday 30th June with a ceremony attended by The Queen.