The Parliament’s Presiding Officer Sir David Steel said that investigations were now underway to identify a new temporary home for the Parliament when the Church return to the Assembly Hall next May.

Speaking at a charity dinner at the Grosvenor Hotel in Glasgow last night (Arthritis Research Campaign), Sir David said:

"As this is my first speech in Glasgow since my election to be the Parliament’s Presiding Officer I am glad to take the opportunity to announce that the Parliamentary Bureau, which I chair, only this week decided to consider options for the Parliament meeting elsewhere in Scotland, and Glasgow was high on the list of possible venues.

"We expect that our landlords – the Church of Scotland – will naturally wish to use their own hall for their annual Assembly next May.

"We, on the other hand, would prefer to continue with our meetings of the Parliament that month. While a suitable venue would have to be identified to meet all the needs of the Parliament, and of course we will keep a careful watching eye on costs, we are taking forward work to identify a range of options, including of course the possibility of having a meeting of the Parliament in Glasgow."