Categories: Photography

On assignment in my home country recently, I spent a couple of days with pretty much free run of the new Scottish Parliament building. Now here's a paradox: at one level, we have history repeating itself - the original union of the Parliaments was brought about through Scotland's determinedly bankrupting its Exchequer over the ill-fated Panama colony - a project that went uncontrollably over-budget and which failed to deliver any benefit to the country that had invested so heavily in it. So what's the first thing Scotland does on regaining a measure of independence after two hundred years? Yep - pour a large proportion of the national budget into a project that's gone uncontrollably over budget, to very little apparent benefit to the country…

Now that's the cynics view. Here's my reality: It's done, it's there and the money is spent, so whatever we look at is from this time forth and for the future. And that's where the Parliament, as a space for the hopes of a nation revenant, works wonderfully well. This is a complex and inspirational building, one that works both as a focal point for the governance of a country and as a meeting place of the people, though a network of open spaces, closed rooms and the elegance of the debating chamber.