Festival of Politics in Edinburgh: 27–28 August guide

Name: The Festival of Politics
Start: 2026-08-27
End: 2026-08-28
Location: The Scottish Parliament

beehiveweb.co.uk editorial team 2026-08-28 10:22 2 min read

The modern architecture of the Scottish Parliament building with flags displayed outside under sky.

The Festival of Politics takes place on 27 and 28 August 2026 at the Scottish Parliament, Horsewynd, Edinburgh EH99 1SP. The two-day programme is open to the general public, with tickets priced separately for each event and a booking option available through the Forever Edinburgh Events listing.

The Festival brings political, social and environmental discussions into Holyrood, the home of Scottish politics. It is aimed at anyone interested in public debate, including sessions examining issues affecting Scotland, the wider UK and other countries.

What is on the 2026 Festival programme

The programme combines debates, panels and contributions from people working across politics, the arts, business, the media and the third sector. Its broad subject range allows visitors to select individual events according to the issues they most want to explore.

Confirmed themes include:

artificial intelligence and society’s use of technology;
climate change;
poverty and housing;
free speech;
Brexit;
human trafficking;
misogyny and the manosphere.

These topics span public policy, social change and emerging technology rather than following one single theme across both days. Visitors should therefore consult the full programme before booking to identify the sessions most relevant to them.

Brenda Hale to discuss her legal career

A headline appearance comes from Brenda Hale, the Rt Hon Baroness Hale of Richmond DBE, who will reflect on her legal career and work as a pioneering reformer.

The event listing highlights several milestones from Lady Hale’s career. She was the first woman Law Commissioner, the first and youngest female Law Lord, and the first woman appointed President of the Supreme Court. Her session adds a legal and equality-focused strand to a Festival that also covers politics, technology, the environment and social policy.

Booking and accessibility at the Scottish Parliament

There is no single advertised Festival ticket price. Each event has its own price, so attendees should review the individual listing and use the published booking option for every session they want to attend.

The Scottish Parliament is wheelchair accessible, with ground-level entry, lifts and disabled toilets. British Sign Language translation will be provided at nine Festival events; anyone requiring BSL interpretation should check which sessions are included before choosing tickets.

The source listing does not publish overall opening or closing times, nor does it provide specific transport instructions. Before travelling to Horsewynd, visitors should confirm their selected event’s start time, ticket price and accessibility provision through the programme and booking information supplied by Forever Edinburgh Events.

Source: Forever Edinburgh Events

Context & actions About this article

Source check Source trail

Dates, venue, ticket wording, programme topics and accessibility information were taken from the Forever Edinburgh Events listing.

Checks

The listed event dates are 27 and 28 August 2026.
The venue address is the Scottish Parliament, Horse Wynd, Edinburgh EH99 1SP.
Ticket prices vary by individual event, and no overall Festival price is stated.
Accessibility details were limited to the facilities and BSL provision named by the source...

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