141-557: Pitlochry ( / p ɪ t ˈ l ɒ x r i / ; Scottish Gaelic : Baile Chloichridh or Baile Chloichrigh ) is a town in the Perth and Kinross council area of Scotland , lying on the River Tummel . It is historically in the county of Perthshire , and has a population of 2,776, according to the 2011 census. It is largely a Victorian town, which developed into a tourist resort after Queen Victoria and Prince Albert visited
282-575: A "flout [of] the democratic will of the people of Glasgow". Margo MacDonald , a fundamentalist within the SNP, voiced her lack of confidence in Swinney's leadership. MacDonald was placed fifth in the Lothians region for the 2003 Parliament election in the SNP's candidate selection, effectively ending her chances of being re-elected as an SNP MSP. In protest, she ran instead as an independent candidate and
423-442: A 19% fall in bilingual speakers between the 1911 and 1921 Censuses. Michelle MacLeod of Aberdeen University has said that there was no other period with such a high fall in the number of monolingual Gaelic speakers: "Gaelic speakers became increasingly the exception from that point forward with bilingualism replacing monolingualism as the norm for Gaelic speakers." The Linguistic Survey of Scotland (1949–1997) surveyed both
564-564: A Pictish substrate. In 1018, after the conquest of Lothian (theretofore part of England and inhabited predominantly by speakers of Northumbrian Old English ) by the Kingdom of Scotland , Gaelic reached its social, cultural, political, and geographic zenith. Colloquial speech in Scotland had been developing independently of that in Ireland since the eighth century. For the first time,
705-464: A burgh. That year also saw the beginning of construction of a dam as part of the Tummel hydro-electric power scheme . The dam and its fish ladder are a popular tourist attraction today. The damming of the river created an artificial loch, Loch Faskally , but flooded a large area north of the town including the old Recreation Park, which was relocated to its current position. The new burgh council adopted
846-524: A central feature of court life there. The semi-independent Lordship of the Isles in the Hebrides and western coastal mainland remained thoroughly Gaelic since the language's recovery there in the 12th century, providing a political foundation for cultural prestige down to the end of the 15th century. By the mid-14th century what eventually came to be called Scots (at that time termed Inglis ) emerged as
987-823: A challenge to revitalization efforts which occur outside the home. Positive engagements between language learners and native speakers of Gaelic through mentorship has proven to be productive in socializing new learners into fluency. In the 2022 census, 3,551 people claimed Gaelic as their 'main language.' Of these, 1,761 (49.6%) were in Na h-Eileanan Siar, 682 (19.2%) were in Highland, 369 were in Glasgow City and 120 were in City of Edinburgh; no other council area had as many as 80 such respondents. Gaelic has long suffered from its lack of use in educational and administrative contexts and
1128-551: A dialect known as Canadian Gaelic has been spoken in Canada since the 18th century. In the 2021 census , 2,170 Canadian residents claimed knowledge of Scottish Gaelic, a decline from 3,980 speakers in the 2016 census . There exists a particular concentration of speakers in Nova Scotia , with historic communities in other parts of Canada having largely disappeared. Scottish Gaelic is classed as an indigenous language under
1269-687: A different play every day during their Summer Season Festival. Open all year round. The Winter Words Festival, first held in 2004, is a 10-day literary festival that takes place every year in early February. Most events take place at the Pitlochry Festival Theatre, which attracts over 40 authors, broadcasters, wordsmiths and personalities. The sound and light show, The Enchanted Forest, takes place in Pitlochry's nearby Faskally Wood every year in October, attracting 70,000 visitors to
1410-472: A former MSP for Central Scotland , was the first to call for Swinney's departure, with Michael Russell , a former potential campaign manager for Swinney calling for a change in approach from the SNP. Members of the SNP shadow cabinet began privately discussing removing Swinney from the leadership, and Alex Salmond advised Swinney to resign in exchange for senior party figures not calling openly for his resignation. On 22 June 2004, Swinney resigned as leader of
1551-514: A freedom of information request showed that even if Swinney had funded the mechanism, problems and delays in the HM Revenue & Customs computer system made any collection of the tax impossible. The Scottish Government added, "The power has not lapsed, the HMRC simply does not have an IT system capable of delivering a ten-month state of readiness." As Finance Secretary , Swinney was faced with
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#17327806918451692-489: A full range of language skills: speaking, understanding, reading and writing Gaelic. 40.2% of Scotland's Gaelic speakers said that they used Gaelic at home. To put this in context, the most common language spoken at home in Scotland after English and Scots is Polish, with about 1.1% of the population, or 54,000 people. The 2011 UK Census showed a total of 57,375 Gaelic speakers in Scotland (1.1% of population over three years old), of whom only 32,400 could also read and write
1833-586: A language ideology at odds with revitalization efforts on behalf of new speakers, state policies (such as the Gaelic Language Act), and family members reclaiming their lost mother tongue. New learners of Gaelic often have a positive affective stance to their language learning, and connect this learning journey towards Gaelic language revitalization. The mismatch of these language ideologies, and differences in affective stance, has led to fewer speaking opportunities for adult language learners and therefore
1974-750: A motion of no confidence in him. Swinney u-turned and published the advice; the Scottish Greens declared they would not support the motion of no confidence and it was defeated by 65 votes to 57. A report by Audit Scotland in March 2021 concluded that the results of Swinney's efforts to reduce the poverty related attainment gap in Scottish education were "limited and [fell] short of the Scottish Government’s aims. Improvement needs to happen more quickly and there needs to be greater consistency across
2115-805: A national centre for Gaelic Language and Culture, based in Sleat , on the Isle of Skye . This institution is the only source for higher education which is conducted entirely in Scottish Gaelic. They offer courses for Gaelic learners from beginners into fluency. They also offer regular bachelors and graduate programs delivered entirely in Gaelic. Concerns have been raised around the fluency achieved by learners within these language programs because they are disconnected from vernacular speech communities. In regard to language revitalization planning efforts, many feel that
2256-549: A process of Gaelicisation (which may have begun generations earlier) was clearly under way during the reigns of Caustantín and his successors. By a certain point, probably during the 11th century, all the inhabitants of Alba had become fully Gaelicised Scots, and Pictish identity was forgotten. Bilingualism in Pictish and Gaelic, prior to the former's extinction, led to the presence of Pictish loanwords in Gaelic and syntactic influence which could be considered to constitute
2397-460: A production workforce of three men. Relatively unchanged since it started making whisky, it is the last example of a traditional distillery and not currently open to visitors. Blair Athol sits on the main road at the southeast of town and since 1933 has been owned by Bell's, now part of the Diageo group. Pitlochry station is home to Pitlochry Station Bookshop . The bookshop was set up in 2005 and
2538-610: A proportion of Gaelic speakers greater than 65% (the highest value is in Barvas , Lewis , with 64.1%). In addition, no civil parish on mainland Scotland has a proportion of Gaelic speakers greater than 20% (the highest is in Ardnamurchan , Highland , with 19.3%). Out of a total of 871 civil parishes in Scotland, the proportion of Gaelic speakers exceeds 50% in seven parishes, 25% in 14 parishes, and 10% in 35 parishes. Decline in traditional areas has recently been balanced by growth in
2679-594: A range of 29 °C (52 °F). This is one of the biggest daily temperature ranges in the United Kingdom. Pitlochry is home to the Vale of Atholl Football Club . The "Vale" were founded in 1879 and originally played at the old recreation park now situated at the bottom of Loch Faskally . Relocating along with the pavilion in the 1950s when the dam was built to the current location the Vale were regular competitors in
2820-456: A referendum on independence before pursuing negotiations with the British government. Wilson argued that as soon as the SNP can form a government it should pursue negotiations to end the union. The election was held at the party's 69th annual conference, and saw Swinney winning a massive victory over Wilson. Moves in support of Wilson's proposition of pursuing independence negotiations without
2961-560: A referendum were thrown out at the party conference, and Swinney won significant policy battles over imposing a monthly levy on party MPs, MSPs, and MEPs. In a surprise result, the new central membership system was also approved. The membership changes had been a key issue of attack from Wilson. Soon afterwards, the party's National Executive Committee decided to suspend and then expel Campbell Martin . He had backed Wilson's leadership challenge and had continued to be overtly critical of Swinney's leadership, resulting in disciplinary action. This
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#17327806918453102-712: A similar dual mandate position. In 1999 Swinney was elected to the 1st Scottish Parliament , representing the North Tayside constituency . In Salmond's opposition cabinet, he served as the Spokesman on Enterprise and Lifelong Learning . He also served on the Parliament's Finance Committee and was the Convener of the Enterprise and Lifelong Learning Committee. In 2000 Alex Salmond resigned as leader of
3243-536: A situation where new learners struggle to find opportunities to speak Gaelic with fluent speakers. Affect is the way people feel about something, or the emotional response to a particular situation or experience. For Gaelic speakers, there is a conditioned and socialized negative affect through a long history of negative Scottish media portrayal and public disrespect, state mandated restrictions on Gaelic usage, and highland clearances . This negative affect towards speaking openly with non-native Gaelic speakers has led to
3384-625: A translation of the New Testament. In 1798, four tracts in Gaelic were published by the Society for Propagating the Gospel at Home, with 5,000 copies of each printed. Other publications followed, with a full Gaelic Bible in 1801. The influential and effective Gaelic Schools Society was founded in 1811. Their purpose was to teach Gaels to read the Bible in their own language. In the first quarter of
3525-498: A whole. The median ages for females and males were 51 and 49 respectively, compared to 42 and 40 for the whole of Scotland. The town has two whisky distilleries . Edradour is the smallest legal distillery in Scotland, and Blair Athol Distillery , which has a popular visitor centre, dates back to 1798. Edradour sits to the east of town at the foot of the Moulin Moor. It is privately owned and produces only 12 casks per week with
3666-410: Is Faskally, about 2 miles (3 km) north-west of the town centre. Typically the warmest day of the year will rise to 26.3 °C (79.3 °F) and the coldest night will fall to −10.6 °C (12.9 °F). Pitlochry is notable for its range in temperature on 9 May 1978. The temperature in the morning was recorded as −7 °C (19 °F), rising to 22 °C (72 °F) in the afternoon, giving
3807-719: Is a Goidelic language (in the Celtic branch of the Indo-European language family ) native to the Gaels of Scotland . As a Goidelic language, Scottish Gaelic, as well as both Irish and Manx , developed out of Old Irish . It became a distinct spoken language sometime in the 13th century in the Middle Irish period, although a common literary language was shared by the Gaels of both Ireland and Scotland until well into
3948-738: Is a Scottish politician who has served as First Minister of Scotland since May 2024. Swinney has served as Leader of the Scottish National Party (SNP) on two occasions, since May 2024 and between 2000 and 2004. He has held various roles within the Scottish Cabinet from 2007 to 2023 under First Ministers Alex Salmond and Nicola Sturgeon . Swinney was Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for North Tayside from 1999 to 2011 and, following boundary changes, has been MSP for Perthshire North since 2011. He
4089-490: Is a significant step forward for the recognition of Gaelic both at home and abroad and I look forward to addressing the council in Gaelic very soon. Seeing Gaelic spoken in such a forum raises the profile of the language as we drive forward our commitment to creating a new generation of Gaelic speakers in Scotland." Bilingual road signs, street names, business and advertisement signage (in both Gaelic and English) are gradually being introduced throughout Gaelic-speaking regions in
4230-411: Is no evidence that Gaelic was ever widely spoken. Many historians mark the reign of King Malcolm Canmore ( Malcolm III ) between 1058 and 1093 as the beginning of Gaelic's eclipse in Scotland. His wife Margaret of Wessex spoke no Gaelic, gave her children Anglo-Saxon rather than Gaelic names, and brought many English bishops, priests, and monastics to Scotland. When Malcolm and Margaret died in 1093,
4371-620: Is part of the Perth and Kinross council area. The Scottish Parliamentary constituency is Perthshire North , represented by John Swinney of the Scottish National Party . The UK Parliament constituency is Angus and Perthshire Glens . The MP is Dave Doogan , also of the Scottish National Party. At the 2011 census, Pitlochry had a population of 2,776. In the same census, 29.2% of residents were reported as being 65 years old or older – significantly higher than 16.8% for Scotland as
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4512-652: Is progress to be made in maths and science." Scottish Conservative education spokeswoman Liz Smith said: "These two areas are so critical to the success of much of Scotland's modern economy. We should be doing so much better." In August 2020, Swinney was subject to a vote of no confidence in Parliament, with the Conservatives, Labour and the Liberal Democrats all accusing Swinney of creating an exam results system which "unfairly penalised pupils at schools which had historically not performed so well". During
4653-468: Is situated on Platform 1. The power station's dam is known for its 310-metre salmon ladder ; fish can be viewed swimming from weir to weir within the ladder, via an underwater viewing station or a video from inside the visitor centre. Over 5,000 salmon pass through annually. The dam and power station were completed in 1951 as the last link in the Tummel hydro-electric power scheme which comprises nine power stations and reservoirs. The new reservoir, which
4794-515: The 2001 UK General election . The party failed to take any of their target seats and saw the loss of one of their MPs, reducing their representation at Westminster from six to five. In the Perth constituency , the Scottish Conservatives were 50 votes behind the SNP. Although the SNP's vote share remained the second-largest party, behind Labour, their vote share fell by 2%. Swinney's predecessor, Salmond, stated "consolidating as
4935-473: The 2004 European elections , in a smaller field of 7 (Scotland up until then had 8 MEPs) the Scottish press and certain elements within the fundamentalist wing of the Party depicted the result as a disaster for the SNP putting further pressure on Swinney to resign. After the results of the 2004 European Parliament election , senior figures within the SNP began privately briefing against Swinney. Gil Paterson ,
5076-506: The 2007–2008 financial crisis , which resulted in the Scottish economy entering recession . The Scottish economy began to gradually slow in 2007 as a result of stock market concerns regarding the U.S. housing market. Scottish economic output fell for four consecutive quarters before a slight recovery in Q3 in 2009, before falling again by the end of 2009. Swinney advocated that at the start of
5217-457: The 2016 Scottish Parliament election , the SNP lost its overall majority, but remained the largest party with Sturgeon securing a second term as first minister. She reappointed Swinney as deputy first minister, and for the first time in nine years, he was reshuffled from his roles as Finance Secretary to Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills . After the 2017 General Election saw the SNP lose 21 seats, pollster Professor John Curtice told
5358-474: The 2019 United Kingdom general election . Following the results of the 2024 United Kingdom general election in Scotland , the SNP became the second largest party in the UK Parliament representing Scottish seats, having won 9 seats, losing a total of 39 seats across Scotland. Across the United Kingdom, the results saw a Labour Party landslide victory, and similarly in Scotland, Scottish Labour became
5499-837: The European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages , which the UK Government has ratified, and the Gaelic Language (Scotland) Act 2005 established a language-development body, Bòrd na Gàidhlig . The Scottish Parliament is considering a Scottish Languages Bill which proposes to give the Gaelic and Scots languages official status in Scotland. Aside from "Scottish Gaelic", the language may also be referred to simply as "Gaelic", pronounced / ˈ ɡ æ l ɪ k / GAL -ik in English . However, "Gaelic" / ˈ ɡ eɪ l ɪ k / GAY -lik also refers to
5640-619: The National Secretary in 1986, at the age of 22. At the 1997 general election , he was elected as Member of Parliament (MP) for the Tayside North constituency, and in 1999 he was elected to represent the same area at the Scottish Parliament . He stood down as a Westminster MP at the 2001 general election in order to avoid splitting his time, in line with all of his colleagues who found themselves in
5781-555: The Outer Hebrides , accommodation ethics exist amongst native or local Gaelic speakers when engaging with new learners or non-locals. Accommodation ethics, or ethics of accommodation, is a social practice where local or native speakers of Gaelic shift to speaking English when in the presence of non-Gaelic speakers out of a sense of courtesy or politeness. This accommodation ethic persists even in situations where new learners attempt to speak Gaelic with native speakers. This creates
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5922-554: The Pitlochry Festival Theatre , originally held in a tent. A purpose built structure was created at Portnacraig near the River Tummel designed by Law & Dunbar-Nasmith in 1979 and completed in 1981. Today it occupies a modern, spacious glass fronted building with open aspects across the river Tummell and Ben Vrackie. The theatre operates a unique repertoire system which means visitors to the area can see
6063-757: The Roman Rota in order that Swinney be allowed to marry in the Catholic Church , to which his second wife belongs. In 2003, Swinney married Elizabeth Quigley, a BBC Scotland News reporter. Quigley was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 2000. In 2010, she gave birth to Swinney's third child, Matthew. They live near Blairgowrie in Perth and Kinross . Swinney is a member of the Church of Scotland and has described himself as "a man of deep Christian faith". However, he has clashed with his party colleague Kate Forbes due to her religious views (Forbes
6204-520: The Scottish Cup in the past having played ties against the likes of Dundee and Hibernian. The Vale's most famous former player is Paul Sturrock , who remains a committed Vale supporter. The Vale's only First Division championship victory was in the 1990s but recently tasted Second Division success in 2004/5. The Atholl Highlanders rugby team, established in 2007, also play at The Recreation Park. Pitlochry Highland Games has been held annually on
6345-680: The Scottish Greens . After an agreement, Salmond was appointed first minister of Scotland and he appointed Swinney as the Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Sustainable Growth in his first minority government . As response to Swinney not notifying the Scottish Parliament that he had let the Scottish Variable Rate lapse due to not funding this tax mechanism, the Scottish Parliament voted to censure him and called his actions "an abuse of power". Subsequently,
6486-688: The Scottish Lowlands . Between the 2001 and 2011 censuses, the number of Gaelic speakers rose in nineteen of the country's 32 council areas. The largest absolute gains were in Aberdeenshire (+526), North Lanarkshire (+305), the Aberdeen City council area (+216), and East Ayrshire (+208). The largest relative gains were in Aberdeenshire (+0.19%), East Ayrshire (+0.18%), Moray (+0.16%), and Orkney (+0.13%). In 2018,
6627-613: The Scottish National Party (SNP) in 1979 at the age of 15, citing his anger at the way in which Scotland had been portrayed by television commentators at the Commonwealth Games . He quickly became a prominent figure in the party's youth wing, the Young Scottish Nationalist , now known as the Young Scots for Independence (YSI) . He served as the SNP's Assistant National Secretary, before becoming
6768-786: The significant increase in pupils in Gaelic-medium education since that time is unknown. Gaelic Medium Education is one of the primary ways that the Scottish Government is addressing Gaelic language shift. Along with the Bòrd na Gàidhlig policies, preschool and daycare environments are also being used to create more opportunities for intergenerational language transmission in the Outer Hebrides. However, revitalization efforts are not unified within Scotland or Nova Scotia, Canada. One can attend Sabhal Mòr Ostaig ,
6909-421: The 17th century. Most of modern Scotland was once Gaelic-speaking, as evidenced especially by Gaelic-language place names. In the 2011 census of Scotland , 57,375 people (1.1% of the Scottish population aged over three years old) reported being able to speak Gaelic, 1,275 fewer than in 2001. The highest percentages of Gaelic speakers were in the Outer Hebrides . Nevertheless, there is a language revival , and
7050-585: The 1920s. Swinney was educated at Forrester High School , before attending the University of Edinburgh , where he graduated with an Master of Arts Honours degree in politics in 1986. He was a research officer for the Scottish Coal Project from 1987 to 1988, a senior management consultant with Development Options from 1988 to 1992, and a strategic planning principal with Scottish Amicable Life Assurance from 1992 to 1997. Swinney joined
7191-546: The 19th century, the SSPCK (despite their anti-Gaelic attitude in prior years) and the British and Foreign Bible Society distributed 60,000 Gaelic Bibles and 80,000 New Testaments. It is estimated that this overall schooling and publishing effort gave about 300,000 people in the Highlands some basic literacy. Very few European languages have made the transition to a modern literary language without an early modern translation of
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#17327806918457332-533: The 2008 financial crisis, the Scottish Government and Swinney as finance secretary "acted swiftly to provide an immediate capital stimulus to Scotland's economy at the start of the 2008 financial crisis. As a consequence, Scotland's experience of recession has been shorter and shallower than the rest of the UK". Following the defeat of the Yes Scotland campaign in the 2014 referendum , Salmond resigned as leader of
7473-404: The 2011 Census. The 2011 total population figure comes from table KS101SC. The numbers of Gaelic speakers relate to the numbers aged 3 and over, and the percentages are calculated using those and the number of the total population aged 3 and over. Across the whole of Scotland, the 2011 census showed that 25,000 people (0.49% of the population) used Gaelic at home. Of these, 63.3% said that they had
7614-407: The 4th–5th centuries CE, by settlers from Ireland who founded the Gaelic kingdom of Dál Riata on Scotland's west coast in present-day Argyll . An alternative view has been voiced by archaeologist Ewan Campbell , who has argued that the putative migration or takeover is not reflected in archaeological or placename data (as pointed out earlier by Leslie Alcock ). Campbell has also questioned
7755-461: The BBC that the party's record on education had likely dented its popularity: "The SNP may want to reflect that their domestic record, not least on schools, is beginning to undermine their support among those who on the constitutional question are still willing to support the Nationalist position." In March 2020, after the results of Scottish students dropped in maths and science in the international PISA rankings for education, Swinney admitted, "There
7896-494: The Bible; the lack of a well known translation may have contributed to the decline of Scottish Gaelic. Counterintuitively, access to schooling in Gaelic increased knowledge of English. In 1829, the Gaelic Schools Society reported that parents were unconcerned about their children learning Gaelic, but were anxious to have them taught English. The SSPCK also found Highlanders to have significant prejudice against Gaelic. T. M. Devine attributes this to an association between English and
8037-403: The Court of Session in Edinburgh after receiving the Royal Warrant of Appointment by King Charles III . Swinney's early premiership was marked by the resolution of the Michael Matheson iPad scandal : the SNP MSP Michael Matheson had incurred a £11,000 bill after taking a Parliamentary iPad while on a family holiday, and had attempted to claim the bill back on expenses before admitting that
8178-498: The EU's institutions. The Scottish government had to pay for the translation from Gaelic to other European languages . The deal was received positively in Scotland; Secretary of State for Scotland Jim Murphy said the move was a strong sign of the UK government's support for Gaelic. He said; "Allowing Gaelic speakers to communicate with European institutions in their mother tongue is a progressive step forward and one which should be welcomed". Culture Minister Mike Russell said; "this
8319-489: The Finance Committee from 2005 to 2007. Swinney was a substitute member of the Audit Committee from 2004 to 2007. In September 2005, Swinney was made Shadow Minister for Finance. In the 2007 election to the 3rd Scottish Parliament , the SNP emerged as the largest party, with one seat more than the governing Scottish Labour . Initially the SNP proposed coalition talks with the Scottish Liberal Democrats, however, they declined and instead Swinney led coalition talks with
8460-484: The Forth–Clyde line and along the northeastern coastal plain as far north as Moray. Norman French completely displaced Gaelic at court. The establishment of royal burghs throughout the same area, particularly under David I , attracted large numbers of foreigners speaking Old English. This was the beginning of Gaelic's status as a predominantly rural language in Scotland. Clan chiefs in the northern and western parts of Scotland continued to support Gaelic bards who remained
8601-415: The Gaelic Act falls so far short of the status accorded to Welsh that one would be foolish or naïve to believe that any substantial change will occur in the fortunes of the language as a result of Bòrd na Gàidhlig 's efforts. On 10 December 2008, to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights , the Scottish Human Rights Commission had the UDHR translated into Gaelic for
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#17327806918458742-582: The Gaelic aristocracy rejected their anglicised sons and instead backed Malcolm's brother Domnall Bán ( Donald III ). Donald had spent 17 years in Gaelic Ireland and his power base was in the thoroughly Gaelic west of Scotland. He was the last Scottish monarch to be buried on Iona , the traditional burial place of the Gaelic Kings of Dàl Riada and the Kingdom of Alba. However, during the reigns of Malcolm Canmore's sons, Edgar, Alexander I and David I (their successive reigns lasting 1097–1153), Anglo-Norman names and practices spread throughout Scotland south of
8883-442: The Highland and Island region. In 1616, the Privy Council proclaimed that schools teaching in English should be established. Gaelic was seen, at this time, as one of the causes of the instability of the region. It was also associated with Catholicism. The Society in Scotland for the Propagation of Christian Knowledge (SSPCK) was founded in 1709. They met in 1716, immediately after the failed Jacobite rising of 1715 , to consider
9024-416: The Highlands and Islands, including Argyll. In many cases, this has simply meant re-adopting the traditional spelling of a name (such as Ràtagan or Loch Ailleart rather than the anglicised forms Ratagan or Lochailort respectively). Some monolingual Gaelic road signs, particularly direction signs, are used on the Outer Hebrides , where a majority of the population can have a working knowledge of
9165-426: The Inner Hebridean dialects of Tiree and Islay, and even a few native speakers from Western Highland areas including Wester Ross , northwest Sutherland , Lochaber and Argyll . Dialects on both sides of the Straits of Moyle (the North Channel ) linking Scottish Gaelic with Irish are now extinct, though native speakers were still to be found on the Mull of Kintyre , on Rathlin and in North East Ireland as late as
9306-410: The Irish language ( Gaeilge ) and the Manx language ( Gaelg ). Scottish Gaelic is distinct from Scots , the Middle English -derived language which had come to be spoken in most of the Lowlands of Scotland by the early modern era . Prior to the 15th century, this language was known as Inglis ("English") by its own speakers, with Gaelic being called Scottis ("Scottish"). Beginning in
9447-415: The No Confidence debate, Nicola Sturgeon described him as "one of the most decent and dedicated people in Scottish politics", while The Herald newspaper reported that: "Mr Swinney endured a deeply uncomfortable hour in the Holyrood chamber, as opposition MSPs said he had been a serial failure at the education portfolio, and he knew it." The motion was defeated by 67 votes to 58 resulting in Swinney surviving
9588-433: The SNP and Swinney was seen as a likely candidate in the leadership race , however, he "unreservedly" ruled himself out for a second bid as leader and endorsed Nicola Sturgeon . Sturgeon was elected unopposed as leader and was subsequently appointed First Minister of Scotland . On 21 November 2014, Sturgeon appointed Swinney as Deputy First Minister . He remained as Finance Secretary in Sturgeon's new cabinet . In
9729-449: The SNP's backbenches and served as a member of the Scottish Parliament's Justice Committee. He spent the duration of Humza Yousaf 's premiership on the backbenches. Following Yousaf's resignation in April 2024 amid a government crisis , Swinney launched his leadership bid on 2 May, after Kate Forbes , who was a serious contender to become leader, dropped out and endorsed him. Graeme McCormick announced he would challenge Swinney for
9870-423: The SNP, which triggered a leadership contest . Swinney ran in the election against Alex Neil . The leadership contest was dominated by internal fights in the party between Gradualists , who advocated Scottish devolution as step towards independence , and Fundamentalists , who were suspicious of devolution and supported a more radical approach. Swinney represented the gradualist wing and Neil represented
10011-483: The Scottish National Party, triggering a leadership contest . He was succeeded by Alex Salmond after winning more than 75% of votes against Roseanna Cunningham and Michael Russell on a joint leadership ticket with Nicola Sturgeon . From 2004 until the 2007 Scottish Parliament election , Swinney sat on the SNP's opposition backbenches . He served as a convener on the Parliament's European and External Relations Committee from 2004 to 2005 and deputy convener on
10152-540: The UK Government as Welsh . With the advent of devolution , however, Scottish matters have begun to receive greater attention, and it achieved a degree of official recognition when the Gaelic Language (Scotland) Act was enacted by the Scottish Parliament on 21 April 2005. The key provisions of the Act are: After its creation, Bòrd na Gàidhlig required a Gaelic Language Plan from the Scottish Government. This plan
10293-826: The Western Isles (−1,745), Argyll & Bute (−694), and Highland (−634). The drop in Stornoway , the largest parish in the Western Isles by population, was especially acute, from 57.5% of the population in 1991 to 43.4% in 2011. The only parish outside the Western Isles over 40% Gaelic-speaking is Kilmuir in Northern Skye at 46%. The islands in the Inner Hebrides with significant percentages of Gaelic speakers are Tiree (38.3%), Raasay (30.4%), Skye (29.4%), Lismore (26.9%), Colonsay (20.2%), and Islay (19.0%). Today, no civil parish in Scotland has
10434-644: The Western Isles. The Scottish Qualifications Authority offer two streams of Gaelic examination across all levels of the syllabus: Gaelic for learners (equivalent to the modern foreign languages syllabus) and Gaelic for native speakers (equivalent to the English syllabus). An Comunn Gàidhealach performs assessment of spoken Gaelic, resulting in the issue of a Bronze Card, Silver Card or Gold Card. Syllabus details are available on An Comunn's website. These are not widely recognised as qualifications, but are required for those taking part in certain competitions at
10575-522: The age and reliability of the medieval historical sources speaking of a conquest. Instead, he has inferred that Argyll formed part of a common Q-Celtic -speaking area with Ireland, connected rather than divided by the sea, since the Iron Age. These arguments have been opposed by some scholars defending the early dating of the traditional accounts and arguing for other interpretations of the archaeological evidence. Regardless of how it came to be spoken in
10716-456: The annual mods . In October 2009, a new agreement allowed Scottish Gaelic to be formally used between Scottish Government ministers and European Union officials. The deal was signed by Britain's representative to the EU, Sir Kim Darroch , and the Scottish government . This did not give Scottish Gaelic official status in the EU but gave it the right to be a means of formal communications in
10857-496: The area caused the town to be more widely noticed. After its railway station was built in 1863, Pitlochry became a favoured destination for tourists. Robert Louis Stevenson stayed at Fishers Hotel in June 1881 with his wife Fanny and mother. The party then moved to Kinnaird Cottage in nearby Moulin. Here Stevenson worked on " Thrawn Janet " (1881), " The Merry Men " (1882) and " The Body Snatcher " (1884). In 1947 Pitlochry became
10998-421: The area in 1842 and bought a highland estate at Balmoral , and the arrival of the railway in 1863. It remains a popular tourist resort today and is particularly known for its Pitlochry Festival Theatre, salmon ladder and as a centre for hillwalking , surrounded by mountains such as Ben Vrackie and Schiehallion . It is popular as a base for coach holidays. The town has retained many stone Victorian buildings, and
11139-532: The bill be strengthened, a revised bill was published; the main alteration was that the guidance of the Bòrd is now statutory (rather than advisory). In the committee stages in the Scottish Parliament, there was much debate over whether Gaelic should be given 'equal validity' with English. Due to executive concerns about resourcing implications if this wording was used, the Education Committee settled on
11280-610: The case for Scottish independence , however, the only parties which increased their representation in that election were the Scottish Socialist Party (SSP) and the Scottish Green Party , both of which also support independence. Following the results of the 2003 Scottish Parliament election, Bill Wilson , a party activist, became convinced that a change of direction was needed by the SNP leadership. After discussing this with various SNP members, he
11421-625: The census of pupils in Scotland showed 520 students in publicly funded schools had Gaelic as the main language at home, an increase of 5% from 497 in 2014. During the same period, Gaelic medium education in Scotland has grown, with 4,343 pupils (6.3 per 1000) being educated in a Gaelic-immersion environment in 2018, up from 3,583 pupils (5.3 per 1000) in 2014. Data collected in 2007–2008 indicated that even among pupils enrolled in Gaelic medium schools, 81% of primary students and 74% of secondary students report using English more often than Gaelic when speaking with their mothers at home. The effect on this of
11562-568: The cities and professors of Celtic from universities who sought to preserve the language. The Education (Scotland) Act 1872 provided universal education in Scotland, but completely ignored Gaelic in its plans. The mechanism for supporting Gaelic through the Education Codes issued by the Scottish Education Department were steadily used to overcome this omission, with many concessions in place by 1918. However,
11703-513: The committee due to previous comments about Matheson's conduct. Swinney's support for Matheson was described as "incredible and indefensible" by the Scottish Conservatives leader Douglas Ross , and "unbelievable and embarrassing" by the Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar . Swinney directed the SNP to abstain on the parliamentary vote on the committee's recommendations, after introducing an amendment re-iterating Swinney's complaints about
11844-450: The concept of 'equal respect'. It is not clear what the legal force of this wording is. The Act was passed by the Scottish Parliament unanimously, with support from all sectors of the Scottish political spectrum, on 21 April 2005. Under the provisions of the Act, it will ultimately fall to BnG to secure the status of the Gaelic language as an official language of Scotland. Some commentators, such as Éamonn Ó Gribín (2006) argue that
11985-454: The country." In 10 Scottish council areas the attainment gap between the richest and the poorest children increased. Following the 2021 Scottish Parliament election, Scottish Labour urged Sturgeon to replace Swinney as Cabinet Secretary for Education, citing what it called "a litany of failures", in the "hope a new minister can stop the rot." On 18 May, Sturgeon announced Swinney would continue as Deputy First Minister but would be reshuffled to
12126-499: The dialect of the Scottish Gaelic language, and also mixed use of English and Gaelic across the Highlands and Islands. Dialects of Lowland Gaelic have been defunct since the 18th century. Gaelic in the Eastern and Southern Scottish Highlands, although alive until the mid-20th century, is now largely defunct. Although modern Scottish Gaelic is dominated by the dialects of the Outer Hebrides and Isle of Skye, there remain some speakers of
12267-457: The duration of Humza Yousaf 's premiership on the backbenches and served as a member of the Scottish Parliament's Justice Committee. Following Yousaf's announcement of his resignation in April 2024 , Swinney ran to succeed him at the 2024 SNP leadership election and was elected unopposed. His early premiership was marked by the loss of 39 seats at the 2024 general election , reducing the SNP to
12408-419: The east end of the main street. There is a Roman Catholic church, St Bride's, at Rie-achan near Loch Faskally which was established in 1949 as a temporary facility for workers building the dam and power-station there. However, when the workers moved on the chapel remained and following a fire a new church was built and opened in 1969 and serves the local Catholics and large number of Summer visitors. Pitlochry
12549-579: The effect of the cost of living and the implications of Brexit. Both of those are major strategic factors that are doing severe economic and social damage to Scotland because of bad decisions taken in Westminster. And independence is the answer to that". Early into his premiership, Swinney faced questions from opposition parties regarding the Gender Recognition Reform (Scotland) Bill which had been introduced by Shona Robison and
12690-582: The entire region of modern-day Scotland was called Scotia in Latin, and Gaelic was the lingua Scotica . In southern Scotland , Gaelic was strong in Galloway , adjoining areas to the north and west, West Lothian , and parts of western Midlothian . It was spoken to a lesser degree in north Ayrshire , Renfrewshire , the Clyde Valley and eastern Dumfriesshire . In south-eastern Scotland, there
12831-643: The first stop of his tour of the four countries of the United Kingdom and met with Swinney at the official residence of the First Minister, Bute House . During the meeting, both Swinney and Starmer agreed to "work together" and to "reset the relationship between their two governments". In September 2022, amid the death and state funeral of Elizabeth II , Swinney stated that the monarch should remain head of state of an independent Scotland . In May 2024, during an interview with Sky News, Swinney claimed that he believed that Scotland could become independent "in
12972-560: The first time. However, given there are no longer any monolingual Gaelic speakers, following an appeal in the court case of Taylor v Haughney (1982), involving the status of Gaelic in judicial proceedings, the High Court ruled against a general right to use Gaelic in court proceedings. While the goal of the Gaelic Language Act was to aid in revitalization efforts through government mandated official language status,
13113-537: The fundamentalists wing. Whilst both candidates supported the position of the SNP on the centre-left, Neil was seen as the more left-wing of the two, and individuals associated with the Neil campaign argued that a Swinney leadership would drag the SNP to the right . Swinney won an overwhelming majority of votes by party delegates, securing 67.1% of votes. He was appointed leader at the party's conference on 16 September 2000. Roseanna Cunningham , who endorsed Swinney in
13254-533: The high street has an unusual period cast iron canopy over one side. Pitlochry today dates largely from Victorian times, although the areas known as Moulin and Port-na-craig are much older. History records that Moulin Kirk was granted by the Earl of Atholl to Dunfermline Abbey in 1180 and Moulin became a burgh of barony in 1511. Port-na-craig was the site of the original ferry over the River Tummel which operated until
13395-484: The iPad had not been used for work purposes. Swinney refused to support the Standards, Procedures and Public Appointments Committee's proposed sanction on Matheson, describing Matheson as a "friend and colleague" who had "made mistakes", and casting doubt on the integrity of the committee's process: describing the process as "prejudiced", Swinney claimed that Conservative MSP Annie Wells should have removed herself from
13536-479: The initiatives must come from within Gaelic speaking communities, be led by Gaelic speakers, and be designed to serve and increase fluency within the vernacular communities as the first and most viable resistance to total language shift from Gaelic to English. Currently, language policies are focused on creating new language speakers through education, instead of focused on how to strengthen intergenerational transmission within existing Gaelic speaking communities. In
13677-754: The investigation into Matheson. The Scottish Parliament subsequently voted in support of the committee's proposed sanction, banning Matheson from the Scottish Parliament for 27 days and withholding his salary 54 days, the heaviest sanction ever awarded to an MSP. The majority of Swinney's cabinet were previously part of Yousaf's previous governments. The only addition to the cabinet was Kate Forbes replacing Shona Robison as Deputy First Minister of Scotland , and taking part of Màiri McAllan 's responsibility for economy into her portfolio as Cabinet Secretary for Economy and Gaelic . Robinson was, however, re-appointed by Swinney as Finance Secretary with additional responsibility for local government , with McAllan appointed as
13818-502: The language. Compared with the 2001 Census, there has been a diminution of about 1300 people. This is the smallest drop between censuses since the Gaelic-language question was first asked in 1881. The Scottish government's language minister and Bòrd na Gàidhlig took this as evidence that Gaelic's long decline has slowed. The main stronghold of the language continues to be the Outer Hebrides ( Na h-Eileanan Siar ), where
13959-498: The language. These omit the English translation entirely. Bilingual railway station signs are now more frequent than they used to be. Practically all the stations in the Highland area use both English and Gaelic, and the use of bilingual station signs has become more frequent in the Lowlands of Scotland, including areas where Gaelic has not been spoken for a long time. John Swinney John Ramsay Swinney (born 13 April 1964)
14100-529: The largest party representing Scottish constituencies at Westminster. Following the results, Swinney said that the outcome of the election in Scotland was "very, very difficult and damaging". High profile SNP MPs lost their seats in the election, including Kirsten Oswald , Tommy Sheppard , Alison Thewliss and Joanna Cherry . On 7 July 2024, newly elected Prime Minister of the United Kingdom Keir Starmer travelled to Edinburgh on
14241-532: The late 15th century, it became increasingly common for such speakers to refer to Scottish Gaelic as Erse ("Irish") and the Lowland vernacular as Scottis . Today, Scottish Gaelic is recognised as a separate language from Irish, so the word Erse in reference to Scottish Gaelic is no longer used. Based on medieval traditional accounts and the apparent evidence from linguistic geography, Gaelic has been commonly believed to have been brought to Scotland, in
14382-575: The leadership race, was elected Depute Leader. Swinney's leadership quickly came under challenge. His subdued style of debating technique was often contrasted with that of his more charismatic predecessor. In 2002 Dorothy-Grace Elder , the SNP MSP for the Glasgow region, resigned her party membership after coming dissatisfied with the leadership of the SNP. She sat as an independent MSP, but Swinney called for her resignation, describing her actions as
14523-404: The leadership, saying he had the 100 nominations on 5 May. Just hours later, he withdrew and endorsed Swinney, who became the presumptive nominee. On 6 May, with no other candidates put forward, Swinney was elected as party leader unopposed. He said that he would work with Scottish unionists as leader. Swinney was officially sworn into office as first minister of Scotland on 8 May 2024 at
14664-680: The local public hall as Pitlochry Town Hall shortly after it was formed. From the 1960s, Sir Robert Watson-Watt , an inventor of radar, and his wife, Dame Katherine Jane Trefusis Forbes , Director of the Women's Auxiliary Air Force in World War II, lived at her summer house, "The Observatory", in Pitlochry. Both are buried in the churchyard of the Episcopal Church of the Holy Trinity at Pitlochry. Pitlochry Festival Theatre
14805-459: The members of Highland school boards tended to have anti-Gaelic attitudes and served as an obstacle to Gaelic education in the late 19th and early 20th century. Loss of life due to World War I and the 1919 sinking of the HMY Iolaire , combined with emigration, resulted in the 1910s seeing unprecedented damage to the use of Scottish Gaelic, with a 46% fall in monolingual speakers and
14946-734: The mid-20th century. Records of their speech show that Irish and Scottish Gaelic existed in a dialect chain with no clear language boundary. Some features of moribund dialects have been preserved in Nova Scotia, including the pronunciation of the broad or velarised l ( l̪ˠ ) as [w] , as in the Lochaber dialect. The Endangered Languages Project lists Gaelic's status as "threatened", with "20,000 to 30,000 active users". UNESCO classifies Gaelic as " definitely endangered ". The 1755–2001 figures are census data quoted by MacAulay. The 2011 Gaelic speakers figures come from table KS206SC of
15087-532: The modern era. Some of this was driven by policy decisions by government or other organisations, while some originated from social changes. In the last quarter of the 20th century, efforts began to encourage use of the language. The Statutes of Iona , enacted by James VI in 1609, was one piece of legislation that addressed, among other things, the Gaelic language. It required the heirs of clan chiefs to be educated in lowland, Protestant, English-speaking schools. James VI took several such measures to impose his rule on
15228-562: The new cabinet role as Cabinet Secretary for Covid Recovery . Swinney also served as Acting Cabinet Secretary for Finance and the Economy from July 2022, whilst Kate Forbes was on maternity leave. Following Sturgeon's resignation in February 2023, Swinney announced on 2 March 2023 that he was standing down from his position as Deputy First Minister. He stated that it had been an "honour to serve Scotland". In March 2023, Swinney moved to
15369-485: The next five years" as a consequence of Brexit and the cost of living crisis. In May 2024, Swinney described himself as following a " moderate centre-left agenda". Swinney was married to Lorna King from 1991 to 1998. They had two children: Judith and Stuart. The couple divorced in 1998 after the Daily Record revealed King had an affair with a married nursery teacher. The marriage was subsequently annulled by
15510-434: The number of speakers of the language under age 20 did not decrease between the 2001 and 2011 censuses. In the 2022 census of Scotland , it was found that 2.5% of the Scottish population had some skills in Gaelic, or 130,161 persons. Of these, 69,701 people reported speaking the language, with a further 46,404 people reporting that they understood the language, but did not speak, read, or write in it. Outside of Scotland,
15651-695: The official language of government and law. Scotland's emergent nationalism in the era following the conclusion of the Wars of Scottish Independence was organized using Scots as well. For example, the nation's great patriotic literature including John Barbour's The Brus (1375) and Blind Harry's The Wallace (before 1488) was written in Scots, not Gaelic. By the end of the 15th century, English/Scots speakers referred to Gaelic instead as 'Yrisch' or 'Erse', i.e. Irish and their own language as 'Scottis'. A steady shift away from Scottish Gaelic continued into and through
15792-459: The outcome of the act is distanced from the actual minority language communities. It helps to create visibility of the minority language in civil structures, but does not impact or address the lived experiences of the Gaelic speaker communities wherein the revitalization efforts may have a higher return of new Gaelic speakers. Efforts are being made to concentrate resources, language planning, and revitalization efforts towards vernacular communities in
15933-560: The overall proportion of speakers is 52.2%. Important pockets of the language also exist in the Highlands (5.4%) and in Argyll and Bute (4.0%) and Inverness (4.9%). The locality with the largest absolute number is Glasgow with 5,878 such persons, who make up over 10% of all of Scotland's Gaelic speakers. Gaelic continues to decline in its traditional heartland. Between 2001 and 2011, the absolute number of Gaelic speakers fell sharply in
16074-482: The party's vote share dropping by 4.9%. They lost eight of their seats they had gained in the previous election under the leadership of Salmond. Despite a poor result, this was also mirrored by the Scottish Labour Party , who lost six MSPs and their vote share dropped by 4.2%. The SNP remained the second-largest party at Holyrood . The decline in support for the SNP was viewed by some as a rejection of
16215-411: The previous Scottish Labour first minister, Henry McLeish . However, the only parties to gain seats in that election were the Scottish Greens and the Scottish Socialist Party (SSP) which, like the SNP, support independence. After an unsuccessful challenge to his leadership in 2003, and the party's unfavourable results at the 2004 European Parliament election , Swinney resigned. Salmond returned to
16356-466: The prosperity of employment: the Highland economy relied greatly on seasonal migrant workers travelling outside the Gàidhealtachd . In 1863, an observer sympathetic to Gaelic stated that "knowledge of English is indispensable to any poor islander who wishes to learn a trade or to earn his bread beyond the limits of his native Isle". Generally, rather than Gaelic speakers, it was Celtic societies in
16497-409: The reduced portfolio of Cabinet Secretary for Net Zero and Energy . Swinney claimed that he believed that Scottish independence could "be achieved in the next five years" as a result of Brexit consequences on Scotland and the Scottish economy, as well as the cost of living crisis. In an interview with Sky News , Swinney said "if we look at two of the biggest issues we face as a country in Scotland;
16638-460: The reform and civilisation of the Highlands, which they sought to achieve by teaching English and the Protestant religion. Initially, their teaching was entirely in English, but soon the impracticality of educating Gaelic-speaking children in this way gave rise to a modest concession: in 1723, teachers were allowed to translate English words in the Bible into Gaelic to aid comprehension, but there
16779-587: The region, Gaelic in Scotland was mostly confined to Dál Riata until the eighth century, when it began expanding into Pictish areas north of the Firth of Forth and the Firth of Clyde. During the reign of Caustantín mac Áeda (Constantine II, 900–943), outsiders began to refer to the region as the kingdom of Alba rather than as the kingdom of the Picts. However, though the Pictish language did not disappear suddenly,
16920-547: The role at the subsequent 2004 leadership election . From 2004 to 2007, Swinney was a backbencher . At the 2007 Scottish Parliament election , the SNP won the highest number of seats, and Salmond was subsequently appointed first minister. Swinney served under Salmond as Cabinet Secretary for Finance, Employment and Sustainable Growth from 2007 to 2014. After Sturgeon succeeded Salmond, she appointed Swinney as Deputy First Minister in 2014. He also served as Cabinet Secretary for Finance, Constitution and Economy , until that role
17061-634: The scheme included the ingenious Pitlochry fish ladder to allow spawning salmon to bypass the dam. The town, which lies 26 miles (42 km) north of Perth , has been bypassed by the main A9 Inverness to Perth road since 1981. Pitlochry railway station is located on the Highland Main Line . The town lies at the eastern end of the Rob Roy Way , a long distance footpath that runs from Drymen . In 1951, John Stewart created
17202-618: The second Saturday of September since 1852 and is the last event in the Scottish Highland Games calendar. In 1852 the original Recreation Park was formed on the north bank of the Tummel at the foot of Rie-Achan Road across what is now known as Lady's Dell. However, with the building of the dam, the old park was flooded in 1950 and the Games moved to the new and current Recreation Park. The original pavilion had been dismantled and
17343-410: The second party in Scotland is no mean achievement" and highlighted it put the SNP in a good position for the upcoming Scottish Parliament election in 2003 . Following the results of the election, Swinney admitted there were "lessons to learn" and ensured the SNP would be the "principal opposition party in Scottish politics". In the 2003 election, the SNP performed poorly in yet another election, with
17484-850: The second-largest party in Scotland and the fourth-largest party in the Westminster Parliament . John Ramsay Swinney was born on 13 April 1964 in the Western General Hospital , Edinburgh, the son of Kenneth Swinney, a garage manager, and Agnes Weir Swinney ( née Hunter). His uncle Tom Hunter was awarded the Victoria Cross whilst serving with the Royal Marines during the Second World War . His maternal grandparents, Ramsey and Mary Hunter, were from England, having moved to Edinburgh in
17625-520: The suspension footbridge was built in 1913. Building between these two separate communities followed the construction of the military road north in the 18th century which followed the line of the present main street. Moulin contained the parish school which was attended by Alexander MacKenzie (1822–1892), the second Prime Minister of Canada. This schoolhouse "Blairmount" now operates as a luxury holiday rental. In 1842 Queen Victoria visited Perthshire on one of her grand tours and her favourable opinion of
17766-466: The town. Every Monday during the summer, the Vale of Atholl Pipe Band, hosts a traditional evening of music, dancing and song, beginning and ending with a short parade along the high street. As with the rest of the British Isles , Pitlochry experiences a maritime climate with mild summers and cool winters. The nearest official Met Office weather station for which online records are available
17907-575: The vote and remaining as Scottish Education Secretary. In March 2021 Swinney was the subject of a second motion of no confidence. As the minister in charge of liaising with the Committee on the Scottish Government Handling of Harassment Complaints, Swinney twice refused to publish legal advice requested by the committee. After two votes in Parliament failed to persuade him to publish the advice, opposition parties announced
18048-522: Was Member of Parliament (MP) for Tayside North from 1997 to 2001. Born in Edinburgh , Swinney graduated with a MA in politics at the University of Edinburgh . He joined the SNP at a young age, and quickly rose to prominence by serving as the National Secretary from 1986 to 1992 and as Deputy Leader from 1998 to 2000. He served in the House of Commons as MP for Tayside North from 1997 to 2001. He
18189-399: Was accepted in 2008, and some of its main commitments were: identity (signs, corporate identity); communications (reception, telephone, mailings, public meetings, complaint procedures); publications (PR and media, websites); staffing (language learning, training, recruitment). Following a consultation period, in which the government received many submissions, the majority of which asked that
18330-588: Was blocked by the UK Government using a Section 35 order under the terms of the Scotland Act 1998. Swinney claimed that "the Supreme Court has said that we can't legislate in that area and we can't take forward that legislation". In July 2024, Swinney and his party contested all 57 Scottish seats for the 2024 United Kingdom general election . The SNP went into the election as the largest party at Westminster from Scotland, having won 48 out of 59 seats at
18471-693: Was divided into two posts in the second Sturgeon government as a result of the expansion of the Scottish Parliament's financial powers; he was then appointed Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills in 2016, and then as Cabinet Secretary for Covid Recovery in 2021. On 25 May 2022, Swinney became the longest serving Deputy First Minister, surpassing the previous record which was held by Sturgeon. Swinney served as Acting Finance and Economy Secretary in addition to his position of Covid Recovery Secretary from July 2022 to March 2023. In March 2023, he announced his resignation from his senior positions in response to Sturgeon's resignation as first minister. Swinney spent
18612-535: Was elected to the inaugural Scottish Parliament at the 1999 Scottish Parliament election . After Salmond resigned the party leadership in 2000, Swinney was elected at the 2000 leadership election . He became Leader of the Opposition in the Scottish Parliament. The SNP lost one MP at the 2001 general election and eight MSPs at the 2003 Scottish Parliament election , despite the Officegate scandal unseating
18753-518: Was founded by John Stewart in 1951, originally situated in a tent in the grounds of Knockendarroch House in Lower Oakfield. The tent became semi-permanent and remained there for 30 years until the current building at Port-na-craig opened in 1981. The town was awarded a Gold Medal in the 2009 Britain in Bloom horticultural contest, and outright winner in the category of Small Town . Pitlochry
18894-634: Was later expelled from the party. In 2003 a former parliamentary candidate and a party activist in the Shetland Islands Brian Nugent announced that he was forming his own pro-independence party, the Scottish Party, which eventually relaunched itself as the Free Scotland Party, in response to what he perceived to be an overly pro-EU stance by the SNP. Swinney led the SNP through a poor election result at
19035-491: Was long suppressed. The UK government has ratified the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages in respect of Gaelic. Gaelic, along with Irish and Welsh, is designated under Part III of the Charter, which requires the UK Government to take a range of concrete measures in the fields of education, justice, public administration, broadcasting and culture. It has not received the same degree of official recognition from
19176-409: Was named Loch Faskally , was built across the River Tummel, flooding a large area upstream. There are a number of churches in Pitlochry, including the Church of Scotland Parish Church of Pitlochry Church of Scotland on Church Road which was built in 1884. Holy Trinity, an Episcopal Church at the eastern end of Pitlochry, was built in 1858. Pitlochry Baptist Church, built in 1884, is situated at
19317-510: Was no further permitted use. Other less prominent schools worked in the Highlands at the same time, also teaching in English. This process of anglicisation paused when evangelical preachers arrived in the Highlands, convinced that people should be able to read religious texts in their own language. The first well known translation of the Bible into Scottish Gaelic was made in 1767, when James Stuart of Killin and Dugald Buchanan of Rannoch produced
19458-408: Was one of the pioneer schemes for hydro-electricity. The Pitlochry Dam was proposed in 1947 by the newly created Hydro Electric Board. Designs were drawn up by Harold Tarbolton . Tarbolton was responsible for the power station but died soon after, and the scheme was then completed by architect T. H. Eley, being built by Sir Alexander Gibb and Partners. As a very early acknowledgement of ecological needs
19599-466: Was persuaded to contest the leadership himself and launched a challenge against Swinney . Wilson ran a campaign attacking Swinney's proposals for party reform, which he claimed would centralise power and impoverish local branches. Wilson also challenged Swinney to a series of debates, although Swinney refused to take part. The election was yet another fight between the party's fundamentalists and gradualists , with Wilson attacking Swinney's proposal for
19740-759: Was re-erected for 1951. It remains unchanged externally today but was upgraded internally in 1964. A feature of the Games is the Pipe Band Championship which attracts a large entry and culminates in the unique Massed Pipe Band parade at the end of the day. Eve Muirhead , the Olympic curler , played at a club in Pitlochry before the demolition of the curling rink. Pitlochry is twinned with Confolens , France. Scottish Gaelic language Scottish Gaelic ( / ˈ ɡ æ l ɪ k / , GAL -ik ; endonym : Gàidhlig [ˈkaːlɪkʲ] ), also known as Scots Gaelic or simply Gaelic ,
19881-516: Was the last SNP election to use the delegate voting method. Future elections would be based on a one-person-one-vote postal vote system. In September 2003 he urged SNP activists to ask the public, "Do you want independence, yes or no? And then tell the Brits to get off." A spokesman for Scottish Labour condemned the Swinney's use of language and said, "There is no place in Scotland for his brand of extreme nationalism." Though retaining its two seats at
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