The Scottish Parliament - A Parliament for the People?

Members of the public are invited to attend a public debate to discuss the Scottish Parliament on Friday 20 September at 7.30pm at King's College Conference Centre, University of Aberdeen.

Keynote speaker Alex Salmond MP said: "I am delighted to be involved in this debate and to participate in what will surely be a very stimulating and challenging evening of discussion. The Scottish Parliament is a relatively new entity and it will be very interesting to debate with the public about their issues and how they feel the parliament is delivering its services".

Other panelists will include Brian Monteith MSP and Dr Peter Lynch of Stirling University.

Debate organiser Jennifer Lees-Marshment at the University of Aberdeen said: "We decided to organise this debate in response to market research undertaken by Mori which found that the Scottish Parliament had not met the expectations of the Scottish people. It seemed a great opportunity to offer a forum to debate the issues and to offer the people of Grampian the chance to participate".

The Public Debate is presented by the University of Aberdeen in association with the Political Studies Association and the Academy of Marketing as part of the Political Marketing Conference 2002 Time to Deliver: Political Marketing Moves Beyond the Campaign. The conference aims to bring together a wide variety of people involved in political marketing to increase understanding and communication. This event will be held at the University of Aberdeen on September 19 - 21, 2002.

The public debate is by free ticket only which can be obtained by calling (01224) 272523 or by email cpd@abdn.ac.uk