Allan takes oath in Gaelic

This followed the Kirking of the Parliament in St Giles Cathedral on Wednesday evening, which Dr Allan also attended.

Along with his SNP MSP colleagues, Dr Allan wore the white rose of Scotland, made famous by Hugh MacDiarmid in his poem “The Little White Rose”.

The rose has been worn by SNP members as they are sworn in at Holyrood since the Scottish Parliament was reconvened in 1999, and is a reference to Hugh MacDiarmid’s poem “The Little White Rose of Scotland”.

Mr Allan commented: “It’s good to be back at work again, and there is no shortage of things to do in my in tray, now the election campaign and the formalities of being sworn in are over.

“Like a number of my colleagues, I took the oath in parliament in Gaelic. Oaths and affirmations were given in Scots, Doric and Urdu depending on the background of many of my fellow SNP MSPs, showing the diversity of the Parliament and Scotland itself.

“I am looking forward to getting back to work representing the isles in Holyrood and helping to take forward the SNP’s ambitious manifesto for a fairer and more equal Scotland.”