All 129 Scottish Parliament Members Swear Allegiance to King in Multilingual Ceremony

All 129 parliamentarians, including 64 first-time MSPs, swore allegiance to the King through oaths or affirmations during a ceremony in the chamber.

The statements came in various languages, including Scots, Gaelic, Hindi, Polish, Mandarin and French.

On the first day of parliamentary business after last week's election, members will vote to elect a new presiding officer, Holyrood's equivalent of a speaker.

Conservative MSPs wore a white rose, unrelated to the nationalist poet. Labour MSPs sported their traditional red rose, Reform UK members wore Scottish heather, the Greens donned what looked like a fuchsia pink gerbera, and the Liberal Democrats carried a mini-mixed bouquet.

Moray representative Laura Mitchell used a prop during the ceremony. She held a stave of the Clavie, a piece of charred wood from the annual Burghead fire ritual, said to bring good luck.

The presiding officer chairs debates, selects speakers and represents the parliament at home and abroad.

The position carries a salary of £136,112, and the winner must resign party membership for the neutral role.

Four candidates seek to succeed former Green MSP Alison Johnstone: Liberal Democrat Liam McArthur, who served as a deputy presiding officer last term; and SNP members Kenny Gibson, Stuart McMillan and Clare Haughey.

Gibson chaired Holyrood's finance committee last term and did not hold back criticism, including of the SNP government. He vowed to liven up proceedings, telling a hustings event that chamber business had become "dull".

Clare Haughey, former convener of the health committee, counts as the SNP leadership's top choice. Long-time backbencher Stuart McMillan has an outside chance to replace Johnstone.