FIRST Minister Humza Yousaf will give the annual lecture run by the Jimmy Reid Foundation.
On Friday, the left-wing Scottish think tank named after the legendary trade unionist announced that the SNP leader would be speaking at its annual lecture.
Yousaf is due to take the stage at 7pm on Thursday, October 26, with a question and answer session to follow his speech.
The lecture will be held in the Banqueting Hall at the City Chambers in George Square, Glasgow and chaired by Mary Alexander, deputy regional secretary of Unite Scotland and a trustee of the Jimmy Reid Foundation.
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Yousaf said: “I have the great honour of representing Govan in our Scottish Parliament, the home of the iconic Jimmy Reid.
“The actions of Jimmy Reid stand as an enduring example of how trade unions empower people, of how they provide a voice for those who might otherwise go unheard.
“I look forward to discussing his legacy, and how his philosophy of human-centred economics inspires leaders towards purposeful economic growth now more than ever.”
Dave Watson, the foundation’s director, added: “We are delighted that the First Minister, Humza Yousaf MSP, will be giving the tenth annual Jimmy Reid Foundation Lecture.
“The lecture is one of the ways the foundation remembers ‘The Rat Race is for Rats’: Jimmy Reid’s (below) famous rectorial address at the University of Glasgow on April 28, 1972.
“It has been an opportunity for leading figures from politics, trade unions and civic society to address, in more depth than other formats, the big challenges facing contemporary Scotland.”
Over the summer, the Jimmy Reid Foundation published a report recommending several key changes to the land reform bill, including the introduction of public interest tests for sales of key community assets such as piers, slipways, hotels, community facilities, or greenspace.
The calls have the support of SNP president Michael Russell, and the First Minister previously told this paper the government would “seriously consider” the proposals.
Tickets for Yousaf’s lecture can be reserved on the Jimmy Reid Foundation’s website here.
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