Last night, first night

The Edinburgh Festival concluding concert and fireworks (held on the final Monday of the final weekend ) always mark, for me, both the end of the holidays and the start of a new Parliamentary term.

In fact the Parliament doesn’t sit for another week but this is a period of preparation as Ministers get ready, the final text of the annual Programme for Government is signed off , the details of the first few weeks business get sorted by the Bureau and my diary meetings start again - one in my office in Dunoon this morning, and one in my Parliament office tomorrow.

A stunning night for the display too...though there is a hint of autumn and I noticed, driving through form the west, the first tinge of colour on some trees.