Remembrance Sunday ‘ever more important’ today, says Swinney

Remembrance Sunday is “ever more important” amid global conflict and the threat to democracy, the First Minister said as he led tributes at a ceremony in Edinburgh.

John Swinney laid a wreath at the Stone of Remembrance outside Edinburgh City Chambers on Sunday alongside Scottish Secretary Douglas Alexander, Holyrood Presiding Officer Alison Johnstone, Edinburgh Lord Provost Robert Aldridge, veterans and service personnel.

When the gun fired from Edinburgh Castle at 11am, the nation fell silent for two minutes to remember those who died in conflict.

Wreaths laid at the Stone of Remembrance during the Remembrance Sunday ceremony (Jane Barlow/PA) PA Media

Reverend Dr Scott M Rennie, minister of St Giles’ Cathedral, then led a short Service of Remembrance.

Speaking to the PA news agency, Mr Swinney said it is important that people today remember the sacrifices made by those in the past.

He said: “Sunday is a very important moment for us all to pause and to remember the sacrifices that were made by others to enable us to live our lives in freedom and in peace today.

John Swinney stressed the importance of Remembrance Sunday during the service in Edinburgh (Jane Barlow/PA) PA Media

“Those sacrifices were made in times of enormous conflict to ensure that the liberties we enjoy today are ones that we can enjoy.

“Our society has got to remember those sacrifices and Remembrance Sunday is ever more important in the times that we experience today.”

Mr Swinney said it is important the message of Remembrance Sunday is passed “from generation to generation”.

He added: “Clearly there are fewer and fewer of those who made sacrifices in the Second World War, for example, that are still with us.

“But because of those sacrifices, it’s important that the experiences and the stories and the importance of those sacrifices is shared from generation to generation.

“There’s a particular obligation on all of us, in a world that is full of turmoil and difficulty and challenge and where there are threats to our democratic system, that we all stand together, pause, remember and reflect on the importance of the sacrifices that were made to enable us to live in peace and freedom today.”

Other remembrance ceremonies took place elsewhere in Scotland, including at Glasgow Cathedral.

The King led tributes in London during a service attended by thousands of veterans, with the Prime Minister and other political leaders also present.