Invitations going out to join Holyrood citizens' panel

People across Scotland will receive a surprise invitation to join a citizens’ panel which will seek to improve how the Scottish Parliament interacts with people in Scotland.

Invitations will go out to 4,800 household addresses in all eight Scottish parliamentary regions, randomly selected from the Royal Mail address database. People will be invited to register to express their interest; from those who do, 24 will be randomly selected to take part, weighted to make sure that there are people from all across the community attending.

The panel will meet over two weekend sessions (at Holyrood) and three evening sessions (online), and will report to the Citizen Participation & Public Petitions Committee, which recently launched an inquiry into public participation. Participants do not need any prior knowledge to take part and the panel will receive support throughout, hearing from speakers who are passionate about democracy and public participation, to help facilitate discussion and inform findings. The committee will consider the panel's recommendations alongside evidence from focus groups and written submissions, and produce proposals on how the Parliament can improve collaboration with underrepresented groups.

Anyone aged 16 and over by the close of registrations, who is normally resident in Scotland and who lives full or part time at an address that has received the invitation, can apply to take part, with a few exceptions, with a limit of one person from any single household.

Committee convener Jackson Carlaw MSP commented: "This is a unique opportunity to help shape the way the Scottish Parliament works with the people of Scotland and I would encourage everyone who receives an invitation over the coming weeks to register and get involved.

"We know that the Parliament doesn’t hear enough from some groups and communities, and this citizens’ panel will bring together a diverse range of voices to make recommendations over how Holyrood can better connect and reflect the views of the people MSPs are here to represent.

"If selected, your views could help to directly shape the future of the way the Scottish Parliament engages with communities across Scotland and improve public participation in decision making across the board."