Four soldiers reportedly collapsed during the opening ceremony of the new Scottish Parliament amid hot weather.
The British Army troops based in Scotland had been working at the event in Edinburgh on Saturday, which was attended by the King and Queen. Soldiers from the 19th Regiment Royal Artillery, the 2nd Battalion and the Royal Regiment of Scotland provided the Crown’s escort from Edinburgh Castle to Holyrood.
They also lined the route for the procession of the King and Queen from the Palace of Holyroodhouse to the Queensferry House entrance to Parliament.
Footage shared on social media shows one soldier being lifted to their feet after collapsing on the ground in front of crowds during the event.
View 3 ImagesThe soldier was lifted to his feet from the ground(Image: TikTok)
The stricken soldier is then lifted up by three colleague who take them away indoors. It is understood those who took ill during the ceremony were taken inside Holyrood for welfare checks.
Their current conditions are unknown. It comes as the capital reached muggy highs of up to 15°C on Saturday morning following a three-day heatwave which saw Scotland’s hottest day of the year.
Furious bystanders took to social media shortly after the soldiers became unwell.
One person said: “It’s ridiculous that they have to stand in the heat all day.”
Another said: “That’s not right.”
View 3 ImagesAnother person wrote: “This makes me angry, they shouldn’t be made to stand for that long in this heat.”
One TikTok user said, “It’s ridiculous making them stand that long in this heat.”
At the opening of the Scottish Parliament‘s new session, the King told politicians to protect “Scotland’s extraordinary natural environment”. Charles also encouraged debate to be “carried out with respect and courtesy” as he gave a speech to mark the beginning of Holyrood’s seventh session since it was established in 1999.
In his address, the King told Holyrood: “It gives me the greatest pleasure to join you once again for the opening of a new session of the Scottish Parliament. I make no apology for referring – again – to the incredible importance of protecting Scotland’s precious natural capital.
“It has long been my most fundamental belief that the natural world and human communities are not competing interests, but deeply interwoven ones; that there is an essential harmony between the health of our planet, the natural systems on which we depend and the health of the people that live upon the Earth.”
View 3 ImagesKing Charles III talking to Presiding Officer Kenneth Gibson MSP and Queen Camilla follows behind as they attend the opening of the seventh session of the Scottish Parliament(Image: Davdi Izatt/PA Wire)
The King added: “In a global situation of rapid and seemingly accelerating challenge, there will, inevitably, be some aims which can be attained, and others, even with the best efforts, which will remain ambitions only. But while the outcome might not always be yours to deliver, the manner in which it is pursued lies always within your power.
“With that in mind, and in the knowledge that you are custodians of the democratic traditions long nurtured in these islands – traditions of which the honours of Scotland set before us are a powerful reminder – let us continue to show by example that debate can be carried out with respect and courtesy, that disagreement is possible while honouring one another’s dignity, and it is recognised – whatever views may exist as to the means – that all those engaged in public service are seeking the same end – the good of the society we serve.”
The Record has approached the Ministry of Defence, Scottish Parliament and Scottish Ambulance Service for comment.
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