Scottish Security
Dialogue

Scotland's devolved institutions have a direct stake in many of the decisions that shape how the country responds to an increasingly insecure world. From civil resilience and energy infrastructure to the defence industry supply chain, investment in skills and R&D, and the economic consequences of conflict, the Scottish Parliament and Scottish Government cannot stand apart from these questions—and nor should they.

The Scottish Security Dialogue was established to ensure they do not. It is a cross-party working forum, deliberately designed to bring together MSPs, Westminster parliamentarians, officials, academics, and industry across party lines, and to address security in its fullest sense: defence, resilience, cyber, energy, economic security, and the interconnected challenges that no single institution can navigate alone.

Its purpose is to build the shared understanding that good devolved governance requires. It is evidence-led in its approach and built around the belief that serious policy on security requires sustained dialogue between those who make decisions, those who implement them, and those who are affected by them.

The SSD is co-directed by Stewart McDonald and Stuart Nicolson, chaired by Bernard Ponsonby, and delivered in partnership with the Scottish Council on Global Affairs: a think tank founded by the Universities of Glasgow, Edinburgh, and St Andrews.