Holyrood Sources

The overnight by-election results are in, and Scottish politics has been turned completely on its head! In this bonus episode of Holyrood Sources, Calum Macdonald, Geoff Aberdein, and Andy Maciver break down a seismic night that saw the Scottish Conservatives secure a historic victory in Aberdeen South—their first by-election win since 1973.

The panel dives into how Douglas Lumsden and Kemi Badenoch "dictated the terms" of...

The Tartan Army takes over Boston, a knife-edge by-election battle in Aberdeen South, and a potential Labour coronation looming in Makerfield. 

In this episode of Holyrood Sources, Calum Macdonald, Geoff Aberdein, and Andy Maciver dive into a massive week of political drama across Scotland and the wider UK. Fresh off his travels to see Scotland play Haiti at the 2026 World Cup, Geoff gives an insider look at Scotland’...

The Scottish Parliament is running, but is it actually getting anything done? In this episode of Holyrood Sources, Calum Macdonald, Geoff Aberdein, and Andy Maciver dive into a massive week for Scottish politics.

As Scottish Labour forces a vote on a parliamentary inquiry into Peter Murrell’s embezzlement from the SNP, First Minister John Swinney faces intense pressure over his handling of the situation. Should he have bro...

On today's episode of Holyrood Sources, Calum Macdonald and Andy Maciver record live from The Assembly Rooms in Edinburgh at the Scotland 2050 Conference.

The conference brings together people from the world of business, politics and civic society to discuss Scotland's long term potential.

Former First Minister Lord Jack McConnell, Scottish Lib-Dem Leader Alex Cole-Hamilton and Cabinet Secretary for Public Service Reform Ivan...

On today's episode of the Holyrood Sources podcast Calum Macdonald, Geoff Aberdein and Andy Maciver break down a bombshell week in Scottish politics.

Peter Murrell has pleaded guilty to embezzlement from the SNP. What does this mean for the party, The First Minister, Nicola Sturgeon and trust in politics in general?

John Swinney has also appointed his new Scottish Cabinet, was his new slimmed down top team the right way to go...

On this special live episode of Holyrood Sources: Calum Macdonald, Geoff Aberdein and Andy Maciver are joined by MSPs, journalists and backroom staff at the Edinburgh Gin Distillery, a stone's throw from The Scottish Parliament.

They are joined by three brand new MSPs from the three biggest parties at Holyrood to discuss what the next five years could bring: Katherine Sangster from Scottish Labour, Reform UK Scotland Leader Mal...

On this special edition of Stormont Sources, Calum Macdonald and Andy Maciver from the Whitehall Sources and Holyrood Sources podcasts join David McCann, Tim Cairns and Michael McKernan to discuss how the results of the Welsh, Scottish and English elections will impact the UK as a whole and Northern Ireland.

• What will 3 nationalist First Ministers do for the state of the union... and is that statistic misleading?
• Where do Refor...

On today’s episode of Holyrood Sources, Calum Macdonald, Geoff Aberdein and Andy Maciver analyse the results of the 2026 Scottish Parliament election and what comes next for Scottish politics. 

The Prime Minister and the First Minister are set to meet next month, will talks lead to a second independence referendum? Will Keir Starmer even be in office to meet John Swinney? 

They also discuss the SNP Leader's po...

The votes are in, and the map of Scotland has been redrawn. Join the Holyrood Sources team for a deep-dive into the 2026 Scottish Parliament election results.

In this special episode, Calum Macdonald, Geoff Aberdein (former Chief of Staff to the First Minister Alex Salmond), and Andy Maciver (former Scottish Conservative Director of Communications) break down a historic night at Holyrood.

The Reform UK Surge: How did Malcolm...

It's the day before the 2026 Scottish Parliament election! This episode of Holyrood Sources looks back at the campaign.

Calum Macdonald is joined by Geoff Aberdein and Andy Maciver to analyse the latest polling trends, what’s really happening beneath the headline numbers,

• Is SNP support as solid as it seems?
• Why the list vote could be the real danger zone for the SNP
• The rise of Reform UK — protest vote or lasting f...

Is Scotland facing a political stalemate? In this episode of Holyrood Sources, Calum Macdonald, Geoff Aberdein, and Andy Maciver, with just ONE WEEK to go until polling day, explore the possible outcomes of the 2026 Scottish Parliament election.

Is it certain that John Swinney will return to Bute House?, or could Anas Sarwar,...

The Holyrood Sources team is back to break down a week of political name-calling, tactical blunders, and Westminster turmoil.

In this episode, Calum Macdonald, Geoff Aberdein (former Chief of Staff to the First Minister), and Andy Maciver (former Director of Communications for the Scottish Conservatives) dive into the "immature" state of the current election campaign. From Anas Sarwar and Graham Simpson’s public spats to J...

In this episode of Holyrood Sources, Calum Macdonald, Geoff Aberdein, and Andy Maciver dive into the most heated moment of the campaign so far: the Channel 4 leaders' debate. We break down the explosive exchange between Scottish Labour’s Anas Sarwar and Reform UK’s Malcolm Offord, and ask if the alleged "backroom deal" has any basis in reality.

In this episode:

• The Debate Fallout: Was the Sarwar-Offord clash a tur...

In this episode of Holyrood Sources, Calum Macdonald, Geoff Aberdein, and Andy Maciver take you inside the 2026 Scottish Parliamentary election. We analyse the newest IPSOS Scottish Political Monitor results with Mark McGeoghegan, exploring why the Reform UK vote is the ultimate "spoiler" for Labour and the Conservatives.

Calum, Geoff and Andy also reflect on Holyrood Sources: The Interviews, which you can listen back to or watc...

In this final installment of our Leaders Special, we sit down with the leader of Reform UK in Scotland, Malcolm Offord.

As Reform surges in the polls, Offord addresses the "racist scaremongering" accusations from the Scottish Greens, explains why the party is targeting disillusioned voters, and outlines their plan to scrap Net Zero subsidies in favor of North Sea gas.

In this episode, we discuss:

• Why 80% of Reform UK candidates ha...

Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Alex Cole-Hamilton joins Holyrood Sources: The Interviews in Edinburgh to tackle the "Ferry Fiasco," the NHS crisis, and the future of the Union.

Calum Macdonald, Geoff Aberdein and Andy Maciver discuss with him:

The Caledonian MacBrayne ferry fiasco.

Does Scottish politics have a central belt bias?

What does it mean to be a Liberal Democrat today?

Why he would resign before supp...

In this Holyrood Sources special, the team sit down with Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar ahead of the upcoming election.

Sarwar outlines a "boldly different" vision for Scotland, addressing the growing crisis in the NHS, the decline in Scottish education, and the future of clean nuclear energy. He responds to tough questions on the Grangemouth refinery, the procurement of buses from China over Scottish firms, and his public c...

Has Russell Findlay conceded defeat already? What can his party offer going into the election?

In this special edition of 'The Interviews' from Holyrood Sources, the leader of the Scottish Conservatives Russell Findlay speaks to Calum Macdonald, Geoff Aberdein and Andy Maciver in Edinburgh. "common-sense" vision for the 2026 election. From the rise of Reform UK to the 14-year legacy of the UK party.

In this episode:

The...

In this episode, we sit down with Ross Greer, MSP and co-leader of the Scottish Greens, to discuss the party's future following their stint in government with the SNP.

We dive deep into the heated debate surrounding North Sea oil and gas: Is it pragmatic to use our own hydrocarbons, or is opening new fields like Rosebank a "dead-end" for the planet? Greer challenges the capitalist model, argues for a "well-being economy," and ex...