The Scottish Parliament recognised the tercentenary of the birth of Adam Smith with a parliamentary motion placed by Michelle Thomson, MSP for Falkirk East, Scottish National Party.

The motion celebrated the tercentenary of Adam Smith’s birth and commended his work in a breadth of areas including engineering, economics, chemistry, political economy, philosophy, literature and medicine.

It also referered to the global importance of Smith's ideas and that they continue to have a huge impact on society today.

The Parliament acknowledged the historical and on-going significance of the Scottish Enlightenment in asserting the importance of human reasoning, including empirical methods of enquiry, and noted the role that Scottish universities played in exchanging the ideas across many disciplines.

The motion concluded that the Parliament:

commends the ideas of Smith and believes that their impact on a breadth of areas continues to be globally significant 300 years after his birth; recognises the works of Adam Smith and what it sees as their continued significance to date, and notes the view that it is important to continue to celebrate the life and works of influential Scottish figures.

The motion (reference S6M-08819) was agreed on 6 June 2023. The full text and the list of supporters are on the Scottish Parliament website.

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First published: 7 June 2023

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