Cancellation of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland

UPDATE: The 2020 General Assembly which was canceled due to the coronavirus will instead be held online on Friday 2 October and all day on Saturday 3 October. Commissioners will convene remotely for a shorter event that will be available for viewing on the Church of Scotland website.

Due to the Coronavirus epidemic the Church of Scotland has decided to cancel this year's General Assembly which was due to open on 16th May 2020.

Principal Clerk, Rev Dr George Whyte said, "We did not take this decision lightly but in the current circumstances it was the only choice we could make. Our Assembly would have brought almost a thousand people to a week-long meeting in Edinburgh including visitors from overseas and from other churches. It is a time when we can celebrate being the Church and make important decisions about our future but these are exceptional times and people's health must come first.

"We were also looking forward to welcoming the Duke of Cambridge as the Queen's representative but we are assured that Prince William will understand our unavoidable decision. We hope that he may be Lord High Commissioner on another occasion.

"In the meantime the Church will find alternative ways to make urgent decisions including confirming the appointment of our new Moderator, the Rev Dr Martin Fair, who will take up his duties in May."