Glasgow museums to close as world leaders attend COP26 climate meeting

Museums in Glasgow will close to support the delivery of the Conference of the Parties 26 (COP26) which takes place from 31 October to 12 November.

World leaders from the US, France, Turkey, Australia, Ghana and South Korea will be among more than 100 heads of state, or their representatives, meeting in the Scottish city to complete the Paris Agreement and tackle climate change.

It is not clear how the venues will be supporting the delivery of the high-profile event as Glasgow Life, the charitable organisation that runs the museums, and Glasgow Council could not elaborate further than the below statement and Police Scotland did not respond to questions.

Promote the city

“COP26 is the latest major event to be hosted in Glasgow and gives us an opportunity to once again promote our city, which has a proven track record as a world-class host of global sporting championships, cultural events and conferences, on the international stage,” a spokesperson for Glasgow Life, said.

“The significance of COP26, both in agreeing action to safeguard the future of the planet, and the profile of the attendees which includes world leaders and heads of state, means that, inevitably, there will be an impact on how the city operates during the event.

“In supporting the delivery of COP26 activity, a small number of Glasgow Life venues will be closed to the public, either for part of, or the duration of the conference. Across the wider venues we have reopened, it is our intention to minimise disruption and operate business as usual as far as possible.”

Museums and collections to close during COP26:

• Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum: October 28 until November 14
• Riverside Museum: October 22 to Tuesday 16 November.
• Gallery of Modern Art: October 31 until November 14
• Kelvin Hall: October 28 until November 1

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