Overview
- Glasgow City Council confirmed the missing swords on statues of Colin Campbell and Sir John Moore will not be reinstated.
- The move followed an internal review after a contractor began making a replacement sword, with officials ruling out any further spend on military paraphernalia.
- A forthcoming report to the council’s wellbeing committee will consider potential removal of statues or the addition of contextual interpretation.
- Councillor Graham Campbell argued the weapons glorify imperial violence, while historian Tom Devine criticised altering restored figures and urged explanatory plaques.
- The decision comes during George Square’s £20 million Avenues overhaul, with statues removed for conservation and scheduled to return by next autumn.