Pope Francis has confirmed plans to travel to Scotland later this year to attend the Cop26 climate conference - if his health allows it.
The 84-year-old pontiff is set to arrive in the city in November for the international conference along with leaders from around the world.
Announcing the visit, the Archdiocese of Glasgow said on Twitter last night: "Pope confirms he plans to come to Glasgow for COP26!
"Scotland’s bishops, having written to the Holy Father to assure him of a warm welcome, should he attend the Conference, are delighted to hear that he DOES hope to attend and would be glad to meet with them in Glasgow."
Scotland's Catholic bishops are "delighted" over the news and have written "expressing their prayerful support" as he recovers from colon surgery, reports Glasgow Live.
A spokesman said: "Having written to the Holy Father to assure him of a warm welcome, should he attend the conference, they are delighted to hear that he does hope to attend and would be glad to meet with them in Glasgow.
"The pope will be in Scotland for a very short time, most of which will be spent participating in the Cop26 conference.
"While many pastoral, ecumenical and interfaith gatherings would be desirable while he is with us, time constraints sadly mean such a full programme will not be possible."
The 84-year-old pontiff, who is still recovering after surgery, has previously described climate change "one of the most serious and worrying phenomena of our time" at the United Nations climate action summit in 2019.
In a short video message in April to the US-hosted leaders' summit on climate change, the pope said: "Our concern is to see that the environment is cleaner, more pure and preserved."
