Council tax to rise up to 10%, libraries and leisure centres at risk, warns city leader
Plus: Trains to London set to be quicker than flights; and Murrayfield follows Hearts with hotel plan
City leader calls for “fair share” of Budget funding for Capital
Council tax is set to go up by between 5% and 10% in Edinburgh to cover substantial gaps in city funding, council leader Cammy Day has told the Inquirer.
That would see the average (Band D) council tax bill rise by up to £195 a year to as much as £2145 from April next year.
Cllr Day said the exact amount of increase would depend on the details of Wednesday’s Scottish Budget, including whether the Capital receives a “fair share” of the extra £3.4bn coming to Scotland as a result of the recent UK Budget.
A failure to pass on funds could put services including libraries and leisure centres at risk, said the Labour leader of the council, as the local authority would be forced to make further cuts to non-essential services.
Scottish budget context: Scotland’s Finance Secretary, the SNP’s Shona Robison, has already announced the universal winter heating payment for pensioners, controversially axed by the UK Government in favour of means testing, will be reintroduced north of the Border in time for next winter. She still has extra money to spend from the additional £3.4bn coming to Holyrood as a result of the Barnet consequentials from the Westminster Budget.
Cuts upon cuts: The city council has had to find more than £400 million in cuts over the last 10 years, roughly 30% of its current £1.344bn Budget. It faces unique pressures due to the higher cost of living in the Capital and its growing population, but is the lowest funded local authority in the country per capita.
Paying for elderly care: Cllr Day said: “We would rather not be putting up council tax, of course, but if it is putting up council tax to fund care of the elderly I’m ok with that.” He said he believes people will understand the need to increase the tax to fund front-line services.
Libraries and leisure centres: Without increased funding, Cllr Day said, non-core services would be at risk as the council would be forced to focus on statutory services it is legally obliged to provide, such as education and social work. He explained that those at risk might, for example, include libraries and leisure centres, as has happened in many other parts of Scotland. “But my hope is that if we get our share from the additional £3.4 billion we will avoid these savage cuts.”
Business demands: Scottish business leaders are stressing the importance of focusing on economic growth in order to protect jobs and generate the funds needed to improve public services. For more on this, see The Business below.
The political context: The SNP minority government will require the support of at least one other party to get their Budget passed. That is most likely to be either the Scottish Liberal Democrats or the Scottish Greens, with the former now seeming the more likely bet as Lib-Dem leader Alex Cole-Hamilton spoke of “areas of great commonality” to The Herald on Sunday. Intriguingly, he has also said they cannot support the Budget if it includes “one penny” of spending on Scottish independence, while the Scottish Greens say they will not back a Budget that does not include support for independence. We must wait and see…
YOUR EDINBURGH BRIEFING
NET ZERO TARGET: Edinburgh will maintain its ambitious target to be net zero in its operations by 2030 – despite a report showing that its emissions rose by almost 2% over the past year. The city council’s annual progress report on emissions shows the increase was down to a variety of factors outwith the local authority’s control, including the increase in natural gas use in generating electricity. In addition, the extension of the tram to Newhaven had seen transport emissions increase, and previously expected Government funding to support the transition of bus fleets to electric vehicles and to supporting retrofitting in public buildings had been paused.
TRAINS TO BEAT PLANES: Catching a train from Edinburgh to London could be faster than flying for the first time next year, the new UK Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander is set to announce later this month, reports The Sunday Times. Line upgrades and quicker vehicles will cut 25 minutes off average journey times, taking them down to 4 hours and 7 minute. Flying is generally cheaper than travelling by train between Edinburgh to London, although getting into the city centre from the airport adds to the cost of flying.
THE HOTEL GAME: The Scottish Rugby Union (SRU) is aiming to follow in Hearts footsteps by opening a hotel at Murrayfield Stadium. The idea is part of its long term ambitions outlined by Scottish Rugby chair John McGuigan. That could see the stadium hosting more conferences and offering on-site accommodation when pop superstars perform there.
STUDY IN CHAOS: Beloved rugby commentator Bill McLaren’s “chaotic” study where he hid his pre-match research has been recreated at Murrayfield Stadium. The family of the man known as "the voice of rugby" have expressed their delight at the new addition to visitor tours at the national stadium.
GUN SMUGGLER: A Leith man has been jailed for five years after trying to smuggle a gun into the country. David McGregor was caught after US law enforcement intercepted a package containing the working handgun which he had ordered via the Telegram messaging app. The oil industry worker had told his partner he wanted to buy a weapon to keep her safe while he was working offshore.
DISABLED GOLF: Scotland’s first indoor golf centre for disabled people has opened in Mayfield, Dalkeith, offering people with different levels of mobility the chance to play the game. DR Inclusive Fitness and Wellbeing uses a paragolfer all-terrain wheelchair to support players using its virtual driving range and putting green.
‘CAP IN HAND’: The Proclaimers played their pro-independence anthem Cap in Hand - with its famous line "I can't understand why we let someone else rule our land" - at a memorial service for Alex Salmond. First Minister John Swinney - who was booed by some of those gathered outside on the Royal Mile - and former Prime Minister Gordon Brown were in the congregation for the service at St Giles’ Cathedral on Saturday. Nicola Sturgeon instead attended a funeral service for comedian Janey Godley in Glasgow on Saturday morning.
TARTAN TRACTOR: Broadcaster Gabby Logan and her ex-Scotland rugby star husband Kenny turned heads by travelling through the Capital in a Doddie Weir-inspired tartan tractor. Kenny drove the couple to Prestonfield House for the charity night which raised more than £100,000 for the My Name’5 Doddie Foundation in aid of motor neurone disease (MND).
TIK TOK MOVE: Tik Tok singing sensation Calum Bowie, from Edinburgh, has moved out of the flat which helped launch his career. The 23-year-old, who won the Breakthrough Act prize at the Scottish Music Awards, went viral thanks to videos of him singing from his flat window.
THE BUSINESS
Businesses want Growth
Businesses in Edinburgh will be looking to see what can be done in Wednesday’s Budget to boost economic growth and increase productivity - in particular seeking to protect SMEs struggling with the cost of doing business. The UK budget was seen as punishing, driving up business costs through its increase in NI rates and the Living Wage. Edinburgh Chamber has said at the very least there must be no further fiscal or regulatory burdens placed on businesses. A supportive environment in which to grow the economy would provide the funds needed to deliver better public services.
And it pointed out that as a particular concern the Scottish Budget should match the extension of 40% rates relief to the hard-hit retail, hospitality and leisure businesses provided south of the Border, and the determination down south to move towards a permanent lower business rate for retail, hospitality and leisure from 2026-27.
That has been echoed by the hospitality industry. A letter from more than 400 sector leaders has warned tens of thousands of hospitality jobs are at risk if business rates are not cut in next month’s Scottish Budget. Remember, the hospitality and tourism sector in the Capital supports more than 30,000 jobs.
The Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) Scotland has echoed calls for rates relief, both for the retail, hospitality and leisure sector, as well as for small businesses generally through the Small Business Bonus Scheme. They said the move would protect jobs in firms being squeezed by sharply rising costs and customers cautious about spending in a cost of living crisis.
Business is also unequivocal that the Scottish Government should move closer to the rest of the UK in terms of its income tax rates if Scotland is to remain competitive in attracting talent, and the Institute for Fiscal Studies recently warned that Scottish changes in recent years may already have reduced the tax take.
But that is not a view shared by all. The new Tax Justice Scotland coalition – of around 50 organisations and individuals – includes a number of charities, trade unions, academics and economists. It maintain public finances are “beyond breaking point” and wants to see more dramatic change, saying “it’s increasingly clear that fairer – and sometimes higher – taxes are essential to support a more dynamic, prosperous and sustainable economy”.
CONFIDENCE DROPS: Business confidence in Scotland fell 13 points during November to 31%, according to the latest Business Barometer from Bank of Scotland. Companies in Scotland reported lower confidence in their own business prospects month-on-month, down two points at 43%. When taken alongside their optimism in the economy, down 25 points to 18%, this gives a headline confidence reading of 31% (vs. 44% in October).
CAPITAL INVESTMENT: Edinburgh has replaced Brighton as the highest-ranking UK city outside of London for Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) attractiveness. According to the latest quarterly report by law firms Wright, Johnston & Mackenzie (WJM) and Irwin Mitchell.
EICC WIN AND LOSS: The Edinburgh International Conference Centre (EICC) has won the best Business Event title at the Scottish Thistle Awards, winning jointly with the Association of Cardiovascular Nursing & Allied Professions (ACNAP) for the ACNAP Congress In Edinburgh. In addition last week, long-standing EICC chief executive Marshall Dallas intimated his decision to step down during the first half of next year.
DINE IN STYLE: A new European style café-bar and brasserie and cocktail lounge has opened in Edinburgh. Liberté Café-Bar & Brasserie and Bar 1819 are located at Apex Waterloo Place Hotel. The new venues are a major part of a £2 million ground floor renovation. Inspired by the Palm Courts of the 1800s, the design was delivered by Edinburgh architectural and design firm ISA. Guests can dine from dawn to dusk, with fresh, locally sourced coffee and pastries available in 1819 for those morning meetings, to all day dining as well as a range of tasty snacks, shares and nibbles in the restaurant.
THAT’S ENTERTAINMENT
DONNY’S DREAMCOAT: Donny Osmond sweeps into town to take the lead role in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat at the Playhouse from tomorrow until 29 December. Treat yourself to one of Will Quinn’s festive highlights.
MAKING MERRY: The Winter Arts Market at Leith’s Out of the Blue Drill Hall is just one of the great places to buy the work of local artists and makers this weekend. You can check out more details at our seasonal guide here.
KERMIT’S XMAS: If your Christmas isn’t complete without hearing Kermit crooning, then you can catch The Muppet Christmas Carol complete with a live orchestra at the Usher Hall on Wednesday. Or, if you prefer, the orchestra are back for Love Actually, on Tuesday, 10 December.
QUICK BITES
CHRISTMAS CEILIDH: Food Hall Bonnie & Wild has launched its Christmas offer and it promises to be a cracker, with seasonal specials, daily drinks tastings, extended trading hours, and even a Boxing Day ceilidh. The 400 seat venue in the St James Quarter has also decked its halls with spectacular Christmas decorations.
HONEST PIZZA: Lido will open its doors in the High Street, Musselburgh, on Saturday, 14 December bringing Mediterranean flavours - complete with wood-fired pizza oven - to the Honest Toun.