Parks, landmarks and false starts: City divvies up ‘tourist tax’ millions

Plus: Airport set for biggest expansion in 80-year history; and finance boss slams city "complacency"

The big winners and losers as Capital decides Visitor Levy spending

Tourists flock to the Royal Mile on a misty February morning.

After all the argy-bargy, horse trading and backtracking, we now know what the first £90 million raised by the city’s Visitor Levy will be spent on. Well almost.

Some things are still a little up in the air after the city council’s big decision day.

The city will introduce the UK’s first statutory Visitor Levy (VL) on 24 July, which will add 5% to overnight stays in the Capital.

The so-called tourist tax is expected to generate a £90 million treasure chest in its first three years, with the funds being required by law to support and sustain services largely used by visitors to the city.

There’s lots to love in the list of projects which city councillors have agreed to support. It’s almost guaranteed that one, or more, of your favourite places is going to benefit.

But it’s not all sunshine, lollipops and rainbows.

First of all, let’s get excited.

Leith Theatre will reopen as a year-round music and cultural venue thanks to £5m over the next three years.

Leith Links and Inverleith Park will each see £4m invested in improved facilities, while all the city’s major parks - those two, plus Princes Street Gardens, The Meadows and Bruntsfield Links, Calton Hill, Saughton Park and Lauriston Castle grounds - will benefit from an extra £4m for park repairs and more wardens.

After years of enforced closures to stretches of The Water of Leith walkway, the riverside path and visitor centre will benefit from a dedicated £500,000 a year improvements fund.

There’s £2.5m to develop a masterplan and deliver improvements to Porty Prom, while £2m will be invested in better car parking and other facilities at Cramond shore.

The City Arts Centre and Fruitmarket Gallery will be developed as a visual arts hub with a £2.75m investment.

The transformation of the old Royal High on Regent Road into the National Centre for Music gets a £3m lift.

After initially being overlooked, there’s a commitment to examine the case for supporting plans to save the at-risk landmarks Leith Custom House and Tron Kirk, the latter as part of a £3m investment in improvements to Hunter Square, while the historic Portobello kilns will be considered for funding from 2029.

Oh boy! George Street

The big loser could be the £35m transformation of George St into a more pedestrian and cycle-friendly environment. After several years of debate and consultation, the plan is once again on hold. A Conservative intervention means there will be a review of its value for money alongside other schemes such as improving the pavements on Princes Street. Essential Edinburgh, the Business Improvement District funded by city centre businesses, expressed its disappointment, saying there is a “dire need (for) major public sector investment” with the alternative being “more years of deterioration and sub-standard public realm in the key city centre.”

Festivals blues

Despite 35% of VL funds being committed to culture, heritage and events, there has been no direct funding of the city’s major festivals. The council has instead chosen to focus on supporting year-round venues. That’s a source of frustration for festival organisers who are being squeezed by soaring accommodation costs and a struggle to attract corporate sponsors. Fringe chief executive Tony Lankester has warned cost pressures could force the Fringe Society to walk away from organising street entertainment on the Royal Mile, while Book Festival chief executive Jenny Niven has warned the levy “is not yet proving to be the silver bullet we’d all hoped for”. There are hopes, however, that the Fringe could secure a £2.1m “lifeline” of record funding from the Scottish Government.

Housing and basic services

Visitor Levy funding will also be used to open new public loos and upgrade old ones (£3m); support the establishment of a city centre policing unit with a £850,000 investment in CCTV cameras; keep the streets clean (£1.3m a year for street cleaning, bin collections and wardens) and clear graffiti (£500,000 a year); and to create more affordable housing (£5 a year to help deliver around 470 new affordable homes).

Wait, wasn’t the ‘tourist tax’ supposed to be extra funding rather than paying for essential services? That’s a good question. “Additionality” is a word that has come up repeatedly in the funding debate - in other words, are the projects the VL is funding genuinely over and above what our regular tax-payer funder services should be providing. The rationale for extra policing, street cleaning, and so on, is that this funding is alleviating extra pressures placed on these basic services by the 5m overnight stays in the city each year. However, there is a concern Edinburgh could be vulnerable to central funding cuts, in the belief the VL can pick up the tab for more of what the city wants to do, and careful monitoring and measuring of “additionality” is vital to countering that.

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YOUR EDINBURGH BRIEFING

TALKING OF TOURISTS… Edinburgh Airport is tripling its investment in facilities to cope with soaring passenger numbers, which rose by more than a million to a record 17m last year. Chief executive Gordon Dewar said the £150m a year spending will see the biggest expansion in its 80-year history. The departure lounge and car hire centre will be expanded, with extra space for more aircraft beside the terminal, extra departure gates and the two international arrivals halls amalgamated.

Doig’s portrait of his friend and Nobel Prize-winning poet Derek Walcott. National Galleries of Scotland

GREAT ART GIFT: The celebrated artist Peter Doig has gifted his entire print works to the Gallery of Modern Art. The 67 prints are the biggest single donation the gallery has ever received from a living artist. Edinburgh-born Doig is regarded as one of Scotland’s greatest living artists, and lived and worked in Trinidad for 20 years.

PUBS RELIEF: Pubs are to enjoy increased rates relief following concern about the impact of rising business rates bills amid an ongoing costs crisis for the industry. The Scottish Government has increased rates relief from 15% to 40% for most bars. The move has been welcomed by industry representatives, although they said it would not be enough to stop rates bills rising for most.

CYCLIST KILLED: A 34-year-old cyclist has died after being hit by the driver of a van as he stood at the side of the road after coming off his bike. The cyclist was struck by a white a Vauxhall van in East Whitburn, West Lothian, shortly after 6am on Saturday.

IN FINE FASHION: Multrees Walk in the Capital is the venue for the first standalone store in the UK outside London from French accessories retailer Longchamp, joining a stellar list of luxury brands including Gucci, Burberry, Louis Vuitton and Scottish designer Strathberry.

TRAVELLER EVICTION BLOCKED: Protestors formed a human chain around the site of the proposed £56m Art Works centre in Granton to stop travellers being evicted. Construction work is due to start in the coming months to build a new home and visitor centre for the national art collection. However, work cannot begin, on the land between West Granton Road and Waterfront Avenue, until the eviction order is enforced.

PRINCES ST CAPSULE HOTEL: The long-awaited conversion of the former Debenhams on Princes Street to a 673-bedroom hotel is set to go ahead after the developers agreed to pay £375,000 towards tram and public realm improvements. The hotel will be operated by capsule hotel chain Zedwell.

WAVERLEY AXE ATTACK: A man who racially harassed a commuter before attacking them with an axe in Waverley Station has been jailed for four years. Brian Patterson, 22, of Brechin, followed his victim along the station overbridge before attacking them when they turned to confront him, shortly before midnight, on 5 September last year. His victim suffered a cut neck and bruised head.

GOLF TO FORE: Scotland’s biggest golf industry conference takes place in Edinburgh for the first time on 10-12 March at the Kimpton Charlotte Square Hotel and the National Museum of Scotland. The Johnnie Walker Experience has been announced as the event’s Official Whisky Partner, providing a toast for delegates to the Scottish Golf Tourism Awards which is a highlight of the event.

EPSTEIN RESEARCH LINK: An Edinburgh University mathematician worked for Jeffrey Epstein’s genetic research programme after the financier was convicted of child sex offences, The Times report. Tibor Antal is named in the Epstein files as a “key player” in the Programme for Evolutionary Dynamics (PED), which was established at Harvard in 2003 after a $6.5 million donation from Epstein. The unit, set up to uncover the “secrets of life”, was disbanded in 2021 after it emerged that Epstein had been given unlimited access. Edinburgh University said Dr Antal had no knowledge of his former colleagues’ connection with Epstein “nor has he ever met or associated with Jeffrey Epstein”.

UPWARD DOG: Community enterprise Queer Yoga Edinburgh has been awarded more than £18,000 to sustain and expand its welcoming and inclusive yoga classes in the Capital. The group now runs five sessions a week in Leith, Tollcross and the Southside.

Pic of the week

Seasonal Scottish weather is failing to dampen spirits on the Royal Mile

THE BUSINESS

City accused of provincial complacency by finance chief

Edinburgh’s elected politicians are being urged to beware of “provincial complacency” after city councillors voted to refuse planning permission for a “green data centre” at South Gyle.

Sandy Begbie, chief executive of financial services body Scottish Financial Enterprise, said the decision would hit the city’s global competitiveness. He said: “We are in danger of sending a message that pioneering confidence has been replaced by provincial complacency.”

Councillors refused to grant planning permission in principle for the development, despite the advice of council officials, after concerns were raised by organisations and groups angry that no environmental impact assessment had been ordered. Data centres use huge quantities of power, generating heat and admissions.

He said: “Amongst a myriad of half-hearted explanations given by councillors for turning down the application, it appears that little or no consideration was given to the positive economic impact of the development, or indeed their importance to global financial centres.

“In a globally connected world, what message does this send to our competitors or potential investors?

“Across the globe, data centres are a key part of the technological revolution that is transforming the economy. They provide the critical infrastructure that underpins all digital activity across government, business and communities. Just as physical infrastructure has long been seen as a key driver of growth, globally competitive cities recognise the increasing importance of technological infrastructure and, crucially, are willing to make the policy decisions accordingly…

“This may be just one decision, but it should not be seen in isolation. It is symbolic of a planning culture which amplifies siren voices and shies away from long-term strategic decision making.

“Take our industry for example. The financial and professional services sector makes up about a third of Edinburgh’s economy, bringing in revenue and employing residents in almost every street in the city. According to the Global Financial Centres Index, the city ranks in the top 30 global financial centres, where we are competing with the likes of Boston, Melbourne and Busan. We need political leaders who look outwards to learn.”

He added: “The adoption of technology and use of data is critical to the future of firms in our and other sectors and, by extension, the economic success of our city.”

HOSPITALITY BOOST: Essential Edinburgh, the city centre’s business improvement district, launches its Eat Out Edinburgh promotion through the month of March, boosting the area’s hospitality sector.

More than 50 venues expected to take part in a month of special offers and curated menu deals. The campaign has been run since 2022, delivering an increase of more than 30% in bookings and sales.

A full list of participating venues and offers will be available soon on the Eat Out Edinburgh website, featuring exclusive menus, events and deals. Diners are encouraged to sign up for updates and browse the latest offers at www.eatoutedinburgh.com.

FIVE MORE YEARS: Heritage Portfolio has won a five-year extension from Hopetoun House of their catering and hospitality partnership, which will see the specialist operator continue to deliver food & beverage experiences across private events and large-scale occasions, while investing further in education, conservation and preservation of the estate.

THAT’S ENTERTAINMENT

FRINGE FIRSTS: Cluedo brought to life in a church hall, a knitting cabaret and a Bruce Springsteen tribute show are among the first Fringe shows announced for this summer.

TULIP FEST: Enjoy the magnificent sight of more than 220,000 tulip bulbs in bloom when the Scottish Tulip Festival comes to Craigie’s Farm, near South Queensferry. Tickets are on sale now for dates throughout April. Day tickets cost from £6.50.

ROCK ON: Every anthem, every riff, from Pink Floyd and Led Zeppelin to Queen and The Rolling Stones. Don’t miss the show-stopping guitar duel when The Classic Rock Show comes to the Queen’s Hall, on Friday. Tickets from £42.50.

QUICK BITES

LEITH FOOD FESTIVAL: The inaugural Leith Food Festival will take place on Leith Links on 30-31 May, featuring global street food, local traders and live music.

THAT’S THE SPIRIT: Scotland’s biggest spirits tasting festival, the Drinkmonger Spirits Fair, returns to the Mansfield Traquair on 14-15 March, offering the chance to try more than 150 spirits from more than 30 producers.

MEET YOUR MATCHA: Asian tea café Chayan has opened its first Edinburgh branch, at 91 South Bridge near the Royal Mile. The café is in the site of a former gift shop, which it converted last year, and serves a milk tea and matcha menu.

TIGER FEAT: Edinburgh hospitality business Òir Group is opening a fourth restaurant later this month, when Uncle Tiger will open at Bristo Place showcasing Asian inspired six-week menus.