Sexting scandal threatens to oust Labour in Capital
Plus: 'Bot attack' halts Six Nations ticket sales; and waste to heat 3000 Midlothian homes
Police investigate council leader over sexual messages to Ukrainian refugees
Police are investigating the Labour leader of the city council over complaints he sent inappropriate and unwanted sexual messages to Ukrainian refugees.
Cammy Day is facing cross-party calls to resign immediately as council leader, in a move which threatens to topple his party’s minority administration at the City Chambers.
The 50-year-old politician has been accused of “bombarding” the men with messages, including asking them sexually explicit questions, complimenting their looks, and asking them to meet for wine.
Labour has suspended him while the complaint of inappropriate behaviour is investigated by Police Scotland.
Two men, who fled Ukraine following the Russian invasion in 2022, told The Sunday Mail they felt unable to ignore his unsolicited messages due to his senior position at the city council. They said they knew of others who had received similar approaches.
Ukraine event encounters: One of the alleged victims told The Sunday Mail how he was first approached by the council leader: “I was open to finding new friends as I was by myself in the country… When Cammy Day first wrote to me from several social medias I was surprised that a person of such a high position was interested in me, and then I saw him a couple of times at pro-Ukrainian events.”
‘Intensively’ liked posts: The refugee said he felt obliged to remain polite when Day stepped up his interest in him on social media and a dating app, but he ignored his requests to meet. “He found and subscribed to me on social media and started liking my stories intensively, sending kissing emojis, especially when I posted gym and pool photos,” he said.
Previous complaint: A similar complaint is understood to have been made against Day around a year ago through the local authority’s Safecall whistleblower helpline. Details were passed to Police Scotland who concluded there was insufficient evidence in the third party complaint to start an investigation.
Cross-party condemnation: All opposition parties are calling for Day to resign immediately as council leader. The Green’s Chas Booth said the allegations were “shocking”, while the SNP’s Simita Kumar described them as “beyond shocking”. Kevin Lang, of the Lib Dems, went for more of a ‘next council leader in waiting’ vibe, with a sober statement about the “exceptionally serious allegations”. The Conservative’s Iain Whyte hinted at support for a potential change of regime at the City Chambers, saying it was time for Day to quit and “the council as a whole (to) decide a way forward.”
Police questioning: Officers have interviewed a number of councillors and senior officials including chief executive Paul Lawrence as part of their inquiries. More interviews are expected to be carried out this week. A Police Scotland spokesperson said: “On Tuesday 22 October we received a report of inappropriate behaviour. Inquiries are ongoing to establish the full circumstances.”
Day ‘must go’: With the opposition united against him, the council leader’s future seems sealed even before the investigation into his conduct is complete. He will face the first formal call to go at a meeting of the council’s policy and sustainability committee tomorrow, brought by the Lib Dems. Day has yet to respond publicly.
Labour too? A loose alliance with the Conservatives and Lib Dems has kept Labour in power at the City Chambers despite having only 11 out of 63 councillors. That too looks likely to be over. The biggest single party on the council is the SNP, but they still appear unlikely to be able to command a majority. That leaves the door open to the Lib Dems, who are the second biggest party - ahead of Labour - with an experienced leader in Kevin Lang who commands respect across party divides.
YOUR EDINBURGH BRIEFING
MURRAYFIELD CYBER ATTACK: The sale of Six Nations rugby tickets has been hit by what Scottish Rugby has described as a “bot attack” on the Ticketmaster site. The planned launch of public ticket sales was postponed on Friday to investigate the apparent attempt by ticket touts to jump the queue. Scottish Rugby, the game’s governing body, said it is “committed to ensuring Scotland match tickets are purchased by genuine fans”.
SALE SUCCESS: Paintings by women featured strongly in a sale of Scottish art at Lyon & Turnbull. Leading the charge was a rare painting by Anne Estelle Rice, A Bowl of Fruit, which sold for £112,700. Other paintings by Joan Eardley, Bessie MacNicol, and Anne Redpath also achieved good prices in a sale which achieved a total of £1.43 million.
VENUE SALE: The Hampton hotel next to Murrayfield Stadium, which has a bar, beer garden and restaurant along with six bedrooms, is on the market with an asking price of £1.2m.
PRIVATE SCHOOLS TO STATE: State schools in the Capital have received 144 applications for places from families with children in private schools since June. The vast majority (120) were for secondary schools. The number so far is far below the 2000 predicted to switch in the city as a result of Labour’s imposition of VAT on school fees, although the full impact is likely to take some time to materialise.
BONFIRE NIGHT APPEAL: Police have released images of three men they want to trace in connection with disorder on Bonfire Night in the Gracemount area. A total of 19 people have been arrested and more than 26 charges filed so far following the widespread violence and criminal damage across the city.
ARCHIMEDES SCREWS: Giant yellow screws used to collect excess water from the runway at Edinburgh Airport have been refurbished for the first time in 50 years. The Archimedes screws filter the water and pump it back into the River Almond are a vital part of the airport’s flood prevention measures. The striking sight of the 10-tonne screws on the runway has raised the interest of passengers, as STV News reported.
HO-HO-HOME: A couple who turn their home into “the Armadale illuminations” for Christmas told the BBC about the months of preparations they put in. Gary and Anna Gray synchronise more than 24,000 lights and 150 props - including LED Christmas trees, candy canes and angel wings - to music through Gary’s laptop. Great work.
TO BOULDERLY GO: A new world class bouldering wall has opened at the Edinburgh International Climbing Arena thanks to a £100,000 sportscotland grant. It means Ratho is the only UK climbing centre with Olympic standard facilities for all three disciplines of lead climbing, speed climbing and bouldering.
THE BUSINESS
Green energy centre to power new homes in Midlothian
A new energy centre which will deliver low carbon heat generated from waste processes has opened in Midlothian.
The new centre is part of a partnership between Midlothian Council and Vattenfall, called Midlothian Energy Limited (MEL), to deliver green energy projects across the region, and will supply thousands of new homes through a heat network which will also expand into existing buildings.
The MEL Energy Centre will capture low carbon heat from the Millerhill Recycling and Energy Recovery Centre – an energy from waste plant operated by FCC Environment – and then it is planned it will supply around 3,000 homes, education and retail properties as they come onstream at Shawfair via the heat network.
The connection is expected to take place in the middle of next year. The MEL Energy Centre has received £7.3 million funding from the Scottish government’s Low Carbon Infrastructure Transformation Project to develop the heat network which in turn has unlocked over £40m of private investment into the joint venture.
CHANGE OF NEWS: The Scotsman and Edinburgh News are on the cusp of changing ownership for the fourth time in six years. The board of current owners National World saying they will recommend a £61.5 million takeover of their stable of regional news titles, which also includes the Yorkshire Post. The bid represents an improved offer from Irish publishers Media Concierge, but the offer has yet to be formally made and National World stressed that shareholders should take no action at this time.
WELCOME ABOARD: Ross McLean has been appointed as the new Director of Hospitality at The Royal Yacht Britannia and its sister ship, the luxury floating hotel Fingal. Originally from Shetland and previously General Manager at one of New Zealand’s leading golf resorts, he will lead a team of more than 100 in Leith.
HOTEL SALE: The Bruntsfield Hotel in Edinburgh has been purchased by Dubai-based Dutco Group from previous owners Castleforge, demonstrating yet again this year the appetite for investment in the city’s hotel sector. Significant spending is planned to reposition the venue as a luxury hotel next year.
THAT’S ENTERTAINMENT
THE BELLS, THE BELLS: Feeling Young at Heart? You can catch Scottish pop legends The Bluebells at the Liquid Room on Friday night.
WORLD-CLASS GIFT: Glasgow-based Barrowland Ballet’s The Gift is at The Studio on Potterrow from Saturday until Hogmamay. Grab a ticket while you can. Our culture writer Will Quinn described the festive family show “as the one of the best things you will ever see”.
SING-A-LONG ROCK: Lockdown sensations Toyah Wilcox and Robert Fripp bring their Christmas Party to the Queen’s Hall on Monday, 16 December. Sing along with the cover versions which the couple served up at Sunday lunchtime every week through the pandemic.
QUICK BITES
TRIO ON TOP: Three Edinburgh restaurants have been named in the prestigious La Liste ranking of the world’s top 1000. The digital hotel and restaurant guide is based on analysis of thousands of publications, hundreds of guidebooks, and millions of online reviews. The Capital restaurants named are Number One at the Balmoral, Restaurant Martin Wishart and The Kitchin.
TOP RESTAURANTS SHUT: Michelin-listed sister restaurants The Gardener’s Cottage and The Lookout on Calton Hill have closed permanently. No reason has yet been given for the sudden shutdown, and the websites simply thank customers for their “support over the years.”