Edinburgh council leader Adam McVey compared to Donald Trump over contrasting tweets on controversial meeting

Open-air event at centre of fresh row
Up to 1,000 people attended the meeting in Gyle ParkUp to 1,000 people attended the meeting in Gyle Park
Up to 1,000 people attended the meeting in Gyle Park

COUNCIL leader Adam McVey has been compared to Donald Trump after a tweet emerged in which he praised the safe organisation of an open-air public meeting which he has now condemned.

Edinburgh Western Lib Dem MSP Alex Cole-Hamilton, who organised the event at Gyle Park which attracted a crowd of up to 1,000 people on the controversial low traffic neighbourhood plans for East Craigs, branded Cllr McVey’s change of view as “hypocrisy” and “Trumpian”.

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Mr Cole-Hamilton was accused by transport convener Lesley Macinnes earlier this week of failing to ensure appropriate Covid measures were in place at the event.

And Cllr McVey intervened in a twitter exchange between them to say: “Let’s be clear - this MSP invited the transport convener to a public meeting. It appears he failed to properly liaise with police or public safety and he’s now trying to shift blame. Pathetic.”

But now a tweet has emerged, posted by Cllr McVey on the night of the meeting. in which he said: “Good to see such a well attended (and safely organised) public meeting tonight.”

When Mr Cole-Hamilton highlighted the two tweets, Cllr McVey accused him of “hiding behind the good work of local people in keeping the event well organised”.

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But Mr Cole-Hamilton says he and his team were the ones who organised the meeting. And he advised Cllr McVey: “I’d stop digging if I were you. These tweets sound like they were composed in the White House at 3am.”

Cllr Macinnes was booed and jeered at the meeting last month, but at the full council meeting on Thursday, Tory councillor Jim Campbell asked whether she felt she should apologise for asking council officers to attend and whether it was “a matter she ought to discuss with the standards commissioner”.

Cllr Macinnes said officers were there to explain technical issues. And she said they would have felt free to raise any concerns at the time. “I do not believe this is a matter for self referral to the standards commission.”

Later depute council leader Cammy Day asked Cllr McVey if Mr Cole-Hamilton should report himself to the standards commission.Cllr McVey said it was “a matter for Mr Cole-Hamilton”.

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Mr Cole-Hamilton has insisted he liaised with police about the event, warned them attendance was likely to be over 200 and had no complaints from officers who were there.

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