Kirkhill Mansion: Two men have been arrested and charged after police were called to the Midlothian mass gathering of 300 people

The men will appear at Edinburgh Sheriff Court at a later date.

Two men have been arrested and charged after 300 people attended a party in Midlothian.

Police were called to Kirkhill Mansion in Gorebridge on Sunday, August 30 and discovered a mass gathering of around 300 people.

The group were dispersed and a 29-year-old man was issued a fixed penalty notice at the time.

Kirkhill House

After further enquiries, the two men aged 20 and 29 were arrested and charged in connection with the incident.

They are to appear at Edinburgh Sheriff Court at a later date.

The First Minister commented on the house party, saying that their behaviour was ‘utterly irresponsible’.

This comes as the police reported attending 391 house gatherings between Friday, September 4 and Sunday, September 6, a reported 23% increase on the previous weekend.

Those attending the house parties were dispersed and 18 fixed penalty notices were issued.

Police Scotland has reported that they attended 2127 incidents involving noise complaints, public nuisance and disturbance, all over the country throughout the weekend.

Deputy Chief Constable Malcolm Graham said: "Our approach has been really consistent throughout the course of dealing with this pandemic.

“We are trying to educate and encourage everybody to comply with the law for the right reasons, we are expecting people to take personal responsibility.

“These figures show that we will intervene, using the powers we have to disperse indoor gatherings which breach the regulations and will enforce where necessary.

"It is important to emphasise we will not tolerate blatant disregard for the current legislation which is in place to help stop the spread of the virus.

"I would reiterate we are asking people to take personal responsibility to do the right thing and remember the purpose of these measures is to aid the collective effort to stay safe, protect others and save lives by preventing the virus from spreading."

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