Holyrood elections 2026: Edinburgh Green candidate Lorna Slater challenged by Labour over stance on prisons and police
Controversial comments spark call for clarification
The Labour candidate in one of Edinburgh's tightest election contests has challenged his Green opponent, former minister Lorna Slater, over her stance on prisons and the police.
Ms Slater is the bookies’ favourite to win the Edinburgh Central seat, currently held by SNP Culture Secretary Angus Robertson. Labour believes it is also in the running.
Now James Dalgleish, Labour candidate in the seat, has sent Ms Slater an open letter, calling on her to clarify her views after controversial comments from two of her party colleagues.
Kate Nevens, who is number two on the Greens' Edinburgh and Lothians East regional list - where Ms Slater is number one - said recently that she wanted to see prisons abolished. She said: "Prisons are not safe, they're violent, they're poor for people's health and wellbeing, particularly if you're a woman. And they fail to support rehabilitation."
And in February, when Edinburgh council was allocating funding from the new Visitor Levy, which comes into force in July, the Greens argued unsuccessfully against putting £2.75 million over three years into a City Centre Policing Unit. They said spending on police should come from Police Scotland, not the council.
Afterwards, a picture appeared on social media of Green councillor Dan Heap with the slogan "Defund the police".
In his letter to Ms Slater, Councillor Dalgleish says: "I am writing as a fellow Edinburgh Central candidate to seek clarification on your position regarding crime and public safety, issues that matter to residents across our constituency.
"Edinburgh Central is a fantastic place to live, work, and do business. However, shoplifting has increased in Edinburgh by 51 per cent since 2021, and the people working in those shops are facing violence and abuse as a direct consequence.
"Violent crime in our public spaces is rising too. The recent incident on Princes Street, where a group brandishing machetes caused real concern in the heart of our city, is exactly the kind of situation that demands a visible, active, well-resourced police presence.
"I would therefore be grateful if you could clarify your position on calls made by fellow Scottish Green politicians to "defund" the police. Fewer officers on Edinburgh's streets means a reduced capacity to respond to precisely these kinds of incidents.
"I have already heard from residents across Edinburgh Central who tell me they feel unsafe, and that the position taken by your Green colleagues only adds to that anxiety. They deserve to know where you stand."
He also asks about her views on Ms Nevens' call for prisons to be abolished.
He says: "I believe this would be a profound injustice to victims and their families. Preventative and rehabilitative work is vital, and I strongly support it, but when serious crimes are committed, the public rightly expects those responsible to face meaningful consequences. Abolishing prisons would make that impossible.
"I am particularly concerned that the policy suggestions from your colleagues will be hugely worrying to the women and girls who are already being failed by our justice system.
"Women and girls deserve nothing less than a complete assurance that swift action will be taken against those who carry out sexual, violent and coercive offences."
Cllr Dalgleish acknowledged that in 2020 the SNP-Labour administration had withdrawn council funding for the police, but he said the context was different. “That was because we were not seeing any benefit from it. What we have with the Visitor Levy money is the potential to get at least 12 new constables in the city centre, which we think Police Scotland are going to match fund.”
And he said the call to abolish prisons was “nonsensical”. “It is completely right and proper that when we talk about police and justice we talk about rehabilitation or preventative work to stop a crime happening in the first place, but when a crime has happened you need police on the streets and a justice system with prisons to hold people accountable.”
Ms Slater's office was contacted for comment.