Leithers consider rerun of 1920 independence referendum

A RERUN of the 1920 'referendum' that saw Leith join up with Edinburgh is being considered to mark the vote's centenary.
By The Newsroom
Published 19th May 2016, 13:18 BST
Updated 19th May 2016, 14:22 BST

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Fireworks display at The Royal Yacht Britannia in celebration of The Queen's 90th Birthday, Ocean Terminal, Leith. Picture: Ian RutherfordFireworks display at The Royal Yacht Britannia in celebration of The Queen's 90th Birthday, Ocean Terminal, Leith. Picture: Ian Rutherford
Fireworks display at The Royal Yacht Britannia in celebration of The Queen's 90th Birthday, Ocean Terminal, Leith. Picture: Ian Rutherford

But bosses insisted any result urging a split from the Capital would not be legally binding - no matter how large the majority.

Morvern Cunningham, director of the LeithLate arts festival, is floating the idea to celebrate the upcoming 100-year anniversary of the union.

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She said: “I’ve always quite fancied the idea of doing another referendum.

“I thought it would be quite fun to do. The idea might be to ask people if they still wanted to be part of Edinburgh, even though they voted No back in the day.

“We could do it again. I would be interested in the answer - we would think about how we could do it.”

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The busy port of Leith was once entirely separate from Edinburgh, boasting its own town hall, coat of arms and distinct identity.

But the two were merged in 1920 - despite Leithers voting five to one against the union.

SEE ALSO: Six things to check out at LeithLate 16

Related topics:Edinburgh