​Capital needs a champion, like Margo in SNP’s Holyrood ranks - Steve Cardownie

Margo MacDonald, who was elected as a Lothian SNP MSP in 1999, stood as an independent after she was pushed so far down the party's ranking that it gave her no chance of getting re-elected. She won comfortably and, freed from party constraints, went on to campaign on sometimes controversial issues, including tolerance zones for sex workers and assisted dying. She proved ever popular with the public and was re-elected in 2007 and 2011 and continued serving as an MSP right up to her death in 2014.

​Cammy said that the council was looking at new ways of supporting the city’s festivals in future due to cuts in the authority’s core funding from the Scottish Government.

As a former city Festivals and Events Champion, I am acutely aware of the importance of our Christmas and Hogmany celebrations as well as the others we hold throughout the year, so I am pleased that Cammy sees the need, not only to maintain their funding but to increase it.

His view that we need a “Capital city supplement” is not new, however. The late MSP, Margo MacDonald, once made the provision of such a supplement a condition for her support of the Scottish Government’s budget.

Sitting then as an independent, she knew that she had the power to exact a price for her support, which the Government needed, and used it to great effect.

Her stance was much appreciated, and Edinburgh gained a much-needed boost to its coffers.

But unfortunately, it seems that we do not presently have an advocate for Edinburgh such as Margo within the MSP ranks in Holyrood and the city continues to be the lowest funded out of the 32 councils in Scotland.

It is imperative that the Edinburgh’s Hogmanay get’s the support it needs.

With that support the council can then entrust the running of it to a financially robust company, with healthy accounts, to ensure that it is successful and befitting of Scotland’s capital city.

Cross-party support for festivals in the City Chambers has always been a given as councillors from all parties (and none) recognise their importance and there is no reason to doubt that that will continue.