Council elections: Edinburgh should send Nicola Sturgeon a message about the Capital's lack of funds – Miles Briggs MSP

For almost a decade, SNP and Labour councillors have run Edinburgh Council in coalition together.

Nicola Sturgeon and her Cabinet might start funding the Capital properly if they realise they cannot take Edinburgh's votes for granted (Picture: Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images)

Indeed, unbelievably Labour have been in power here, in one way or another, since 1984. There is now little difference between the SNP and Labour in Edinburgh, with three Labour candidates in the upcoming election being pro-independence.

SNP and Labour councillors have spent millions of taxpayers pounds on vanity projects whilst cutting vital public services. They have also ignored their own rules, allowing vast Christmas markets in Princes Street Gardens to proceed without planning permission, not to mention the scandal and shameful burning of Princes Street memorial benches, without informing families. Where has the vision been for the Capital?

Across the city, poorly conceived traffic management schemes have made driving and cycling more difficult, with Spaces for People being implemented without consultation with residents and small businesses, often going against the wishes of local people. In almost every measure under the leadership of SNP and Labour councillors, our great city is going backwards.

So what would another SNP and Labour council look like? Alongside plans to introduce the car park tax, which will see people across Edinburgh and Lothian forced to pay to park at their place of work, we now also see SNP, Labour and Green councillors wanting more parking zone restrictions put in place on residential streets across the Capital.

These restrictions are not wanted or needed, costing local residents more and more at the very time we’re seeing the cost of living soar. Motorists in Edinburgh are set to become the highest taxed in the UK.

The state of our roads and pavements is a disgrace, with it recently being estimated that the Capital will need over £77 million to address the many potholes and bring roads up to a safe standard.

What’s most concerning to me is the social care, housing and homelessness crisis the Capital faces. SNP ministers seem content to ignore the needs of our communities, as Nicola Sturgeon passes on huge cuts to council funding at the same time as delivering the lowest levels of funding for Edinburgh Council and NHS Lothian.

Perhaps, SNP-Green ministers might sit up and start funding the Capital if they are sent a message on May 5 that they cannot take the votes of people in Edinburgh for granted?

There are just five weeks until we go to the polls again and elect the councillors we want to represent our communities on local councils across Scotland.

So the question facing us all, as residents across Edinburgh, is this: has the city become a better place to live and work since SNP and Labour councillors took over running the Capital in 2012?

You may not normally vote Conservative, but if you want change, then you’ll only get it by voting Scottish Conservative.

On May 5, we will all have the opportunity to elect a new council with fresh ideas and a renewed sense of purpose, to help restore and move Edinburgh forward.

So when your postal vote lands on your doormat in the coming weeks or May 5, I ask you to use your vote for your local Scottish Conservative candidate and together we can elect a council that can clean up the Capital.

Miles Briggs is a Conservative MSP for Lothian

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