Edinburgh Council elections: Voters rejected Tories' right-wing agenda and SNP should now lead the city to a progressive future – Angus Robertson MSP

Edinburgh has voted and the Capital has returned progressive parties to steer the city into the future.
Watch more of our videos on Shots! 
and live on Freeview channel 276
Visit Shots! now

Given the straight choice between leadership from the SNP or the Tories, the voters re-elected the SNP as the strongest party in Edinburgh.

Originally within one seat of the SNP, the Conservatives were punished by the public in last week’s local government elections, cutting their number of councillors in half.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

For some strange reason, the Lib Dems have since ruled themselves out of working constructively with the election winner. That still leaves options for Edinburgh to be governed by progressive parties that take their responsibilities seriously.

Read More
Ediburgh council coalition talks: Lib Dems say no to deal with SNP

Edinburgh SNP group leader Adam McVey is correct to point out that: “The right-wing agenda of the Tories has been systematically rejected by the people of Edinburgh and the progressive politics that the SNP leads in the city has been endorsed by the people.

"People want us to tackle poverty, tackle climate change and improve our public services and that's what the SNP offered at this election and for we've for all intents and purposes won this election on this basis.”

Negotiations are now ongoing between the parties, which is the norm in most Scottish local authorities, given the proportional electoral system used to elect our councils.

SNP group leader Adam McVey (centre) celebrates as the Edinburgh Council election results come in (Picture: Scott Louden)SNP group leader Adam McVey (centre) celebrates as the Edinburgh Council election results come in (Picture: Scott Louden)
SNP group leader Adam McVey (centre) celebrates as the Edinburgh Council election results come in (Picture: Scott Louden)
Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Edinburgh deserves the stability which an agreement can guarantee in the council chamber. Like Scotland as a whole, the SNP won the election, coming in significantly ahead of the other political parties. With that kind of mandate, an SNP-led administration should take Edinburgh forward during the years ahead.

Angus Robertson is the SNP MSP for Edinburgh Central and Constitution, External Affairs and Culture Secretary

Comment Guidelines

National World encourages reader discussion on our stories. User feedback, insights and back-and-forth exchanges add a rich layer of context to reporting. Please review our Community Guidelines before commenting.