Edinburgh GDP surpasses London for first time

Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves (Picture: Jacob King/PA Wire)

The figures reveal gross domestic product per head of £69,809 in Edinburgh, compared to £69,077 in London. This steady growth of Edinburgh’s economy to outperform that of London’s is no small feat. Twenty-five years ago, this same data put London 19 per cent ahead of Edinburgh, highlighting just how well we perform as a city.

This is good news for our local businesses, and it shows that Edinburgh is an environment in which small, local enterprises can thrive. It also demonstrates the confidence global investors have in Edinburgh. In the last year alone, we've welcomed 27 instances of foreign direct investment, from shops like Søstrene Grene and MINISO to major renewable energy consultants PSC.

This is impressive and is in part thanks to the city’s resilient business community and strong employment opportunities. The economy in the city has been driven forward by a combination of established sectors such as financial services and our universities, as well as embracing new and emerging opportunities in areas such as life sciences and technology.

Linked to this, we’ve seen the UK Chancellor Rachel Reeves commit up to £750 million for the city and the region for a next generation Exascale super-computer at the University of Edinburgh. This will be a national asset supporting jobs and investment and reaffirms the region’s role as an economic powerhouse. This is in keeping with the eight growth-driving sectors identified in the new Industrial Strategy, placing Edinburgh and the region in a strong position to continue to receive investment and grow the local economy.

On top of this, £410m will be shared across the devolved nations for a Local Innovation Partnership Fund and it makes great sense for our City Region to lead on this in Scotland. From artificial intelligence to data and robotics, this money could unlock a huge amount of investment, building on the successful projects we’ve already delivered, including the National Robotarium, the Usher Institute and Easter Bush campus which is now the global location of “Agritech” excellence.

Given Edinburgh’s longstanding innovation capabilities it is fantastic that we will be able to reap the associated economic, social and environmental benefits. That said, our challenge is to manage Edinburgh’s success and growth, and ensure it is fair and sustainable. To keep thriving, we need to manage the pressures placed on our housing, environment and our residents. This is the fastest growing city in Scotland, with the population expected to increase by 60,000 over the next 20 years with over four million visitors every year.

Everyone should be able to benefit from Edinburgh’s continued economic success. We are clearly contributing more than our share to the Scottish and UK economies and both governments should continue to take note.

Jane Meagher is leader of Edinburgh City Council