It’s starting to feel a lot like Christmas in Edinburgh - Cammy Day

Edinburgh’s Winter Festival celebrations are well underway. With the city centre transformed, the Christmas Tree lit up on the Mound, and lots of exciting festive plans beginning in local communities across the Capital, it really is starting to feel a lot like Christmas.

Cammy Day, leader of City of Edinburgh Council

Our festivals are internationally renowned bringing economic benefits for the city and Scotland as a whole, supporting jobs in the tourism, hospitality and leisure sectors.

So far this year, we’ve seen a record-number of people enjoying the festive fun. If you haven’t visited yet, there’s something for everyone. From Santa Land, lots of activities for children in West Princes Street Gardens, the Big Wheel on Princes Street, skating at George Street Ice Rink, keeping warm with some mulled wine – to name but a few things.

Shopping local is more important than ever, and if you are looking for a gift or to treat yourself, pop along to our ever-popular Christmas market – not only will you buy something unique, you’ll be supporting the local economy with the majority of stalls from Edinburgh and across Scotland. Speaking of culture, this week I’ll join recipients of our cultural diversity and inclusion funding to hear of their fantastic work across the city. This has seen the opportunity to support and promote inclusive festivals like Diwali and the Festival of Lights.

As we move towards the Scottish Government’s Budget setting Process, like all council leaders we await our yearly round of cuts from the SNP/Green Government. Last week I met with the First Minister at Bute House. Along with city leaders, I stressed the importance of a fairly funded and properly resourced local council to be able to deliver front-line services to our local communities. We also had the chance to speak of infrastructure costs for the capital city, in particular the urgent need to develop new housing. It is very disappointing that the SNP/Green Government has failed to acknowledge Edinburgh’s housing emergency and voted against these measures.

The Forth Green Freeport bid has now been submitted to the Scottish and UK Government and we now await their decision. All going well, I hope to see activity and new jobs being created throughout 2024 and beyond. We will keep a close eye on those developments and ensure fair work commitments are at the forefront.

Finally, last week I opened our new Ukraine Welcome Hub and Aid Warehouse at the Vega Building in Flassches Yard. The Hub is the primary entry point for direct arrivals into Scotland of which there have been over 11,000 since February 2022. Our team provides support and advice for approximately 3,000 Ukrainians (representing up to 900 households, including over 350 children and young people), currently in Edinburgh. The aid warehouse is also an integral component of the city’s response. Not only does this allow vital supplies to be delivered to Ukraine but it also provides essentials for the Ukrainian population in Edinburgh. While numbers have reduced, let’s not forget that the illegal Russian war on Ukraine continues every day with families fleeing cities and towns. As we approach this Christmas season, I’m sure we will all hope for peace. I hope you can have a good rest, meet family and friends and have a Merry Christmas.