Calls to charge Edinburgh motorists driving into Midlothian

Motorists from Edinburgh should be charged for driving on the streets of Midlothian, candidates for Thursday’s local elections have been told.

The call came as members of the public at a hustings in Dalkeith vented anger over proposals by City of Edinburgh Council to introduce a fee to people who drive into the Capital and do not live there.

Local residents asked candidates for their views on the proposal, with one calling on them to commit to introducing their own charge.

And when Provost Peter Smaill pointed out that 95,000 journeys were made by Midlothian residents into Edinburgh each week, compared to just 47,000 journeys involving Edinburgh residents one member of the audience said “charge them double”.

It comes after candidates for the Midlothian East council election took part in a husting organised by local news website Midlothian View and Eskbank and Newbattle Community Council.

Five of the six candidates standing took part, with Scottish Liberal Democrat candidate Jenny Marr unable to attend.

It was the topic of a surcharge being introduced by Edinburgh council which would only apply to people who live outwith the city and drive in which sparked most debate.

Mr Smaill, who is hoping to keep his seat in the ward, recalled a bid in 2005 by Edinburgh to introduce a two tier congestion charge which would have seen some city residents who lived further away from its centre than residents in parts of Midlothian, exempt from charges.

Motorists from Edinburgh should be charged for driving on the streets of Midlothian in ‘retaliation’ for any congestion charge introduced by the city’s council, candidates for Thursday’s local elections have been told.

The city council was taken to court over the plans and eventually – after a referendum found two-thirds of people opposed to it – the charge plans were scrapped.

Mr Smaill told the hustings: “If you take a place like Danderhall which is far closer to the city centre, then anyone from Danderhall will be paying £2 or £3 every time they cross the boundary

“Meanwhile Edinburgh people will be privileged so they can leave and indeed 47,000 a day make that outward journey and will not have to pay at all so it is hugely discriminatory, very unfair. It is going to be quite undemocratic and will harm the economic viability of Midlothian and bureaucratise our lives.”

Labour candidate Bryan Pottinger agreed the plan was bad news for Midlothian residents.

He said: “My gut reaction is it is a bad proposal. I would rather hear a proposal to fix Sheriffhall Roundabout, I’d rather hear a proposal to get more trams out to this area to give us better public transport links and I’d rather see more investment in not-for-profit bus companies.”

Bill Kerr Smith, who is standing for the Scottish Greens cautioned that the charge was still at a proposal stage.

He said: “At the moment it is a proposal, it reports what they want to do and is not telling us what they plan to do to mitigate it.”

And Stuart McKenzie, SNP, who is also a sitting councillor restanding for his seat said when asked if he agreed with the city charge “maybe”.

Mr McKenzie told the church hall hustings: “We all love the convenience of cars but we need to have a balance. We have to recognise there is an issue and if there is an issue here (in Midlothian) then it is worse in Edinburgh.”