Edinburgh Tories claim they were 'intentionally misled' over active travel road closures

Councillors Melanie Main and Lesley Macinnes at the Braid Road road closure, designed to aid social distancing and active channel

Conservative councillors have claimed they were “intentionally misled” over the decision to close an Edinburgh road as part of the move to provide better provision for social distancing in the city.

Braid Road was among three roads shut last weekend by Edinburgh City Council, but Tory councillors have accused the council of not behaving honestly when it comes to the reasons behind the decision.

Councillors claim the council “misled” members at the City Chambers over police advice surrounding the closure of the road, something done after the council claimed the police had “expressed concern” over the roads which were then shut.

The closure of three roads for active travel has been controversial

One senior Tory source said there had been no strategic discussions with police over which roads would be shut.

However the claim was denied by the council who said police raised concerns around congestion close to Braid Road and Hermitage of Braid due to the high number of pedestrians in an area with narrow pavements and parked cars.

Tory group chair, Cllr Jason Rust, said: “I find it extremely concerning that the Members’ Briefing for councillors and the Council’s press release made specific reference to the closures in the context of close dialogue with the police which has expressed concerns in relation to the roads in question. This seems far from the case.

“If elected members and the public have been intentionally misled about police involvement this needs to be investigated and disciplinary action taken. It is unacceptable forcing decisions through without proper scrutiny or skewing justification.”

The leader of the Tories in Edinburgh, Cllr Iain Whyte said he was concerned the closures were more about pushing active travel onto the Capital rather than an emergency measure to allow for more effective social distancing.

He added: “Politicians sometimes use police advice to get their own way and they should be very careful when they do that and only do it when there is genuine concern for public safety.

“We have asked for what the local and individual police advice was and so far we have not been provided with anything and you would have thought you would have had that at hand due to the fact it is an emergency decision.

“It is almost as if by doing these things at parks and beauty spots they are almost encouraging people to go out, which is against the guidance and information the government are providing.”

Depute leader of the council, Labour’s Cammy Day, said: “We have engaged closely with Police Scotland throughout this process and they have been fully supportive of our aims. They have highlighted several areas where we are currently investigating improvements and have already begun implementing changes.

“Ultimately, it is the Council’s responsibility to make changes to the road layout and our officers, along with other third parties, have identified streets where closures which would create safer, more accessible routes for people making essential journeys and taking daily exercise by foot or bike.”