Name : Alex Staniforth
Political Party : Scottish Green Party
Ward : Craigentinny & Duddingston
What’s your story?
I moved to Edinburgh in 2008 after holidaying here the year before and falling in love with the city. In the 2012 council elections I found myself looking at the list and finding the only person I could bring myself to give my number 1 vote was the Scottish Green candidate, Nigel Bagshaw. He actually became a councillor and then I looked into what the Greens were doing on the council, given I had voted for them by default and now wanted to know what they were doing with that vote! I found that I agreed with everything they were doing and that they were punching above their weight in council – doing things like preventing the unfair Workfare in the city. Impressed and happy to find a political home I eventually joined the party and in 2017 stood for council as I wanted to be part of that good work. Since getting into council I think I’ve fulfilled that ambition having campaigned to save the Museum on the Mound, worked to stop junior sports clubs being charged 250% more for the use of school facilities, ensured a better consultation on the Meadowbank housing site and helped the people working the Northfield allotments finally get a water supply. I’m incredibly proud of what my party does with what power it has and hope to see us get an even bigger vote share this election.
What are the main issues I’m campaigning on?
The housing crisis is very important to people in my ward. High rent costs effect many and on the Abbeyhill side and in Duddingston short term lets are causing potential homes to be replaced by holiday lets. We would work with Greens in parliament to make sure we have the powers to address the crisis and that the council uses them. Reducing the city’s carbon footprint is, of course, important to all Greens and is multifaceted in the response required – I worked with other opposition parties to reduce the number of flights taken by members and officers and plan to continue that sort of work should I be elected again. Finally I want to see our greenspaces improved and for accessibility to them be improved by the addition of amenities such as permanent public toilets.
My legacy?
Preventing junior sports clubs from being charged up to 250% more for the use of school facilities has to be my proudest achievement this term, perhaps alongside helping to preserve the Museum on the Mound so that schools can continue to benefit from the free educational trips they offer. Those two campaigns have probably touched the most lives in the city for the better. Of course, both of them are the prevention of something rather than creating something new and this is a problem with being in opposition – very often your biggest impact is in resisting negative change. As resisting negative change goes, though, both of those were very important.
A thing few people would know
It’s hardly a state secret but I am treasurer of the Edinburgh Horror Festival and as part of the festival perform a one-man improvised comedy show called Stand Up Horror.
Founding Editor of The Edinburgh Reporter.
Edinburgh-born multimedia journalist and iPhoneographer.
