An Edinburgh councillor is calling for answers over who was responsible for the late cancellation of the city’s Hogmanay party and the cost to the Capital.
SNP Councillor Kate Campbell wants to know who made the decision to cancel the event given the “relatively calm” weather on the night.
The world-famous street party was cancelled on December 30 after the council said “extreme weather and forecast conditions meant preparations had to be halted.”
In a motion to go before the council’s governance, risk and best value committee next week Councillor Campbell questions the decision.
She says the annual costs approved by the local authority for the even were £812,456 and asks whether insurance is in place to allow them to reclaim it.
And she calls for a report into the decision and contingencies in place for a cancellation.
She asks the committee to note that the cancellation of events on December 30 and December 31 were cancelled “with the reason given that adverse weather conditions meant it was impossible to set up the crowd control measures and other infrastructure” and note “that on the evening of Hogmanay weather conditions were relatively calm and that, had infrastructure been in place, it seems likely that events could have gone ahead.”
She asks them to agree to call for a report setting out the decision-making process for the cancellation including who was involved within the council, both councillors and officers.
And she calls for it to include details of the preparation for the event each year, financial costs to the council and plans in place for the cancellation.
By Marie Sharp Local Democracy Reporter
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The Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) is a public service news agency. It is funded by the BBC, provided by the local news sector (in Edinburgh that is Reach plc (the publisher behind Edinburgh Live and The Daily Record) and used by many qualifying partners. Local Democracy Reporters cover news about top-tier local authorities and other public service organisations.
