AN EDINBURGH MP was forced to hold a meeting out on the street after no one from the council turned up to open the door of the community centre he was due to use.
Chris Murray, Labour MP for Edinburgh East and Musselburgh, was set to host a meeting in Braidwood Community Centre in Dumbiedykes, Edinburgh on Saturday.
According to Jim Slaven on Substack, Murray had been in discussions for months with the council, insisting that he wanted to host a meeting at the location and arrived under the impression that the meeting would take place in the centre.
When the MP turned up, however, he found the doors locked and no one around to let him or his constituents in, and he was forced to hold the meeting on the steps outside the centre, leading to an extraordinary photo-op.
Chris Murray leading the impromptu meeting with his constituents on the steps outside the community centre (C) Chris Murray MP / X
After seven months of discussions, the council did reportedly agree to allow Murray to use the community centre for one of his regular coffee mornings with constituents, but no one was forthcoming in opening the doors.
Despite the closure of the centre, they managed to have what Murray described as a “fantastic and important” meeting, during which residents described a range of issues that have thus far not been dealt with.
Dumbiedykes is a working-class area of Edinburgh known for its council housing blocks bordered by The Pleasance on the west and Holyrood Park on the east.
Despite its proximity to important venues for the Fringe Festival in The Pleasance and one of Edinburgh’s most famous landmarks in Arthur’s Seat, Dumbiedykes residents often feel overlooked by their local council.
The Braidwood Community Centre in Dumbiedykes (C)
During the Fringe season especially, many residents feel that they are sidelined in favour of discussions about the festival.
In fact, one of the issues raised by residents during their meeting with Murray was noise from the Fringe and, ironically, access to community spaces.
Murray had wanted to make a point of speaking to residents of Dumbiedykes in place of the council and MSPs, who reportedly don’t often make the trip to the area.
The situation over the weekend will likely not have done much to assuage locals’ feelings that their suggestions will go unheeded by the Council.
On the situation, Chris Murray MP said today: “With The Braidwood Centre not opened as planned by the council, residents and I decided to meet directly outside the centre to discuss the local issues impacting them.
“Despite this inconvenience, we pushed on and held a fantastic and important conversation, talking through the many concerns residents want their local representatives to focus on.
“This included cleanliness and vermin issues, noise from the Fringe, and ironically, access to community spaces.
“I have since been in touch with the council pushing for actions on these issues.
“I can assure residents I will be holding a follow-up meeting inside The Braidwood Centre in the coming months to ensure progress has been made on the concerns raised.”
Murray said he fully intends to raise the issue of the centre’s closure, and the other concerns of the residents with the council.
The City of Edinburgh Council has been approached for comment.
Related