{"id":657645,"date":"2025-12-27T10:39:13","date_gmt":"2025-12-27T10:39:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/657645\/"},"modified":"2025-12-27T10:39:13","modified_gmt":"2025-12-27T10:39:13","slug":"edinburgh-is-to-recruit-a-night-czar-but-does-it-need-one","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/657645\/","title":{"rendered":"Edinburgh is to recruit a night czar – but does it need one?"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n The thinking behind the plan is to have a dedicated representative for venues, pubs and other workplaces which operate between 6pm and 6am, as well as residents and visitors who spend time in the city centre at night.\n<\/p>\n

\n Read more<\/strong>\n<\/p>\n

\n The council says the capital\u2019s Night-Time Economy<\/a> Coordinator \u2013 who it is expected will be independent from the local authority but paid \u00a350,000 a year using public funds \u2013 would \u201cstrengthen coordination and representation across sectors\u201d including hospitality, culture, live music, retail, transport, health and social care, and public safety.\n<\/p>\n

\n It said this didn\u2019t \u201cjust mean pubs, bars or clubs \u2013 it includes all the activities, services and people who contribute to city life at night, from hospitality and transport to healthcare, culture retail, leisure\u201d.\n<\/p>\n

\n Night czars have been appointed in several cities across the world in recent years including London, Manchester, Bristol, Amsterdam and Melbourne, with each taking a different approach.\n<\/p>\n

\n Some have been credited with successfully lobbying for better public transport links through the small hours, later operating licences for businesses and public safety initiatives for women and night workers.\n<\/p>\n

\n There is, however, no shortage of critics of such appointments, particularly in London, where Mayor Sadiq Khan has repeatedly pledged since his election almost a decade ago to make the UK\u2019s capital a thriving \u201824-hour city\u2019.\n<\/p>\n

\n To that end, in 2016 he named Amy Lam\u00e9 as London\u2019s night czar \u2013 the first in the UK at the time. A DJ and performer, she was selected from a crowded field of candidates for her \u201cextensive knowledge and experience of the night time economy\u201d and work on campaigns for under-threat nightclubs.\n<\/p>\n

\n Lam\u00e9 held the post for eight years, earning a generous salary of \u00a3132,846 by the time she stepped down in October 2024. However, she left amid questions over her effectiveness, the results she delivered, and the public value of her six-figure remuneration.\n<\/p>\n

\n Critics often note that more than 3,000 London venues closed during her tenure and challenge whether the czar had any meaningful powers to improve the city\u2019s night-time economy and support its 1.3 million workers, especially since licensing decisions are made by borough councils rather than the mayor\u2019s office. Accusations of toothlessness came to the fore in 2018 when Hackney Council introduced a new licensing policy requiring all new venues in the borough to close at midnight, prompting Lam\u00e9 to acknowledge that \u201cneither I nor the mayor have the power to tell local authorities what to do\u201d.\n<\/p>\n

\n She also received praise for launching a Women\u2019s Night Safety Charter and, according to Mayor Khan\u2019s office, for championing popular venues at risk, being \u201cinstrumental in reopening Fabric, protecting the 100 Club, securing the future of Printworks, overseeing the reopening of the Black Cap after 10 years of closure, and enabling Drumsheds to open, among others\u201d.\n<\/p>\n

\n But over a year on from Lam\u00e9\u2019s departure, the mayor is still yet to confirm if she will be replaced. Earlier this year he launched a London nightlife taskforce which is expected to advise on whether a new night czar should be recruited.\n<\/p>\n

\n An Edinburgh Council report said the key lessons learned from other cities with night-time coordinators include that strong leadership and clear accountability \u201care essential to effective coordination,\u201d and engagement with communities, transport providers, and businesses \u201cis critical\u201d.\n<\/p>\n

\n Their proposed remit of the role is to:\n<\/p>\n

\n \u00b7\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u2018Act as a connector across services and sectors, advocating for the needs of Edinburgh\u2019s night time economy (NTE) and help shape strategy\u2019\n<\/p>\n

\n \u00b7\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u2018Coordinate the delivery of a cross-sector Night Time Economy Action Plan aligned with Council business plan and other relevant city plans.\u2019\n<\/p>\n

\n \u00b7\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u2018Support cross-cutting priorities including public safety, late-night transport, culture and live music, workforce wellbeing, inclusion, and business resilience.\u2019\n<\/p>\n

\n \u00b7\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u2018Help align NTE activity with the Council\u2019s emerging Music<\/a> Strategy, the future use of Visitor Levy funding, and the ambitions of the City Centre Transformation Programme.\u2019\n<\/p>\n

\n \u00b7\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u2018Champion equity, safety, and diversity across all areas of the night time economy.\u2019\n<\/p>\n

\n \u00b7\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u2018Ensure the role is rooted in lived experience and city-wide expertise, with ongoing stakeholder engagement to maintain legitimacy and long-term impact.\u2019\n<\/p>\n

\n \u00b7\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u2018Provide strategic insight to feed into policy, partnerships and citywide planning.\u2019\n<\/p>\n

\n \u00b7\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 \u2018Help establish and maintain a Night Time Economy Forum or similar model to support coordination and accountability.\u2019\n<\/p>\n

\n An annual \u00a350,000 already set aside in the council\u2019s budget for the position \u201cwill be used for salary costs,\u201d officials said, with recruitment of a night czar for Edinburgh expected in \u201cearly 2026\u201d.\n<\/p>\n

\n \u201cIt is possible that proceeds from the Visitor Levy could be used to pay for this post, subject to approval by the relevant Committee,\u201d they added.\n<\/p>\n

\n Greens city councillor Alex Staniforth, who first proposed the creation of a night-time coordinator position, told The Herald: “They are essentially is someone to manage the city’s night-time economy, both to ensure that it thrives and to ensure that it is a safe and friendly environment for everyone involved, including those who are the people using nighttime businesses, night-time services, but also those working in it as well.\n<\/p>\n

\n “The idea is you have someone who is connected to the night time economy, who can bring together disparate services.\n<\/p>\n

\n “For example, they can speak to Lothian Buses and the various taxi companies and private hire companies we have in the city to ensure that transport at night is accessible and reliable.\n<\/p>\n

\n “The type of person I would expect to be in the role, rather than coming from an officer background and that sort of local government background, they would come with a strong knowledge and experience of the night-time economy themselves.”\n<\/p>\n

\n The council is running a public consultation until January 11 to understand \u201chow people live, work and spend time in the city between 6pm and 6am\u201d. It said the results will \u201cdirectly inform\u201d the work of Edinburgh\u2019s night czar \u201cwhose role will be to identify key challenges, opportunities, and practical improvements for making Edinburgh\u2019s night time offer safer, more inclusive and enjoyable for everyone\u201d.\n<\/p>\n

\n An online questionnaire is gathering residents\u2019 views on Edinburgh\u2019s night-time economy, including perceptions of safety in the city centre at night, ease of night-time travel, and the availability of family-friendly or alcohol-free options, among other factors.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The thinking behind the plan is to have a dedicated representative for venues, pubs and other workplaces which…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":526349,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8816],"tags":[748,1102,4884,712,16,15],"class_list":{"0":"post-657645","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-edinburgh","8":"tag-britain","9":"tag-edinburgh","10":"tag-great-britain","11":"tag-scotland","12":"tag-uk","13":"tag-united-kingdom"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/657645","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=657645"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/657645\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/526349"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=657645"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=657645"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=657645"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}