4 NEWS
A new lease of life
By STAFF REPORTERFOLLOWING MANY years of
discussions with The City of
Edinburgh Council to agree
conditions for the future
development and operation of
Leith Theatre, Leith Theatre Trust
say they can now look forward
to the next half century with a
new lease.
The theatre had lain empty for
half a century until Hidden Door
Festival opened the doors in 2017.
Critical repairs were undertaken,
and in 2020 the venue was used bythe charity Empty Kitchen Full
Hearts to produce food for
distribution to those in need. The
new lease (at an annual rent of
£30,000 with 10% increases every
five years) will include the theatre,
the hall and Leith Library (which
will be leased back to the council).
Cllr Mandy Watt, Finance
and Resources Convener said:
“The revival of the Leith Theatre
has to be one of Edinburgh’s most
exciting cultural developments
and it has quickly re-established
itself as a significant addition to
Leith’s live music scene. TheCouncil directed £1m towards the
project to see it brought back into
use and now we have agreed a
new 50 year lease. This will provide
the operators with greater
certainty as they continue their
fundraising efforts and
programme in live entertainment
from home and all over the world.”
Chief Executive Lynn Morrison
said: “This is a significant step
forward in our ambition to secure
Leith Theatre’s future as an
important cultural asset for our
community and for the city of
Edinburgh. This will now allow usto continue with our recent and
ongoing building works and to
further develop and progress our
capital funding plans, vital for
taking Leith Theatre into a new
chapter. It has been a long journey
to reach this point, with many
helping hands along the way, and
we are excited for next steps.”
Chair of Leith Theatre, Bob Last
said: “The decision is a vital next
step, we can now look forward to
current and future generations
being able to add their
experiences and memories
to Leith Theatre’s living legacy.”Future of the important cultural hub in Leith now assured
Chris Scott
Safe words matter
By CLLR FINLAY MCFARLANE, CITY CENTREIN THE FIRST FULL year since my election in
2022, the number of people who lost their lives
from an overdose in Edinburgh rose to 113
people. That’s 113 sons and daughters or 113
friends or loved ones. The scale of loss is only
made tragic by the fact that it is likely that each
of these 113 deaths were entirely preventable.
Whilst the national picture in Scotland showed
a welcome decline, Edinburgh has bucked the
trend with an increase in the figures from the
previous year.
Since my election, I have championed and
won the support for a public health approach
to this crisis in Edinburgh. Unanimously, the
Council have agreed to state that they neither
condone nor condemn drug use, and that we
will do all we can to explore all possible tools to
address the crisis.
I am proud that every party in the
Council have taken such a pragmatic, and
compassionate approach to the debate, whether
we were exploring expanding the provision of
the life-saving Naloxone across the city or
commissioning the feasibility study intoa safe consumption room and community
drug checking facilities.
It was therefore highly regrettable to see a
local publication sensationalise the long-
awaited move towards a Safe Consumption
Room in Edinburgh in their headline stating
that a “heroin shooting gallery” was lined up
for the city centre. Language matters.
We are living with the effects of decades of
stigmatisation and prejudice through the failed
UK “war on drugs” that marginalised people
and increased the barriers to seeking support.
It is my hope that the spirit of unity which has
so far prevailed in the City Chambers is
reflected by society at large as we move towards
the implementation of these solutions and it
will be incumbent on us all to remember that
addiction could affect any one of us as a very
human condition. Through careful language
and tone we have the power to unpick
historical prejudice and misconceptions
about our fellow citizens.
Perhaps from now on we should refer to
these health facilities - to remind ourselves as
to their primary function - as Overdose
Prevention Centres.Councillor backs a practical public health approach to drugtaking
Cllr Finlay McFarlaneBy KIRSTY LEWINLOVE TO RIDE is a website that
encourages more people to cycle more
often by tracking cycling information and
setting fun cycling challenges. It’s
supported by The City of Edinburgh
Council and the local organiser asked me
to join up. Little did I realise that signing
up would take me on an epic cycle out to
Gladhouse Reservoir and back on the
hottest day of September.
Bored of my usual loops through East
Lothian and feeling unusually competitive
I looked at the Spokes Midlothian cycle
map (available in good bike shops).
I plotted a route on quiet roads that
would take me along National Cycle
Network route 1 out through Whitecraigs,
past Dalkeith and Bonnyrigg via old railway
lines and then out on country roads
through Carrington and Temple.BIKE BOUNTY
Setting off in the late morning without
packing any food, I soon realised that I
would only pass one shop on the route, a
little place in Whitecraigs. I popped in
there and bought a Bounty. By the time I
got to Eskbank it was 23°C and I was out of
water. A friendly mechanic at the garage
behind the railway station topped up my
bottle with ice cold water.
Living in Portobello means all rides
south are uphill. I didn’t feel the incline
until around Carrington when the serious
climbs began. Panting up through Temple
I waved to the bemused locals picking
brambles and noticed that I had climbed
just over 500 feet. More was to come.
At 900 feet, I was out of water again.
I stopped by two isolated cottages and
a lovely woman filled my bottle up with
her hose.
A few minutes later I was on the summit.
I got off my bike and did a little dance.
Down below was the glint of the reservoir
hidden behind a line of pine trees. I flew
down, lifted my bike over the fence, pulled
my shoes off, sat with my feet in the cool
water, and ate the Bounty.
Half an hour later I was on my way
home, pedalling up the hill towards
Temple. My cycle was over 40 miles with
a total ascent of 2,000 feet, all powered
only by a Bounty and the determination
to clock up more miles than some of
my friends.
Love to Ride doesn’t require epic rides to
reservoirs. But the platform has
encouraged me to go further afield. Join
up now and clock your miles. Who knows
where it might take you?
http://www.lovetoride.net/ukDoing the Love to
Ride challenge