July 2022

8 NEWS
Interview: Lord Provost, Robert Aldridge
By Donald Turvill, Local Democracy Reporter
New provost’s Pride in city
THE FIRST OPENLY gay Lord Provost of
Edinburgh urges young people who are worried
about their sexuality today to “be themselves
and be confident.”
Cllr Robert Aldridge, (66) who took up civic
leader duties amid resounding support from
politicians of all parties said in his early days as a
councillor it was unlikely a gay person would
have been elevated to the historic role.
He said: “I don’t think it would have happened
in the days of back to basics and all that.”
But almost 40 years on, following a seismic
shift in attitudes towards the LGBT community,
he said being attracted to the same sex “just isn’t
an issue any more”. He pointed out that his
election as Lord Provost “proves anybody
can be their best person, regardless of
their background”.
He said: “And I hope that if there are young
people who are at school at the moment who
are worried about their sexuality that they
just are able to be themselves, be confident
and get on with life.
“My family was hugely supportive. I know
some people have difficulties with their family
but talk to people. Your real friends will support
you and it really is a great relief when you are
authentic about who you really are.”
Mr Aldridge said it’s “not a gay crusade by me
or anything like that. It’s just a part of who I am”.
Nominations to be the capital’s new figurehead
from all five parties are testament to his decades
of experience working cross-party in the council
and as a local champion in his ward Drum Brae/
Gyle When asked if donning the chain had been
a long time ambition, he replied: “I suppose
everybody hopes in the back of their mind that
they might actually get the enormous privilege of
being the Lord Provost. It wasn’t something I
had planned for, it was just really overwhelming
that people put that trust in me – I just hope I
can live up to it.”
Aldridge was confirmed as Edinburgh’s 258th
Rt Hon Lord Provost at the first full council
meeting following the local elections last month.
Addressing members in the chamber for
the first time, he spoke of the privilege he
felt to be chosen as the new civic head of “the
best capital city in the world”. He paid tribute to
his predecessor, SNP Cllr Frank Ross, for
‘presiding over this chamber with both good
The moment that
the chain was put
on was just an
incredible feeling
of responsibility
and privilege
humour and quiet authority’.
He said: “I could barely speak I was so
overwhelmed.The moment the chain was put on
was just an incredible feeling of responsibility
and privilege. It’s quite heavy, I think it’s about
three kilograms – I feel the weight of history on
my shoulders, literally.”
He added Cllr Ross had warned “you won’t
know what’s hit you” in informal discussions
between the pair as he prepared for the job.
He said: “It is the sheer volume of activity, it is
absolutely really hectic, but I like that.There are
clearly a whole lot of civic duties which are quite
traditional and which happen every year as they
should do and the great thing is that they’re real
– it’s not a Disney ‘pretendy’ thing, it’s real, it’s
got oomph behind behind it, real tradition
behind it and I think it gives a real dignity to the
city. It’s a post that’s been held by a whole range
of different people and, I hope I live up to this,
they’ve all adapted really well and taken on the
mantle of being almost the speaker of the
council, taking a less partisan role.”
He said the first month occupying the ancient
office has been “a mixture of bewildering and
overwhelming”.One of the first engagements he
attended was the lighting of the beacons at
Edinburgh Castle to mark the start of the
Platinum Jubilee celebrations.
He continued: “There’s nothing like being
thrown in at the deep end and it was just a
fantastic opportunity. It was really interesting not
just to be able to meet royalty and to be on board
HMS Albion, which is I think the third biggest
ship in the Royal Navy and meet a lot of charities
that the Queen is the patron of on board there,
but also the picnic in Princes Street Gardens.”
A hugely popular figure among city
councillors, Robert is known affectionately by
his peers as ‘Dobby’, a moniker which he said
“comes from when I was two”.
Aside from his lengthy career as a local
politician in the capital, Cllr Aldridge has spent
Cllr Aldridge wears the
chain for the first time
his life working with homelessness charities,
having previously been the Chief Executive of
the Scottish Council for Single Homeless and the
President of the European Federation of National
Organisations Working with the Homeless.
But he said he fell into that line of work “by
accident” just after he was elected as a councillor
almost four decades ago.
He explained: “I needed a part-time job to
make ends meet and there was a part time job as
information officer for a homelessness charity. I
went into that not knowing a great deal about it
and just got caught up with being passionate
about trying to do something.
“People can make bad decisions in their lives
and things can just get out of control and what
we’ve got to do is try to find a way to try to help
them back on track.
“I’ve worked with a number of homeless
people who have got through homelessness
and are out the other side, they’ve got jobs,
they’ve got families, they’ve reintegrated and
that’s fantastic.”
Asked what he sees as the biggest challenge for
the council over the next five years, the Provost
was unequivocal.
He said:”It’s how we deal with the cost of
living crisis. There’s a lot of people really
struggling and that all links in to the rest of these
issues. The council has limited powers but what
we can do we should do.”
However, he added a minority administration
heavily reliant on the support of opposition
parties leading the council “will go one of
two ways”.
He said: “It could be chaotic with people
just trying to stop anything happening and
I don’t think the people of Edinburgh would
forgive that.
“They expect that once they’ve had their say,
we make the most of it and achieve what we can.
“Or, we can work together and there’s a lot of
common cause across all the party manifestos.”
Connecting
communities
By IAIN V MONK
SCOTLAND’S RAILWAY (ScotRail and
Network Rail) has announced the
secondment of Sustrans Scotland’s deputy
CEO, John Lauder. He has been tasked with
preparing a blueprint to make it easier to
travel to railway stations sustainably.
His new role was warmly welcomed,
especially by us in East Lothian. For the last
17 years we have been campaigning to
build a safe path for pedestrians and
cyclists, away from the busy main road,
connecting the coastal village of Gullane
with Drem railway station on the
Edinburgh-North Berwick line.
Responses to a survey we ran in 2020
during the first Covid pandemic lockdown
showed that it is not just families and
commuters who will benefit. Many of our
local businesses such as The Bonnie Badger
in Gullane, owned by restaurateurs Tom
and Michaela Kitchin, have voiced support
for the path plans.
New housing developments at the east
end of Gullane have brought in people of
all ages including many families with
young children. As a consequence of the
growing number of residents, there is a
pressing need to make the rail system
much more accessible.
The Covid pandemic has shown us all the
value of getting out and about in our local
area. Finding paths away from traffic gives
us all space to appreciate the nature
around us, and helps improve our health,
wellbeing and quality of life. Active travel is
good for the environment too.
Consultants Stantec, appointed by East
Lothian Council earlier this year, are
preparing a number of potential outline
designs which may give an engineering
solution for the 100 metre stretch entering
Drem village, which will allow safe access
for cyclists and pedestrians travelling to
the station.
Once the finalised plans are on the table,
we have every confidence that Scotland’s
Railway, with John now on board, will heed
our call and work with us and East Lothian
Council to help deliver our climate
friendly path.