The City of Edinburgh Council is the

local government Local government is a generic term for the lowest tiers of public administration within a particular sovereign state. This particular usage of the word government refers specifically to a level of administration that is both geographically-loc ...

authority for the city of

Edinburgh Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian on the southern shore o ...

, capital of

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...

. With a population of in mid-2019, it is the second most populous local authority area in Scotland. In its current form, the council was created in 1996 under the Local Government etc. (Scotland) Act 1994, to replace the City of Edinburgh District Council of the

Lothian Lothian (; sco, Lowden, Loudan, -en, -o(u)n; gd, Lodainn ) is a region of the Scottish Lowlands, lying between the southern shore of the Firth of Forth and the Lammermuir Hills and the Moorfoot Hills. The principal settlement is the Scot ...

region, which had, itself, been created in 1975. The history of local government in Edinburgh, however, stretches back much further. Around 1130,

David I David I may refer to: * David I, Caucasian Albanian Catholicos c. 399 * David I of Armenia, Catholicos of Armenia (728–741) * David I Kuropalates of Georgia (died 881) * David I Anhoghin, king of Lori (ruled 989–1048) * David I of Scotland (di ...

made the town a

royal burgh A royal burgh () was a type of Scottish burgh which had been founded by, or subsequently granted, a royal charter. Although abolished by law in 1975, the term is still used by many former royal burghs. Most royal burghs were either created by ...

and a burgh council, based at the Old Tolbooth is recorded continuously from the 14th century. The council is currently based in

Edinburgh City Chambers Edinburgh City Chambers in Edinburgh, Scotland, is the meeting place of the City of Edinburgh Council and its predecessors, Edinburgh Corporation and Edinburgh District Council. It is a Category A listed building. History The current buildin ...

with a main office nearby at Waverley Court.

History

Before 1368 the city was run from a pretorium (a Latin term for

Tolbooth A tolbooth or town house was the main municipal building of a Scottish burgh, from medieval times until the 19th century. The tolbooth usually provided a council meeting chamber, a court house and a jail. The tolbooth was one of three essen ...

), and later from around 1400 from the Old Tolbooth next to

St Giles' Cathedral St Giles' Cathedral ( gd, Cathair-eaglais Naomh Giles), or the High Kirk of Edinburgh, is a parish church of the Church of Scotland in the Old Town, Edinburgh, Old Town of Edinburgh. The current building was begun in the 14th century and extended ...

. A Tolbooth is the main municipal building of a Scottish burgh providing council meeting chambers, a court house and a jail. The Old Tolbooth of Edinburgh was unique in that it housed both the Edinburgh Town Council and the Scottish Parliament. As a

Royal Burgh A royal burgh () was a type of Scottish burgh which had been founded by, or subsequently granted, a royal charter. Although abolished by law in 1975, the term is still used by many former royal burghs. Most royal burghs were either created by ...

the council was convened by a Lord Provost, who was assisted by a team of

Bailie A bailie or baillie is a civic officer in the local government of Scotland. The position arose in the burghs, where bailies formerly held a post similar to that of an alderman or magistrate (see bailiff). Baillies appointed the high constables ...

s. The Tolbooth had fallen into a state of disrepair by the 1560s, and was cramped, housing both the expanding Town Council of Edinburgh, and the

Parliament of Scotland The Parliament of Scotland ( sco, Pairlament o Scotland; gd, Pàrlamaid na h-Alba) was the legislature of the Kingdom of Scotland from the 13th century until 1707. The parliament evolved during the early 13th century from the king's council of ...

. Queen Mary believed the situation was intolerable, and requested extensive renovations take place. By 1639 Edinburgh Town Council paid for a new building, called Parliament House to be constructed nearby for the Parliament to meet in so they would no longer have to share the Old Tolbooth. In 1753 Edinburgh Town Council commissioned the construction of a new Royal Exchange as a meeting place for the city merchants, intended to rival the Royal Exchange of London. However the merchants preferred to carry on meeting at the Mercat Cross. Given the conditions of the Old Tolbooth and the underused status of the Royal Exchange, the council moved into the north range of the Royal Exchange in 1811 while a new fit for purpose permanent presence could be planned, and the Old Tolbooth was demolished. The former location of the Old Tolbooth (fully demolished in 1817) is now marked by the Heart of Midlothian, a heart

Sett A sett or set is a badger's den. It usually consists of a network of tunnels and numerous entrances. The largest setts are spacious enough to accommodate 15 or more animals with up to of tunnels and as many as 40 openings. Such elaborate setts ...

in the paving of Edinburgh's Royal Mile. The only remaining part of the Old Tolbooth is a door which

Walter Scott Sir Walter Scott, 1st Baronet (15 August 1771 – 21 September 1832), was a Scottish novelist, poet, playwright and historian. Many of his works remain classics of European and Scottish literature, notably the novels ''Ivanhoe'', '' Rob Roy' ...

recovered and added to his home Abbotsford. After

The Canongate The Canongate is a street and associated district in central Edinburgh, the capital city of Scotland. The street forms the main eastern length of the Royal Mile while the district is the main eastern section of Edinburgh's Old Town. It began ...

suburb merged into the city of Edinburgh in 1856, and the Canongate Tolbooth was abandoned, the north range of the Royal Exchange became too crowded once again and in 1893 the Council bought back the rest of the old Royal Exchange building and renamed it as the Edinburgh City Chambers. The City Chambers initially housed Edinburgh Town Council from 1893 to 1895, when that body was replaced by City of Edinburgh Corporation. From 1895 to the

Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 The Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 (c. 65) is an Act of Parliament of the United Kingdom that altered local government in Scotland on 16 May 1975. The Act followed and largely implemented the report of the Royal Commission on Local Gove ...

Edinburgh was administered by the single tier "Edinburgh Corporation", which covered the "City and Royal Burgh of Edinburgh". As such, the Edinburgh Corporation was responsible for local government services, such as the Edinburgh Corporation Transport Department ( Edinburgh Corporation Tramways until 1928). Bodies such as the Merchant Company of Edinburgh, the Incorporated Trades of Edinburgh and The High Constables of Edinburgh formed part of the corporation, contributing councillors and law enforcement officers. The Edinburgh Corporation had the power to institute these organisations via the granting of a "Seal of Cause". This empowered the societies as "a legal corporation with power to hold property, make its own by-laws and regulations". Other organisations to receive the "Seal of Cause" include The Royal Burgess Golfing Society of Edinburgh, who received their seal on 2 July 1800. The history of the corporation lives on elsewhere around the city, for example in the name of the members of Muirfield golf club, who were granted a charter by the corporation in 1800 becoming "The Honourable Company of Edinburgh Golfers". The Corporation also awarded trophies to Edinburgh institutions, such as the silver arrow presented as a prize for archery in 1714 to the

Royal Company of Archers The Royal Company of Archers, The King's Bodyguard for Scotland is a ceremonial unit that serves as the Sovereign's bodyguard in Scotland—a role it has performed since 1822 during the reign of King George IV when the company provided a perso ...

, and the silver golf club presented to the Honourable Company of Edinburgh Golfers. The Edinburgh Corporation also inherited from the Town Council the power to make Burgess (freemen) of the City of Edinburgh. The Edinburgh Corporation awarded its Burgess Tickets through the Lord Dean of Guild, an office in the Corporation holding the distinction of second citizen of Edinburgh, after the Lord Provost. Like the Corporation of the City of London, Burgess Tickets were often awarded along with a 'Freedom Casket' – a container to hold the ticket. In 1975, Edinburgh Corporation was abolished. The new two-tier system consisted of Lothian Regional Council (with responsibility for water, education, social work and transport) and the City of Edinburgh District Council (with responsibility for cleansing and libraries). The City of Edinburgh became a single-tier

council area {{Unreferenced, date=May 2019, bot=noref (GreenC bot) A council area is one of the areas defined in Schedule 1 of the Local Government etc. (Scotland) Act 1994 and is under the control of one of the local authorities in Scotland created by that Ac ...

in 1996, under the Local Government etc. (Scotland) Act 1994, with the boundaries of the City of Edinburgh

district A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions o ...

of the

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and the interaction of humanity and t ...

. The district had been created in 1975, under the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973, to include the former

county of city County of city (or county of a city) was a term used for certain local government areas in Scotland between 1890 and 1975 which performed the functions of both a county council and the town council of a burgh. There were four such areas, covering ...

of Edinburgh; the former burgh of Queensferry, the district of Kirkliston and part of Winchburgh formerly within the county of West Lothian; and the district of Currie and the parish of Cramond formerly within the county of Midlothian. Today Edinburgh's council remains headed by the

Lord Provost of Edinburgh The Right Honourable Lord Provost of Edinburgh is the convener of the City of Edinburgh local authority, who is elected by the city council and serves not only as the chair of that body, but as a figurehead for the entire city, ex officio th ...

, with six

s appointed by the council at large. Many of Edinburgh councils ceremonies and traditions date back to the days of the Edinburgh Corporation, such as the Edinburgh Ceremony of the Keys, where the Lord Provost symbolically hands the keys to the City of Edinburgh to the monarch, who hands them back to the Lord Provost proclaiming "that they cannot be placed in better hands than those of the Lord Provost and Councillors of my good City of Edinburgh". The council continues to meet in the

and also holds and maintains properties from the days of the corporation, such as

Lauriston Castle Lauriston Castle is a 16th-century tower house with 19th-century extensions overlooking the Firth of Forth, in Edinburgh, Scotland. It lies on Cramond Road South, between Cramond, Davidson's Mains, and Silverknowes. The substantial grounds, L ...

(which is used to host the Lord Provost's garden property), the

Assembly Rooms In Great Britain and Ireland, especially in the 18th and 19th centuries, assembly rooms were gathering places for members of the higher social classes open to members of both sexes. At that time most entertaining was done at home and there wer ...

and the Church Hill Theatre. Although no longer formally part of the City of Edinburgh Council, it retains a relationship with the Merchants Company, Incorporated Trades and High Constables of Edinburgh. The office of Lord Dean of Guild now operates from the Merchant Company of Edinburgh, and continues to issue Burgess tickets.

Council area

The majority of the local authority's territory (the same as the preceding 1975–1996 ''City of Edinburgh''

within the

) is the urban area of Edinburgh, which is bounded to the north by the

Firth of Forth The Firth of Forth () is the estuary, or firth, of several Scottish rivers including the River Forth. It meets the North Sea with Fife on the north coast and Lothian on the south. Name ''Firth'' is a cognate of ''fjord'', a Norse word meani ...

and includes all of the neighbourhoods within the A720 City of Edinburgh bypass. While the landscape changes to

green belt A green belt is a policy and land-use zone designation used in land-use planning to retain areas of largely undeveloped, wild, or agricultural land surrounding or neighboring urban areas. Similar concepts are greenways or green wedges, which hav ...

farmland at the north-western edge of the city (beyond the River Almond, Cammo estate, West Craigs and Gogar within the Almond ward), the council area extends around further west, taking in the hamlets of

Ingliston Ingliston (; sco, Inglistoun) is an area in the west of Edinburgh, near Maybury, South Gyle and Newbridge, and is home to Edinburgh Airport and The Royal Highland Showground. History The name Ingliston either means the "settlement of the I ...

and

Turnhouse Turnhouse is a suburb in the west of Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland, near Maybury, Gogar, Cammo and West Craigs. The area is south east of Edinburgh International Airport, and Turnhouse is also the name for the former Royal Air Force b ...

adjacent to

Edinburgh Airport Edinburgh Airport is an airport located in the Ingliston area of Edinburgh, Scotland. It was the busiest airport in Scotland in 2019, handling over 14.7 million passengers. It was also the sixth-busiest airport in the United Kingdom by ...

, the separate villages of

Kirkliston Kirkliston is a small town and parish to the west of Edinburgh, Scotland, historically within the county of West Lothian but now within the City of Edinburgh council limits. It lies on high ground immediately north of a northward loop of the A ...

, Newbridge,

Ratho Station Ratho Station is a commuter village of Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland, located in Edinburgh council area. It is located south of Edinburgh Airport; the community has a population of approximately 600. About 300 houses are within the villag ...

, and the small town of

South Queensferry Queensferry, also called South Queensferry or simply "The Ferry", is a town to the west of Edinburgh, Scotland. Traditionally a royal burgh of West Lothian, it is administered by the City of Edinburgh council area. It lies ten miles to the nort ...

beside the Forth Bridges, all considered to be separate localities in the Scottish Government's statistics due to their populated postcodes having no direct connection with those from the city proper.Data Tables
id-2020 Population Estimates for Settlements and Localities in Scotland

National Records of Scotland , type = Non-ministerial government department , logo = National Records of Scotland logo.svg , logo_width = , picture = , picture_width = , picture_caption = , formed = , preceding1 = National Archives of Scotland , preceding2 = General Regi ...

, 31 March 2022. Retrieved 1 April 2022 South of this, the Pentland Hills ward has a similar semi-rural profile: its furthest point is over from the A720, and

Wester Hailes Wester Hailes is an area in the south west of Edinburgh, Scotland. Wester Hailes borders on Kingsknowe and Longstone to the east. Bankhead Industrial Estate and Sighthill Park lie to the north. History Although named after a large private ...

is its only component neighbourhood within the bypass. However, aside from the village of

Ratho Ratho ( gd, Ràthach) is a village in the Rural West Edinburgh area of Edinburgh, Scotland. Its population at the 2011 census was 1,634 based on the 2010 definition of the locality. It was formerly in the old county of Midlothian. Ratho Stat ...

and

Riccarton Riccarton may refer to: New Zealand * Riccarton, New Zealand Riccarton is a suburb of Christchurch. It is due west of the city centre, separated from it by Hagley Park. Upper Riccarton is to the west of Riccarton. History On 12 April 1840, ...

(location of Heriot-Watt University), the increasingly distant suburbs in this area along the

A70 road The A70 road is a major road in Scotland, United Kingdom . It runs a total of from Edinburgh to Ayr. It begins as Dalry Road at the Haymarket, Edinburgh junction with the A8, passing near but not through Lanark and ending as Miller Road in Ay ...

–

Baberton Baberton is a suburb of Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland. It is south-west of the Edinburgh City Bypass and Wester Hailes and south of the Shotts Line railway line. The village of Juniper Green is situated to the south of Baberton and Babert ...

Juniper Green Juniper Green is a village on the outskirts of Edinburgh, Scotland, situated about south-west of the city centre. It bridges the city bypass, and extends along the foothills of the Pentlands. It is bordered by Colinton to the east, Baberton ...

Currie Currie ( gd, Currach, IPA: �kʰuːᵲəx is a village and suburb on the outskirts of Edinburgh, Scotland, situated south west of the city centre. Formerly within the County of Midlothian, it now falls within the jurisdiction of the City of Edi ...

and

Balerno Balerno (; gd, Baile Àirneach, IPA: �paleˈɛːɾʲnəx Scots: Balerno or Balernie) is a village on the outskirts of Edinburgh, Scotland situated south-west of the city centre, next to Currie and then Juniper Green. Traditionally in the cou ...

– are considered to be part of the locality of Edinburgh as their postcodes remain in a 'chain' with the rest of the city. Almond and Pentland Hills are by far the largest of the council's wards by area due to their low population density balancing against that of inner-city wards.Population distribution and density in Edinburgh Recent trends and comparisons with other cities across Scotland and the UK
City of Edinburgh Council, October 2013. Retrieved 16 September 2022 In contrast to the hinterland in the west, the local authority boundary with

East Lothian East Lothian (; sco, East Lowden; gd, Lodainn an Ear) is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland, as well as a historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area. The county was called Haddingtonshire until 1921. In 1975, the his ...

in the east of the city (north of the end of the bypass within the Portobello/Craigmillar ward) is at the Brunstane Burn at Eastfield; the adjoining town of

Musselburgh Musselburgh (; sco, Musselburrae; gd, Baile nam Feusgan) is the largest settlement in East Lothian, Scotland, on the coast of the Firth of Forth, east of Edinburgh city centre. It has a population of . History The name Musselburgh is Old ...

, and Wallyford beyond, are not within the council borders of Edinburgh and thus not within its statistical locality, although they are part of the city's defined settlement which groups together connected, distinct localities. Thus the local authority area cannot be described wholly as an urban environment, nor is it technically coterminous with Edinburgh as a city, nor is the entirety of the city's built-up area within the local authority's borders.

Elections

Members of the council represent 17 electoral areas called

wards Ward may refer to: Division or unit * Hospital ward, a hospital division, floor, or room set aside for a particular class or group of patients, for example the psychiatric ward * Prison ward, a division of a penal institution such as a pris ...

. As a result of the

Local Governance (Scotland) Act 2004 The Local Governance (Scotland) Act 2004 (asp 9) is an Act of the Scottish Parliament which provided, amongst other things, for the election of councillors to the local authorities in Scotland Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Ki ...

, multi-member wards were introduced for the 2007 election, each electing three or four councillors by the single transferable vote system, to produce a form of

proportional representation Proportional representation (PR) refers to a type of electoral system under which subgroups of an electorate are reflected proportionately in the elected body. The concept applies mainly to geographical (e.g. states, regions) and political divis ...

. Previously each of 58 wards elected one councillor by the

first past the post In a first-past-the-post electoral system (FPTP or FPP), formally called single-member plurality voting (SMP) when used in single-member districts or informally choose-one voting in contrast to ranked voting, or score voting, voters cast their ...

system of election. The last election to the council was held on Thursday, 5 May 2022. Due to an increase in the city's population, five extra seats on the council were added in 2017, along with some minor ward boundary changes.

Controversies

The council has been at the centre of several corruption scandals in recent years, including allegations of possible fraud, wrong-doing and incompetence in the Property Conservation Department in the

BBC Scotland BBC Scotland (Scottish Gaelic: ''BBC Alba'') is a division of the BBC and the main public broadcaster in Scotland. It is one of the four BBC national regions, together with the BBC English Regions, BBC Cymru Wales and BBC Northern Ireland. ...

documentary ''Scotland’s Property Scandal'' in 2011; four men pleading guilty to corruption in the allocation of public building work contracts at the Council in 2015; and mis-spending of £400,000 of public money, and a subsequent bullying campaign against the whistle blower who brought this corruption to light in 2021.

Wards

Electoral history

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:The City of Edinburgh Council Politics of Edinburgh

Organisations based in Edinburgh