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NTBCC ordinary meeting minutes 9 February 2026

Minutes of New Town & Broughton Community Council’s ordinary meeting, held at Broughton St Mary’s church on Monday 9 February 2026 at 7pm

Actions and decisions are red italic. ND (‘no dissent’) means that no-one spoke or voted against a decision.

1 Welcome and apologies

1.a Attendance

Fiona Banatvala NTBCC Susan MacInnes NTBCC Cllr Jack Caldwell Leith ward
Michael Birch NTBCC Andrew Naughtie NTBCC Cllr Margaret Graham City Centre ward
Pierre Forissier NTBCC Richard Price NTBCC Cllr Max Mitchell Inverleith ward
Annick Gaillard NTBCC Nick Reid NTBCC Cllr Jo Mowat Leith ward
Shaun Hodge NTBCC Vanessa Roëves NTBCC PC Grant Police Scotland
Simon Holledge NTBCC Gerry Wells NTBCC PC Kamal Police Scotland
Ken Lochrie NTBCC Peter Williamson NTBCC PC Ross Police Scotland
Joe McAdam NTBCC Bruce Ryan Minutes secretary ~8 residents/visitors

1.b Apologies

Laura Graham NTBCC Cllr Hal Osler Inverleith ward
Masudun Nessa Mitu NTBCC Ben Macpherson MSP Edinburgh Northern and Leith
David Renton NTBCC

2 Declarations of interest

none

3 Approval of December meeting minutes and matters arising

3.a Approval

Approved as-is (proposed M Birch, seconded G Wells, ND)

3.b Actions from November meeting

See online register. Actions that are incomplete have a yellow background.

  • There was concern over the length of the action-list. Action: B Ryan/P Williamson to find ways to manage it better.

4 Police report

  • PCs: we apologise for lack of previous attendances. This was due to them being abstracted into operations.
  • PCs: there was an action (2-4 February) at the junction of Shandwick Place, Princes St and Lothian Rd to reduce antisocial behaviour by e-cyclists. 12 e-bikes were seized for not being up to standard and 36 road traffic offences were charged. The majority of offenders were food-deliverers. Police hope to repeat this action when resources permit.
  • F Banatvala: what are the rules about leaving Voi bikes?
    • PCs: we have had positive interactions with Voi when their bikes have been used for criminality. The bikes are GPS-tracked so Voi should know where they are. There are designated bike-parking areas. If they are left elsewhere, a Voi vehicle should collect them. We could flag incorrect parking to Voi. Due to the tracking, Voi knows which accounts have been used for criminality. Prosecutions are in progress but have not yet come to court. Als such accuseds were under 18.
    • FB: A Christmas decoration was stolen, among other e-bike related crimes.
    • PCs: these offences were all followed up. It is not impossible that bikes were left with some rental time unused, so people who had not hired them used them for these offences. Voi has a three-strike policy against troublesome accounts. (First offence gets a 7-day ban, second a 30-day ban, third leads to account closure)
    • B Ryan: can the bikes be auto-locked after a few minutes of inactivity, to minimise misuse by others?
    • PCs: riders are supposed to photograph bikes at ends of rides, to show the bikes are OK and parked properly.
    • FB: can riders be automatically fined if they park bikes improperly, so matters don’t reply on public reports?
    • G Wells: what are the laws and implications of e-cycling on pavements? Have there been prosecutions?
    • PCs: charges will be based on such bikes being motor vehicles ridden on pavements, and need for insurance and licenses. Offenders are likely to have been liable for around 4 chargers per incident.
    • Discussion of the contract between CEC and Voi was covered in item 9 (transport and environment matters).
  • M Birch: have there been reports of speeding on Regent Rd? Residents are suffering from such issues.
    • PCs: while this road is likely to always have such issues, we are trained in speed-detection and one of our regular actions is speed-monitoring here. Despite apprehension of bad drivers here, we are often abstracted to the city centre at weekends.
    • To influence our regular actions, please email EdinburghcitycentreCPT@Scotland.police.uk. This is monitored by the duty sergeants.
  • S Hodge: there is often terrible behaviour in the St James by area on weekend evenings.
    • PCs: there are dedicated patrols against youth antisocial behaviour (YASB) on Friday and Saturday evenings at the east end of princes St. YASB has occurred here on Sunday evenings too. We also welcome reports of issues. Offenders have generally been from the outskirts of Edinburgh and beyond. A large majority of young people are well-behaved. We target violent crime and ASB.
  • K Lochrie: what other types of offence have happened recently in the new town?
    • PCs: we check incoming tasks each day. There will be some break-ins but there is no specific pattern.

5 Chair’s report

All points made by P Williamson unless otherwise noted.

5.a Boyan Karabaliev

  • BK has moved out of NTBCC’s area so has automatically left NTBCC.

5.b Public understanding of Community Councils’ role

  • NTBCC should publicise what it can (and cannot) do, perhaps via its engagement strategy and other relevant channels.

5.c City Councillors and NTBCC meetings

  • It appears that cllrs contribute differently in other CCs’ meetings. Can they/CEC officers forewarn NTBCC more?
    • F Banatvala: could the potential ‘CEC/CC relationship officer’ (see footnote 1) make monthly reports to NTBCC?

5.d World Heritage Management Plan and Oversight Group

  • It is unclear why and poor that nothing has happened for 13 months, although some of the delay is supposedly to enable Terry Leventhal to settle in as Director of EWHT. I will invite TL to NTBCC’s march or April meeting. The Edinburgh World Heritage Steering Group is to meet on 3 March.
    • M Birch: the EWH site management plan, which should have taken effect in 2024, has not been published despite repeated chasing. The action plan, which should cover the first 2 years of the management plan also has not been published. These matters are CEC planning’s responsibility.
    • MB: the Steering Group is Historic Environment Scotland, CEC and EWH. The oversight group is supposed to have broader representation. NTBCC could invite CEC planning convenor to the same meeting as Mr Leventhal.
    • Action: cllrs Mitchell and Mowat to take forward these issues.

6 Planning matters

All points made by R Price unless otherwise noted. See also convenor’s report.

6.a Royal Bank of Scotland site

  • See report. Reasons for appeal are now available. CEC is now encouraging development of local place plans.
    • F Banatvala: Living Streets will run a webinar on local place plans on 23 February

6.b 16-26 Forth St

See report.

6.c Centrum House/BUPA house, Dundas St – hotel proposal (25/06640/PAN)

See report. It would be good to ascertain residents’ views.

6.d Hotel/serviced apartments at 13-15 Dundas St (25/06415/FUL)

See report.

6.e Claremont Crescent Serviced Apartments – hearing (25/05228/FULSTL) and Baxter’s Place – conversion to 6 serviced apartments (25/05562/FULSTL)

  • See report. This should go to DMSC in February or March, as would Baxter’s Place. (NTBCC has objected to both of these.) NTBCC plans to ask for a hearing on Claremont.
    • There was discussion of whether aparthotels should have receptions, and of relevant class-uses.

6.f Edinburgh Civic Forum

This is open to CCs and other relevant groups. It can be a useful way of engaging with CEC planning officials.

7 Licensing matters

All points made by A Gaillard unless otherwise noted. See also convenor’s report.

7.a Regulatory Committee

  • Since April 2025, over 3000 STL applications have been received. There are concerns over the impact of the ‘murky’ definitions of commercial and home letting.
    • Cllr Mowat: CEC officers are regularly engaging with the Scottish Government about such issues, including people playing the system – CEC cannot prevent this. Edinburgh has a very large number of STLs compared to the rest of Scotland.

7.b Taxi vs private hire cars (PHCs) report

  • The maximum permitted number of taxis in Edinburgh is 1316. (1078 are in now operation.) There is no cap on PHCs.
  • All taxis can transport wheelchairs. Only 0·23% of PHCs can.
  • The report contains data on fleet sizes and enforcement.
    • Cllr Mowat: an issue here is the significant cost of taxis (~£70,000), due to there being only one supplier/model. CEC is starting work on accessibility of PHCs

7.c Alcohol Licensing

11 Royal Terrace – Provisional Premises application 5704891. The owners have applied for a provisional alcohol license. NTBCC has objected.

7.d Alcohol Licensing & Temporary Public Entertainment (Civic) Licensing

7.d.i FIFA World Cup 2026

Games will take place in June, at night. A surge of public entertainment and alcohol license applications is expected.

7.e Q&A

  • M Birch: the tables and chairs register is out of date.
  • P Forissier: what progress is there on improving other licensing registers?
  • Cllr Mowat: concerning information portals, CEC’s planning portal is run by Scottish Government. CEC’s licensing back-office is being changed so it should become live-updated. I’m not sure of the final format of licensing register but work is in progress. I will keep pushing for a user-friendly portal not least because this will reduce officers’ frustration.

8 Culture and Communities: selected items from agenda for City of Edinburgh Culture and Communities meeting (11 February)

All points made by P Williamson unless otherwise noted.

8.a Edinburgh Visitor Levy: City Operations and Infrastructure Investment (7.1)

Reports will go to the committee, then will go to the full council.

8.b Edinburgh Visitor Levy- Culture Heritage and Events Investment Programme (7.2)

  • Proposals include
    • £1m to support Police Scotland city centre unit (PW asked if this should be funded by Scottish Government.)
    • £4m to Inverleith park and Leith links
    • £1·5 m for the Meadows and Bruntsfield.
    • £8·7m capital investment in Leith Theatre and other cultural venues.
    • £1·5m for Calton hill
  • S Holledge: Calton Hill conservation trust has no idea what this means. It has not been notified about anything.
  • Cllr Graham: there has been extensive consultation about other areas but not yet for Calton Hill. When this starts for Calton Hill, information will be provided.
  • There was discussion of the timing of spending of money on various parks.
  • Action: cllr Graham will check with CEC officers about lack of information-sharing and timeliness issues.
    • A resident: this new source of finance is welcome. Surely it’s most important to revamp the EWHT, to enable its board to do new things as needed, e.g. bins, EV-chargers. The point of TVL is to do things which support tourism.
  • Cllr Graham: there is significant TVL for this, for example renovation of the much-visited Greyfriars.
  • S Holledge: EWHT’s unreserved funds are very limited.

8.c The Future of the Community Grants Fund (7.3)

M Birch, S Holledge and Bruce Ryan are active on community grants panels and the LeithChooses steering group.

8.d Edinburgh Visitor Levy: City Operations and Infrastructure Investment Theme – referral from the Transport and Environment Committee

See above

8.e Police Scotland – Edinburgh City Division Scrutiny Report 2025/26 – April to September 2025 (Quarters 1 and 2)

This was an informative report.

8.f Summer Festivals Scorecard 2025 (8.4)

This contained interesting information on 11 festivals.

9 Transport and environment matters

All points made by M Birch unless otherwise note. See also convenor’s report.

9.a Update on St Mark’s Path current status and plans – for discussion

  • Leith Central CC is seeking an update from CEC/the contractor
    • Cllr Caldwell: negotiations are ongoing. A motion to full CEC requested a briefing note by next the TEC. I will share this note when I get it. Some policy and procedure issues have been identified.

9.b Report on matters discussed at CEC Transport and Environment committee meeting – for information/discussion

9.b.i EV charging infrastructure

The two current contracts are due to end soon. Some charging points have been identified as not fit for use.

9.b.ii Visitor Levy: city operations and infrastructure investment

See items 8.a and 8.b above. See also the briefing note in the report.

9.b.iii St James Square access

Following legal advice, CEC has confirmed existing arrangements.

9.b.iv Annual air quality progress report

See report.

9.c Update on communal bin review phase 6 plans – for information/discussion

  • Communal bins will not appear in NTBCC’s area until 2027. Gull-proof bags will arrive in the next few weeks.
    • Cllr Mowat: letters describing arrangements should arrive this week. Maps of waste arrangements should be online imminently. There have been changes since the original proposals.
  • NTBCC has engaged with residents’ groups for Royal Circus, Cumberland St, Forth St, Picardy, Gayfield. This is to try to avoid TRO shenanigans, and bins being installed and then moved.

9.d Local Transport Improvement Programme applications – for information

See report.

9.e Trams to Newhaven – lessons learned – for information

See report.

9.f Response to FOI request – Rose Street – for information

See report.

9.g Other transport and environment points

  • Charlotte Square has not been recommended for TVL funding.
  • George St and cross streets: TROs that were due in January have not been published.
  • Parking of Voi bikes: NTBCC has engaged with CEC about this.
    • A resident: what agreement is there between CEC and Voi over parking?
    • M Birch: the three-strike system. (See item 4 above.) The current arrangement is a 2-year pilot.
  • Setted streets: some TVL money will be spent on these. This may benefit East London St.
  • Meadows to George St: I have received notification of the TRO hearing. NTBCC has 10 weeks to respond if it wishes to take part.
  • EV charging strategy: CEC has such a strategy but, according to cllr Mowat, it’s not very strategic.

10 Engagement matters

All points made by S Hodge or F Bantavala unless otherwise noted. See also draft engagement strategy.

10.a Update on information gathering regarding residents’ associations and other community groups

  • In connection with 10.b (point 5), FB is trying to contact all local residents’ associations, garden committees etc.

10.b Update on Engagement Strategy 2026

Suggestions/actions were:

  • Add an executive summary
  • Revise contact email addresses
  • Create and populate a new NTBCC Instagram account (S Hodge to do this)
  • Institute targeted drop-in sessions.
  • Issue press-releases.
  • Provide to B Ryan the final text as a Pages document, so he can easily create an HTML version on NTBCC’s website.
  • Bring the strategy to life by advertising it/what NTBCC can do for those it represents, using online (e.g. videos) and traditional channels, as well as at least monthly items in local media
  • Action: NTBCC members to send other comments to engagement@ntbcc.org.uk by 23 February.

10.c Report on thoughts on NTBCC fundraising and digital footprint

Suggestions/actions/comments were:

  • Make the website more appealing and accessible.
  • Advertise content using simple language in social media channels.
  • Use local photographers.
  • Publish appealing ‘come and join us’ leaflets that also invite people to report issues, while not over-promising.
    • S Holledge: Calton Hill Conservation publishes series of press-releases that give journalists ready-made copy.
  • Publish good-news stories via social media, with links to in-depth information on the website. (B Ryan is happy to enable NTBCC members to post to the website, and to set up mailing lists for individual committees.)
  • Grants are available from CEC and others for such activities. Local businesses may donate time for them, too.

11 Any other business

  • S Holledge: a motion on defibrillators was passed by full CEC. There is a defibrillator on Calton Hill.
    • Cllr Mowat: because many premises that have defibrillators are locked outwith daytimes, people should learn CPR.