Edinburgh City Council abandoned Leith’s Christmas decorations after the Pandemic according to SNP MSP Ben Macpherson, who has appealed to the council to get them back.
Traditionally, there was a large Christmas tree at the foot of Leith Walk.
Macpherson wrote to the council in October to express his constituents’ “disappointment and sadness that Leith no longer displays a Christmas tree.”
According to Macpherson, constituents felt “overlooked, especially when other parts of the city continue to benefit from seasonal displays.”
The council responded positively and was confident that an 8m tall Christmas tree would be possible this festive season.
Macpherson shared both his letter and the council’s response on social media.
His appeal for festivity seeks to heal Leith’s struggling retail industry.
The Leith Connections Project, aiming to make Leith more accessible, has significantly disrupted foot traffic.
This project began construction in March 2023, and its end has been delayed for months.
Shore Business Collective, a collaboration of Leith’s businesses, has spoken against the construction project, accusing it of physically fencing businesses in.
The Council, in response to Macpherson, acknowledged this area and said the shore could also be decorated.
Leith already appears to be an unpopular area among students.
One second year student at the University of Edinburgh living in Leith Walk, when asked if she ever walked further into Leith, said:
“I never do but I always want to. I just never get around to it.”
Another second year student living on Leith Walk, in reference to possible Christmas decorations in this area, said:
“Yes – definitely more Christmas decorations. The street is so wide it would be easily done.”
On the whole, students living in Leith are positive about possible festive developments and their impact on community engagement.
Macpherson and residents hope that a large, brightly lit Christmas tree and additional festive decorations will make Leith’s retailers more visible to students and consumers.
Image by Mark Chan for The Student.