This month I was delighted to attend the Alnwickhill Proprietors Association (APA) AGM. The association does fantastic work maintaining the estate and fighting for local residents.

You can read my update to the AGM below:

Ian Murray MP – Alnwickhill Proprietor’s Association AGM Update

Thank you, as always, to the APA for everything that is done throughout the year.  We work closely together on issues and everyone works incredibly hard for local residents.

Planning Application – Lands West of Alnwickhill Road on the Western edge of Liberton

Developers McTaggert are consulting on the development of the above Greenbelt sites. This will be the fourth time I have been involved in fighting development applications for these sites since I was first elected, and we know developer’s interest in these sites goes back much further.

I understand the developers will present to Liberton and District Community Council next week before submitting a planning application.

We must preserve our cherished local green spaces and I will be supporting residents, the community council and Liberton Association in fighting these proposals. To keep up to date please email me with the words “Liberton Greenbelt subscribe” in the subject field.

Mortonhall Caravan Park

My office continues to work closely with the Police and the caravan park to deal with anti-social behaviour issues. Last summer there was a spate of bike thefts from the park however, the Police made a number of operational changes and are now working much more closely with the park. I am confident that the changes made will mean a reduction of crime, particularly over the summer.

There is also the constant issues with the upkeep of the boundaries around the estate.

If there are any other issues residents are experiencing in relation to the caravan park or indeed the crematorium, please get in touch with my office.

Brexit

As I am sure you can imagine Brexit is taking precedence over every other issue in Westminster at the moment. The Prime Minister’s withdrawal deal has now been voted down twice, as such she has requested an extension to the Article 50. This means the date which we leave the EU will be pushed back till at least the end of June, possibly longer. In all likelihood she will attempt to pass her deal again – possibly next week.  I think the decision should go back to you in an affirmation vote.

I have been working flat out on this issue for the last two years. To keep up to date please subscribe to my EU Updates (currently going to almost 3,000 constituents) by emailing me with the words “EU subscribe” in the subject field.

7 Acre Park – Queen’s Commonwealth Canopy

I joined over 500 other MPs to plant trees as part of the Queen’s Commonwealth Canopy, a network of forest conservation initiatives to mark Her Majesty’s lifetime of service to the Commonwealth.

The trees – two silver birch, two rowan, and a hazel –were planted at Seven Acre Park with the help of the local ‘Friends’ group.

They were donated thanks to a partnership between the Woodland Trust, Sainsbury’s and ITV, which in April screened a landmark documentary, The Queen’s Green Planet, following Her Majesty the Queen and this ambitious legacy project which brings together her deeply held commitment to the Commonwealth and her little-known love of trees.

In support of the programme the Woodland Trust provided 50,000 trees for ITV viewers, and also offered a special commemorative pack to every MP in the UK.

It was great to be at Seven Acre Park to plant the saplings with local residents from Friends of Seven Acre Park. Local groups like this do a fantastic job of managing and preserving our vital green spaces across the city.  I also did a bit of fence painting.  Great job everyone

Climate change is the greatest threat to our planet and it is absolutely vital that we all do our bit to protect our forests and treasure our green space for future generations.

Traffic and roads

I still get a lot of correspondence from APA residents about the speed and volume of traffic, parking and the need for more measures to make the estate as safe as possible.  I will continue to work on these with residents and the APA.

Bins

My office team received a large number of complaints when the bin timetables were altered last year.  These all now seem to have settled down and been sorted but if you have any issues please get in touch.

If there is anything at all I can do to help on any issue please do get in touch.