Leith saved - again!

The news came through recently that Forth Ports had decided to drop their plans to use the name ‘Edinburgh Harbour’ to market their proposed development in Leith Docks. This came as good news to the thousands who signed a petition protesting at the change, and to the local elected representatives like myself who joined in the campaign to save the name of Leith.

It’s not the first time we’ve had to fight to save the name of Leith – only a few years ago I launched a campaign to stop the name of Leith being removed from the parliamentary constituency which covers the port. We were successful then as well, and I am sure that if anyone tries to do the same in the future, we will fight that as well!

To be honest, I thought that the choice of Edinburgh Harbour was a mistake even for the marketing people at Forth Ports. The name is nothing special, and sounds like just another of the waterfront developments that have grown up in every part of the world – with not much to tell them apart. ‘Leith’, by contrast, immediately puts the development as part of a vibrant, special community.

And that’s something which business and those concerned with economic development in the current tough times should use to their advantage!

I saw a good example of that recently. A few days ago, I attended the launch of the Leith Business Exchange, designed as the name suggests to provide, amongst other things, a place for local businesses to make contact with each other. I met a lot of people with businesses they were keen to grow and develop – and for many of them, the fact that Leith had a strong sense of community was very important for them. They felt it made it easier for them to build up business contacts, get to know potential customers, and also made it an enjoyable place to do business in. So, for this reason and for so many others, let’s speak up for Leith!