Alison Watson: Edinburgh Fringe 'time for dread' for homeless
But the truth is – it doesn't have to be this way. The Council and the Scottish Government know August brings a tidal wave of tourists everywhere and two highly anticipated stadium concerns will bring even more pressure to the housing emergency. There is time to prepare, yet we are seeing no real plan to protect those on the sharp end of the housing emergency.
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Last summer, as Taylor Swift took to the stage in Murrayfield, those who had been placed in tourist accommodation were forced into unsuitable accommodation, some sent miles away to Glasgow, Aberdeen and even Newcastle.
We hoped the council would have learnt its lesson. But sadly, there appears to be little in place to stop the households placed in hotel and B&B accommodation to be pushed out once more.
In December, Shelter Scotland campaigned against the local authority's use of unlicensed HMO accommodation to house some homeless households. Since then, we have seen a reduction in the number of hotel and B&B accommodation being relied upon. While it is a welcome move, there is more to be done. We continue to see it be used with data showing many households were living in B&Bs and hotels in Edinburgh in June 2025. We also continue to see people being moved to accommodation outside of Edinburgh or forced to sleep rough due to the sheer lack of social housing. Nobody should be in this position, but it is the devastating reality due to the choices of politicians.
Without urgent action, many homeless households will be at risk as tourists coming to see shows, comedians and Oasis and AC/DC fans flood to the city.
These massive events are an exciting time for Edinburgh, but they shouldn't come at the expense of those with nowhere else to go. The Council and Scottish Government need to be prepared to protect those experiencing homelessness while accommodating for the thousands of tourists. We know the City of Edinburgh Council can't do it on its own,
it desperately needs the funding and resources from the Scottish Government to tackle the housing emergency.
Alison Watson is the director of Shelter Scotland.
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