BUSINESS leaders in Edinburgh have warned it would be "catastrophic" for the capital's economy if a string of major developments were put on hold until a inquiry into the city's World Heritage status is complete.
The capital's Chamber of Commerce has accused the director-general of Unesco – Koichiro Matsuura – of making "ridiculous" comments about the city's planning process which threaten to undermine efforts to help Edinburgh beat the impact of the credit
crunch.
The Scotsman revealed yesterday how Mr Matsuura had argued that no major decisions should be taken on key developments until the results of a year-long inquiry were published. The Scottish Government, the City of Edinburgh Council and Historic Scotland have key decisions to make on schemes such as Caltongate, Haymarket and the new St James Centre.
But officials at the business group have described Mr Matsuura as having "a lack of understanding of the city's economic environment that beggars belief".
Graham Birse, deputy chief executive, said: "If Mr Matsuura had his way, all development in Edinburgh would be suspended for a year.
"Is he seriously suggesting that developments that have been subjected to the full rigour of our planning process, over a period of some years, should be stopped in their tracks? Complying with his request would be catastrophic for Edinburgh."
The full article contains 226 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.
