Leader: Leadership is what capital needs

Published on Friday 3 September 2010 14:55

Few would envy Sue Bruce her new role as chief executive of Edinburgh City Council. In Aberdeen, where she held a similar position for just under two years, councillors described her "fearless" and "hard-nosed". But will even these qualities be enough?

Scotland's capital city is facing financial problems of some magnitude. Spending cuts of 90 million are looming over the next three years, and there are fears that this could rise to 140 million. There is the stricken tram project, which is facing a funding black hole of 85 million and rising. A string of major developments are stalled. And, as if all this was not enough, there is a bitter dispute with refuse workers.

The city clearly needs the smack of firm administration to bring its finances back under control and real determination to push through a restructuring and slimdown of the council itself.

But administrative competence is one thing. Leadership is another. This is the quality that the city has sadly lacked in recent years. It may be argued that this is for others to provide and that the chief executive should concentrate on internal management.

But that is to miss the scope and scale of the financial problems that the council needs to address. And to secure co-operation and compliance on these, it is to the chief executive that both staff and the city will look for that combination of persuasion and power necessary to ensure not just that the job is started but that it secures the full backing of all those winvolved.