Council to spend £30,000 on Provost portraits

EDINBURGH's city leaders have come under fire for spending £30,000 on a portrait and a stained glass window featuring council leaders at a time when the authority is about to cut 1,200 jobs.

The local authority is to spend 15,000 on a portrait of Lord Provost George Grubb and a similar amount on a stained-glass window featuring former Provost Lesley Hinds.

Council leader Jenny Dawe said yesterday that the portraits continued a tradition dating back to the 19th century, which celebrated people who represented the city.

However, Emma Boon, campaign director for the Taxpayers' Alliance said such artworks "weren't a priority" at a time of tightening budgets. He said: "Edinburgh City Council has to find millions of pounds worth of savings in the coming years.

"Paintings of the Lord Provost and celebratory stained glass windows all sound lovely but simply aren't a priority in times of austerity."

Conservative councillor Jason Rust also criticised the decision saying: "There are immense pressures to front line services and jobs under threat."