Hogmanay decision went down to wire as storms hit

Glasgow announced its George Square event was cancelled around 4pm and the New Year party at Stirling Castle was also axed in the early evening.

But it took Edinburgh City Council until nearly 9pm to announce the party was off.

The Princes Street event was axed at the last minute amid fears over safety as high winds and rain blasted the city.

News of the cancellations left hundreds of thousands of revellers across Scotland all dressed up with nowhere to go.

Events in Newcastle, Liverpool and Belfast were also cancelled because of safety fears over gale-force winds, although Aberdeen's party went ahead as planned.

With the worst of the weather forecast to hit once the party was under way, organisers of the Edinburgh event insisted it would not be cancelled, although they conceded some events might have to be dropped.

Glasgow's party for 25,000 in George Square was called off after barriers, staging and portable toilets began to be blown over by gusts of up to 70mph.

Glasgow Council leader Stephen Purcell said: "It is a huge disappointment, but the weather forecast was worsening for the evening and we had some incidents of crash barriers blowing over."

A spokesman for Glasgow City Council last night said the decision to call off the party was taken around 4pm and would cost the council hundreds of thousands of pounds.

He added: "It's a westerly wind, so it hit us full force before it gets to Edinburgh. We worked extremely hard to secure all the barriers, staging and safety barriers, but there were gusts of up to 70mph. Public safety was the absolute priority, so a decision was taken to cancel the event."

But the Glasgow spokesman put a brave face on the cancellation, the first in the 20-year history of the event, insisting Scots would still party into the New Year.

He added Glasgow had no insurance for weather-related cancellations due to the massive cost and that the 250,000 ticket sales would be refunded. Among the revellers left disappointed in Glasgow was student Sven Woolny, 18, from Hamm in Germany. He said: "I was really disappointed as I had been looking forward to it, but it is not their fault that the weather was so bad. I'll just have to come back another year to see what the New Year party in Glasgow is like."

Peter Riley, 42, a drugs counsellor, had travelled from Dundee to see his son on stage as lead guitarist in Dundee band The View. He said: "Our boys were playing tonight and we were through to see them so we're disappointed the event is cancelled. But I think they made the right decision to cancel the event as safety comes first."

Kelly Brown, 37, a factory worker from Dundee, agreed: "I was petrified when I saw on the news about the high winds and it's better they didn't take the risk as people could have been hurt."

A spokeswoman for VisitScotland said: "It's hugely disappointing that Scotlands biggest Hogmanay party in Edinburgh and other events had to be cancelled.

"But people's safety is of the utmost importance. Robust structures and procedures were put in place, following the cancellation of the event in 2003 and we are confident that the organisers would not have taken this decision had it not been absolutely necessary."

But she said the cancellation should not dent the city's image with the thousands of tourists who travelled from all over the world for the event.

The VisitScotland spokeswoman said: "Edinburgh's Hogmanay is a four-day long celebration with many events taking place which were not affected by the weather and they have entertained visitors and residents alike."

And she added that the 2003 fiasco had not damaged the popularity of the Hogmanay event in subsequent yeras.

And the VisitScotland spokeswoman said: "Glasgow has plenty of attractions - visitors should not be put off visiting Scotland's largest city because one event has been cancelled."

And she said: "Research undertaken by VisitScotland has indicated that people do not generally come to Scotland for the weather, they come for the traditional and world-renowned hospitality and the warmth of welcome from the Scottish people, which is usually in abundance at this time of year.

Scotland's tourism leaders remained upbeat last night, despite the second major disruption to Scotland's Hogmanay celebrations in four years.

Aware that coverage of high winds and cancelled celebrations in Scotland were being beamed all round the world last night, senior figures in the tourist industry insisted that the country could ride through this latest setback.

They stressed that tourists came to Scotland for New Year celebrations which lasted up to a week, not just the fireworks or open-air concerts on the night itself, and they would continue to do so. And they insisted that Scotland would actually benefit from being seen to put safety above all other considerations.

Gavin Ellis, chairman of the British Hospitality Association in Scotland, said: "Hogmanay will never be cancelled in Scotland. Some activities may be cancelled but Hogmanay will not be cancelled. I cannot believe that in Scotland Hogmanay will not go ahead in some form."

He was backed by Peter Taylor, chairman of the Townhouse Company which has four hotels in Edinburgh.

Mr Taylor said: "I think people understand we are not in control of the weather. I am sure they will continue to come. There is so much going for Scotland in terms of character and the whole atmosphere."

The centrepiece of the world famous Edinburgh street party was scheduled to be the Concert in the Gardens where Paolo Nutini and the Pet Shop Boys were performing.

For the more traditional reveller, there was also a massive ceilidh planned in the east end of the gardens.