SUV DRIVERS 1 – HEALTHY LIVING 0

It looks like the combined efforts of the Scotsman newspaper and Edinburgh worthies have managed to scupper the latest efforts to improve the pollution levels in Scotland’s capital. It also represents a total failure of will by the political parties that is indicative of the entire problem with dealing with ecological problems – the inability of anyone to deal with the reality that people must change their lifestyle.

Duncan McLaren, Chief Executive of Friends of the Earth Scotland, said:

"We challenge those parties that have congestion charging as a national policy position to come forward with a workable scheme as part of their manifestos for the 2007 local elections. Labour, the Liberal Democrats, the SNP and the Greens all have support for congestion charging in their national policies. The test is whether parties are prepared to do more than talk a good game. So far, the Lib Dems and the Nationalists have manifestly failed in this respect."

David Spaven, Chair of TRANSform Scotland, added:"It would have been astonishing for there to have been a 'yes' vote in this referendum given the deliberate campaign of misinformation carried out by the local media. This calls into question how referenda can be held when the media has been as irresponsible and unbalanced as it has in Edinburgh."

Expect crowds of jubilant ruddy-faced half-wits honking in the New Town, and party loads of Yahs chinking Sancerre into the early hours.