THE family business of former Rangers FC owner Sir David Murray has slammed ministers for intervening in its plans for a £500 million office, leisure and residential development in the west of Edinburgh.
Murray Capital won planning approval for the International Business Gateway project it aims to develop next to Edinburgh Airport, with consortium partners, from the City of Edinburgh Council on May 30.
The project, which Murray is planning with New Ingliston Limited and Frogmore Salmon Harvester Properties, proposes the development of 122,000 square metres of office accommodation, 5,500 square metres of retail and leisure space, 1,150 hotel rooms and 396 residential units.
Sir David’s firm, which is led by his son David D Murray, says the project will create 400 roles over the estimated 15 years of its constriction, and “house” 12,000 jobs when it is completed.
READ MORE: Sir David Murray's £450m Edinburgh village plan called in by Ministers
But it has been thrown into doubt following the decision by the Scottish Government planning minister to call in the application.
The minister’s concern is understood to centre on the level of transport disruption which will be caused in the West Edinburgh area during the development.
Murray refutes this and argues that the disruption to roads will be minimal, noting that the traffic assessments which have been carried out fed into the council’s decision to approve the project.
It added that the consortium has pledged £7.1m to dual Eastfield Road as part of supporting infrastructure works.
READ MORE: Sir David Murray sees family firm return to profit
Mr Murray, managing director of Murray Capital, hit out at the minister’s intervention, stating: “This is a deeply disappointing decision by the Scottish Government that is putting jobs, investment and economic growth at risk.
“The council has already undertaken an exhaustive three-year planning process on a project we have been developing for over 20 years.
“The government has made clear its intent to steward the growth of the Scottish economy at a time of very significant downside risk. But the words are not being matched by action in this case, quite the reverse. This project would create hundreds of jobs in its development and house 12,000 jobs when completed.
“The politics of the planning process is putting investment, jobs and growth at risk. The danger is that the message from the Scottish Government to the world is a negative one at the very point when we need strategic projects like this active and investing in the city and country.”
A spokesman for the Scottish Government said: “Ministers have called in the application for planning permission in principle to allow further consideration of transport impacts of the proposed development, in view of the national importance of the West Edinburgh area.
“As this is a live planning application, it would not be appropriate to make any further comment on the merits or otherwise of the application.”
Mr Murray was also critical over hold-ups to its proposed £450m Edinburgh Garden District, which was called in by the Scottish Government in February last year after being approved by planners in June 2016. The plan envisages the development of 1,350 new homes, a primary school and nursery and a 40-acre park in a new community named Redheughs Village on land next to Royal Bank of Scotland’s Gogarburn campus. Ministers are reviewing the project, which has been going through the planning process since 2015, on the grounds of its scale.
Referring to both International Business Gateway and Edinburgh Garden District, Mr Murray added: “Both are strategically critical projects for the city and the country. I ask ministers to expedite this next process with very significant urgency and hope that they understand that the costs of delay are very real.”
On the Garden District application, the Scottish Government spokesman said: “This is a complex application and ministers are currently giving full and proper consideration to it.
“Every effort is being made to issue the decision as soon as possible.”
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