We need a referendum on trams – NO, we just had an election.

We have just had an election at which most people in Edinburgh voted for parties that support trams.

Each pro-tram party put their support for trams at the heart of their manifestoes. It wasn’t tucked away on page 99. Everybody had the chance to vote on trams. Here are the results:

Pro tram candidates

Liberal Democrat: 17

Labour: 15

Conservative: 11

Green: 3

Total pro tram Candidates: 46

Anti-tram candidates

SNP: 12

Total anti-tram candidates: 12

Before the election, leading tram supporters and opponents called for the election on May 3rd to be a tram referendum.

Labour said to treat the election as a referendum on trams.

Tina Woolnough, the leading anti-tram protester (who was standing as an Independent for the council, and lost) wrote to the Evening News saying the elections were the only referendum we would have.

They were. The result of that was resounding.

We do not need a referendum because, unlike for congestion charging, there is near-unanimous cross-party support for their re-introduction. They have the practically-unanimous support of the business, academic, transport, and environment sectors. There is nothing controversial about the trams.