Man dismayed at condition of Inveresk Cemetery takes his own action

Ewan Mclay (pictued below), 51, from Musselburgh, used shears to cut the hedge near to where visitors collect water for flowers they place at the graveside.

He regularly visits the last resting places of his partner, mother, grandparents and twin brother, who died at two days old.

“My partner is buried there so I am there every week,” he said: “I took shears and planned to cut a bit of the hedge and leave it to see the difference.

Ewan Mclay

“Then I thought, if a job’s worth doing, it’s worth doing right, so I cut the whole hedge.”

He branded the new part of the cemetery “a disgrace,” claiming: “None of the edgings have been done and the weeds are knee high.”

He was concerned that if people started helping too much at the cemetery, “the council might do less”, adding: “If it goes to rack and ruin, they might have to do something.”

He said a flower bed in the cemetery, which was usually planted with fuchsias, marigolds and dahlias, was empty this year.

“There might not be money for plants but at least they can cut the grass and hedges,” he added.

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An East Lothian Council spokesperson said: “Our amenity services teams have been working incredibly hard throughout the Covid-19 pandemic to maintain services and focus on critical activities. There have been some recent staffing challenges within the burial team who have had to support a high number of funerals during the summer.

“While this has unfortunately had an impact on the amount of normal grass cutting we are able to do – compounded by weather conditions which enable grass/weed growth – it is our intention to ensure that cemeteries such as Inveresk are maintained to the usual high standard.

"Following damage as a result of break-ins at Inveresk, staff are currently working from the Penston depot [at Macmerry]. The team are still able to carry out their normal duties and tasks from this location.”