75 ORGANISATIONS BACK MARCH AGAINST AI DATA CENTRES IN EDINBURGH
Campaigners have announced that 75 organisations and groups across sectors including trade unions, anti-war groups, and housing campaigners are backing the Stop AI Data Centres march in Edinburgh next Saturday 14th November.
Thousands are expected to join the rally down the Royal Mile in the capital which is part of a Europe wide wave of protests to “Stop Dirty Data Centres”, with over 70 demonstrations taking place in 15 countries this month.
Groups supporting the march are bringing a wide variety of different concerns around AI data centres, in addition to highly publicised environmental impacts.
Anti-war groups highlight the growing use of AI in military settings, while housing and anti-poverty groups are concerned about the impact a proliferation of data centres could have on household energy bills. Trade unions are highlighting that rather than provide jobs, AI growth is actually making working conditions more insecure.
At least 23 proposals for huge AI data centres have been submitted by big tech developers in Scotland, with many grassroots community campaigns opposing them formed in response. The March will escalate pressure on the Scottish Government, who campaigners feel have not done enough to mitigate the potential harms of the data centres.
Charities are demanding that the Scottish Government publicly consult on these plans for AI data centres before making decisions to approve them, in a ‘national conversation’ where people across Scotland can have their say.
The march is being organised by a coalition of groups including Friends of the Earth Scotland, Action to Protect Rural Scotland and numerous local campaign groups protesting data centres, including in Dumfries & Galloway, Edinburgh, Larbert and more.
Claire Robertson from Edinburgh Trades Union Council said: “The Edinburgh Trades Union Council stands in solidarity with community campaigners marching against the unchecked expansion of artificial intelligence data centres.
“They demand massive public infrastructure and resource support, yet return virtually no secure, permanent, or unionised jobs for the local communities forced to host them.
“As representatives of working people across Edinburgh, we recognise that the physical infrastructure of Big Tech cannot be separated from the broader economic, human, and environmental exploitation taking place in our communities and workplaces.
“We demand that public resources are protected under democratic control. Technological progress must serve the collective good, and the massive wealth generated by automated systems must be fairly redistributed to the society that builds it, rather than hoarded by a handful of tech billionaires.”
Gordon Maloney, Chair of tenants’ union Living Rent Edinburgh said: “Rather than build homes and invest in public infrastructure, this government is imposing data centres on communities with no thought for what people want.
“We cannot allow this to happen in Scotland. Data centres are fuelling the explosion of AI, driving up the profits of big tech and mega corporations and dismantling the working conditions of ordinary people.
“Not only that but the energy consumption of these centres is fuelling the rise in energy bills and pushing people further into poverty.
“Our politicians are supposed to protect the interests of the people, not big corporations. We need our politicians to stand up for the people who live in Scotland and stop AI data centres being built across the country.”
Coll McCail, representing the Stop the War Coalition in Scotland said: “The rise of AI and the growing power of the tech oligarchy are intimately tied to the military-industrial complex.
“The Pentagon, for example, has already adopted an “AI first” approach to warfare, spending $9 billion on data centres.
“Closer to home, Peter Theil’s Palantir has embedded itself within the Ministry of Defence, and the UK Government has contracted Raytheon to train 60,000 soldiers in military AI every year.
“Scotland’s proposed data centres may yet be put in service for such aims, without sufficient public debate or discussion. That’s why Stop the War Coalition has significant concerns about these developments and why we’re demanding a change in approach.”
Friends of the Earth Scotland’s Kim Pratt commented: “The movement against AI data centres is growing day by day as people realise the threats they pose to our land, our energy and our environment.
“It is heartening to see so many diverse and respected organisations coming together to speak out and to join the March.”
