BORDERERS visiting Edinburgh next week may see an increased presence of emergency services and military vehicles on the streets of the city.

But this is nothing to be alarmed about.

Police Scotland is taking part in a multi-agency simulated exercise to test the response to a major incident which will take place from Monday October 17 to Thursday October 20 2022.

It’s one of many pre-planned exercises that provides training and experience working with other agencies.

Exercises happen regularly at various levels with other emergency services and organisations.

Due to the coronavirus pandemic, the last exercise of a similar scale held in Scotland was October 2017.

This exercise will test the multi-agency response to a major incident involving hazardous materials.

Assistant Chief Constable Mark Williams, head of Operational Support, said: “This is one of many pre-planned exercises and not in response to any specific threat.

“The public should rightly expect Police Scotland to practice and strengthen our response to a major incident alongside other organisations.

“We are part of a well-established multi-agency training programme that provides valuable training and learning.

“It’s important for exercises to be as realistic as possible however they are always planned proportionately in controlled settings and there will be limited disruption to people living nearby.”