At 6:37am on 7th July, 7 police vans containing West Yorkshire Police arrived outside the front of the Sheraton Hotel, Edinburgh.

They slowly began to deploy in an apparently similar formation to yesterday (see earlier article "Report and analysis of Police Tactics around the Sheraton Hotel"). Road blockers where parked ready, but not deployed, in the same locations as on the 6th of July.

Police vans where moved in to a line in Festival Square. And small groups of police formed checkpoints at the entrances to the Hotel Complex.

West Approach road was not closed, although a lorry carrying metal barriers, and one police car, where parked at the junction of the Morrison Link road in preperation.

As of 7:30am, Traffic lights where not disabled, although a van containing police traffic wardens was observed in the area.

Overall, the tactics seem identical to yesterday. Police patrols where in operation (although, not the aggressive stop and search operation conducted by the Met Police on the 6th).

The police presence, today, was significantly smaller, and deployed significantly later on (many hours, some mainstream press reported police where in position from 2am on the morning of the 6th).

Riot sheilds and other equipment where being casually distributed to police from the back of a lorry between about 7am and 7:30am.

The absence of protestors today meant that the police have yet to deploy the traffic control measures that they were seen using on the 6th. However, the police appear to be in position to use them if required.

It could be concluded from this that yesterday's protestor presence, and the organising activites leading up to, it had a significant effect on police resource utilisation in Edinburgh on the 6th. And that police are prepared to use similar tactics, as of 7:30am today, in the event of a spontaneous action.