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Poles help to fill pews at cathedral

The influx of Polish migrants to Edinburgh has doubled attendance at the city's Catholic cathedral. St Mary's Cathedral on York Place holds two additional services each week in Polish for an estimated 3000 extra church-goers. The church believes this surge in numbers has roughly doubled the size of the weekly congregation.

"There are now five masses over the weekend, two of which are in Polish, as a result of the increased population in Edinburgh of people from eastern Europe," said Simon Dames, a Catholic Church spokesman.

"One of the great things about Catholicism is that it's universal - you could be in Chile, Israel, Mozambique and you would still find a church to worship in. That's why so many Polish people attend both the mass in their native tongue as well as the English one."

The city council estimates around 8000 Polish people have arrived since EU expansion in 2004, many of them finding work in lower-paid jobs.

The Archdiocese of St Andrews and Edinburgh has teamed up with the Transport and General Workers' Union (T&G) to ensure Polish workers are not being exploited by their employers.

Full story at Edinburgh Evening News.