Buccleuch Arms (Borders)

The Buccleuch Arms was “built in 1836 as a hunting lodge by the 5th Duke of Buccleuch” (whose ancestors still own grouse moors in the region). It is privately owned and its “latest accolade was Countryside Alliance Rural Pub of the Year for 2023 which we were very proud to win” (their words, not ours). The Buccleuch Arms made the headlines last year when according to The National “A TORY MSP repeatedly failed to declare an interest in blood sports while attempting to water down hunting legislation”. Rachael Hamilton, Conservative MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, part-owns the Buccleuch which regularly hosts supporters of the Lauderdale Hunt, including providing the setting for its supporters’ club annual dinner in March 2023. It also “hosted a letter-writing workshop for Lauderdale Hunt supporters to aid them in writing letters of objection to the Hunting With Dogs Bill“, a law passed in 2023 which effectively banned hunting with dogs in Scotland.