A SCOTTISH Borders Council meeting had to be abandoned after only one councillor attended it.

More than a dozen attendees gathered via Microsoft Teams for a meeting of the Teviot and Liddesdale Area Partnership on September 19.

They included Inspector Robbie Noble, of Scottish Borders Police, and various community leaders.

On the agenda were grant applications from local groups and community council updates.

But just as it started the meeting was abandoned because there was only one elected member in attendance, the chair councillor Clair Ramage, who represents Hawick and Denholm.

None of the other five elected representatives for the Hawick and Hermitage or Hawick and Denholm wards were present.

That meant there was not the quorum of councillors required to enable the meeting to proceed and for decisions to be made.

Ms Ramage said: “I have to apologise that the meeting cannot go-ahead basically because I am the only councillor on the meeting and we need to have, I think I am right in saying, at least one councillor from each ward.

“If within 10 minutes after the time appointed for a meeting of the council a quorum of members is not present the chair will adjourn the meeting to a time which they may then afterwards fix.

“I have to apologise as we were very well organised for tonight’s meeting and we just hope we can get a date when everyone can be in attendance.”

Members were informed that Hawick and Hermitage councillor Watson McAteer was at a presentation event and that Hawick and Denholm councillor Neil Richards and Hawick and Hermitage’s Annette Smart were on holiday. Hawick and Denholm representative Stuart Marshall’s absence was work-related and Hawick and Hermitage councillor Jane Cox’s cited a “personal matter”.

Area partnerships are seen as a way for communities to have a say in the decision-making process, via their elected members.

It is hoped to reconvene the meeting in mid-October.