MEMBERS of a Borders community council have been assured they will not have to foot the bill for ongoing repairs to an historic cross.

Cockburnspath Community Council has been trying for many years to get an agreement in place to allow it to carry out necessary repairs the well-weathered Merket Cross in the town’s Market Place.

But after extensive attempts by elected members to bring this to a satisfactory conclusion the matter is still no further forward.

When members of Scottish Borders Council (SBC) met last month, an open question was submitted by East Berwickshire councillor James Anderson.

He asked: “Can SBC give written assurance to Cockburnspath Community Council that, repairs paid for by the community council will not result in them being liable for the Merket Cross in future?”

In response, Kelso councillor Simon Mountford, SBC’s executive member for estate management and planning, said: “The Merket Cross is a grade A listed historic monument and the ownership of the cross has not yet been established.

“It is not recorded on the council’s asset register and legal services are trying to establish the ownership of the land on which the cross sits, because under Scots law if the council owns the land then the ownership of the cross on which it sits also rests with SBC.

“The community council has been in extensive correspondence with the council’s heritage planning team and once ownership of the cross is established the easiest way to ensure that repairs to cross are undertaken to an appropriate standard would be for the community council to pass funding to SBC under a legal agreement and the for council to undertake the necessary works.

“So, once ownership is established there will be no risk of any future liability for the works resting with the community council.”