There has been criticism of Scottish Borders Council after hospitality food and drink items from the Queen’s Baton Relay were dumped in a lay-by.
A driver at the Borders Book Festival spotted the rubbish in the lay-by on the English side of the border, just beyond Coldstream bridge, on Saturday, June 14, during one of several trips to Berwick-upon-Tweed railway station to collect VIPs.
This was also the day the baton relay entered Scotland, crossing the border at Coldstream.
The driver said: “The rubbish was in the lay-by, which didn’t have a bin, for three days.
“It was hospitality products, such as food and drink containers and packaging. Most of it was empty, but some appeared unopened.
“It was marked with SBC labelling.
“When I passed on Monday and saw it was still there, I stopped and bagged it and took it to landfill. I estimate my three bags held about 100kg of rubbish. It was an unsightly mess.”
SBC had provided catering for staff and partner agencies involved in the baton event.
A council spokesman told us: “Unfortunately some waste items were obviously not uplifted from the south side of Coldstream Bridge.
“A member of SBC staff reported leftover waste to our Neighbourhood Operations team on the morning of Monday, June 16, but when they attended later that day the refuse had already been removed.
“We are extremely grateful to the member of the public who took the time to uplift the rubbish.”