Councillor suspended by SNP after cannabis farm charge

A Scottish Borders councillor says she has been suspended by the SNP after being charged with drug offences.

Aileen Orr, 70, was arrested following the discovery of a cannabis farm at a property near Paxton, Berwickshire, in February last year.

Her son Duncan Orr, 29, was also arrested and charged. They are expected to appear in court at a later date.

Orr said she "vehemently" denied the charges. The SNP said she had left the party while the investigation continued.

She has remained in her role as representative for the East Berwickshire ward, and will sit as an independent.

The cannabis farm was discovered after police were called to a report of men banging on the window of a remote property near Paxton late at night on 3 February 2024.

When officers arrived they found no trace of the men, but they did subsequently find cannabis with an estimated street value of about £500,000.

Following reports about the charges in the media, Orr said in a statement: "I categorically and vehemently deny any criminality alleged against me.

"I have never, nor would ever, knowingly allow a cannabis cultivation on any property I own.

"I had no access to the property at the time of this cannabis find and will allow due process by the authorities to establish this and to bring the perpetrators to justice."

The councillor also expressed her "disappointment" at being suspended by the party.

"I have been a loyal SNP member for over 55 years," she said. "I followed all internal party processes and the leadership of the SNP council group at SBC [Scottish Borders Council] were fully aware of events."

Orr served as an adviser to former Scottish government minister Michael Russell between 2007 and 2011.

She spoke about the incident during at the SNP conference last year, but did not mention the discovery of the cannabis.

At an event organised by the Scottish Police Federation and attended by Justice Secretary Angela Constance, Orr said she was "crying on the phone" and thought she "was going to die" when she called officers about two men outside the property.

Orr said it took 29 minutes for Police Scotland to arrive and that by then the two men had fled.

The force said officers arrived at the "remote property" within 19 minutes of the call.

The Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service confirmed that the procurator fiscal had received a report "concerning a 70-year-old woman and a 29-year-old man in connection with an alleged incident in the Scottish Borders on 3 February 2024".