(Secretary of State: Mr Gordon Campbell). 27 November 1972: The Scotsman quoted Lord Melgund: “the mansion will be demolished, probably in February”.

1977: Expiry of 1972 listed building consent. De-listed, there being three explanations, all deriving from Historic Scotland, as to why: it was assumed that it would be demolished; that it had been; under pressure from the family (Secretary of State: Mr Bruce Millan).

1986: Lord Minto re-elected to Borders Regional Council (he had previously served 1974-80), becoming Convenor in 1990. He is also on the Planning Committee.

July 1987: Mr Lauder-Frost (of Duns and London) wrote to SAVE seeking its support for the setting up of “a Building Preservation Trust with the aim of rebuilding and restoring Minto House”. He applied — unsuccessfully — to Borders Regional Council for the service of a Building Preservation Order. Written response from Lord Minto: “I do not wish to sell”. This was one of many known enquiries over the years (Secretary of State:

Mr Malcolm Rifkind).

March 1991: Press announcement of the ‘Japan deal’: Minto House to be dismantled stone by stone, shipped to Japan, reconstructed and restored as part of a country club development. By now it had become a roofless structural shell, but was clearly in a good enough condition for this deal. Unsuccessful lobbying for listed status to be reinstated.

28 July 1992: Minto House visited by an Historic Scotland Inspector and the Borders Regional Council Conservation Officer.

20 August 1992: The Scotsman announced abandonment of the Japan plan; recession blamed. Lord Minto quoted as saying demolition will start “next month”. SAVE wrote to Historic Scotland.

22 August 1992: I visited Minto House, photographed it and reported to SAVE. Some stone superlative, some badly weathered, centremost four bays of south elevation collapsed but otherwise, apart from some minor distortions, impressively sound in its structural shell. Conservation Officer’s assessment coincided with this.

27 August 1992: Telephone call mid morning: demolition had commenced and fires were burning (internal timbers). It later transpired that the works had started, unobserved, on 25 August. Historic Scotland press release, around 4.30pm:

spot-listed category A by Secretary of State (Mr Ian Lang) who “interrupted his holiday to take the decision personally”. Listing refers to “Minto House and Garden Terraces”.

28 August 1992: Demolition halted. Press release by Lord Minto: “I have been advised (by the Building Control Officer and the surveyor employed to arrange the demolition) that it would be unrealistic to try to make the structure safe, and the correct course is to proceed immediately with the interrupted demolition”.

30 August 1992: Douglas Connell, Lord

Minto’s solicitor, over the ‘phone: “Lord Minto wants to keep the Lorimer terraces”. 31 August 1992: Lord Minto applied for listed building consent to demolish. Site meeting with Borders Regional Council officials, Lord Minto’s surveyor, and observers from Historic Scotland.

1 September 1992: First (of three) Dangerous Building Notices served by the Building Control Officer (dated 31 August). Notice related primarily to the central core, at and around the main stairhall, but also to two-thirds of one side of the garden elevation (south), including the chamfered south-west corner with its William Adam fenestration. The courtyard walls were agreed to be structurally sound; however, the ‘giant mechanical digger’ was ordered by the Director of Planning to go into the core through the east wing because “the gardens are as important as the building”. The Building Control Officer has described this as a “categorical insistence”. The gardens are completely overgrown and are not listed; the garden terraces are. There exists a route into the gardens which avoids the terraces, and indeed this route was employed subsequently for mechanical access to shift and tidy up the demolished walling. Additionally, when asked why a fence could not have been erected in the manner of Mavisbank (another William Adam house), the Director of Planning advised that “it would have taken nearly a week” (even if true, so what?). Press release by Lord Minto:

“I have issued instructions that the terms of

Minto House from the south-east, showing the courtyard, 22 August 1992.

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