THE future of a popular golf and country club remains unclear after it surrendered its premises licence.

Whitekirk Golf and Country Club closed in February, when guests were asked to leave and the power was turned off.

In April, a spokesman for Golf Coast PLC, the company which runs the facility at Whitekirk, said there were plans to reopen the facility “in the coming months”. However, local councillor Jim Goodfellow said he had heard nothing to suggest the golf and country club was close to reopening.

Mr Goodfellow, who is the convener of East Lothian Licensing Board, had heard little about what the future held for the facility but was hopeful something could be done.

He said: “I think it is a great shame that it has been left to go the way it has.

“It was a very useful tourist facility in the area and used by many local people for leisure. It is a great shame to see it go.”

The future of the facility was highlighted at the licensing board’s meeting last Thursday morning in Haddington.

Contact between East Lothian Council and the company which owns Whitekirk Golf and Country Club has been ongoing since July, when the local authority wrote to all licensed premises about the annual fee for their licence.

Further contact took place in October, when an email to East Lothian Council from one of the partners said he suspected they would “just surrender the licence”.

On Thursday morning, committee members heard the licence had indeed been surrendered.

Mr Goodfellow also highlighted that planning permission was still in place for the creation of a 100-bed hotel at the site, as well as housing.

The groundwork on the hotel began in June 2015 – two years after it was given planning approval, with the hotel expected to employ between 50 and 60 people when it was operational.

He added: “There is no change there. If someone wants to come along and build the hotel, they have got planning permission and once the hotel is finished they could build the houses.”