Although the landscape of this seat is mainly rural, it does include the sizeable market towns of Hawick, Kelso and Jedburghy. Hawick is the largest of all the Borders towns, and like the others grew up on the textile trade, with tweed cloth being the prime export, and has been the home of the Lyle & Scott and Pringle knitwear companies since the nineteenth century.
The decline in the textile industry has hit this seat and the neighbouring seat of Tweedale, Ettrick and Lauderdale hard.
Kelso has a certain Georgian elegance about it, and this together with a famous ruined abbey brings a fair number of tourists to the area. Tourism is also helped by the presence of parts of the Kielder Forest and the Cheviot hills. The historic tradition of holding an annual "Common Riding" is a feature of many Scottish Borders towns, Hawick is no different, but has hit the headlines in recent years due to growing protests at its ban on female horse-riders taking part in the event.