Rishi Sunak joined residents in Hudswell to celebrate the reopening of the village’s community-owned pub, the George and Dragon, with new tenants taking over the inn.
The Richmond and Northallerton MP visited the pub on its opening day to meet new tenants Sam Harrison and Becky Westgarth, alongside members of the pub committee and local residents.
During the visit, Mr Sunak heard about plans for the future of the pub, including enhancements to the food offering, maintaining its reputation for quality cask ales and carrying out minor improvements to the interior while preserving the building’s character.
The George and Dragon became a community-owned pub in 2010 after villagers came together to save it from closure. Since then, it has become one of the country’s best-known examples of successful community ownership, winning multiple awards and remaining at the heart of village life.
The pub is owned by Hudswell Community Pub Ltd, a co-operative and community benefit society set up to secure the future of the business for local people.
Mr Sunak, who has previously spoken in support of community-owned pubs across the constituency, said village pubs remained important social hubs for rural communities.
He said: “It was a pleasure to join everyone in Hudswell for the reopening of the George and Dragon and to welcome Sam and Becky as they take on this much-loved pub.
“This pub has an outstanding story behind it, with local people stepping forward to save their pub and I wish Sam and Becky much success.”
Sam and Becky, who also run the Green Dragon, said they were excited to begin the next chapter for the pub.
“It was great to welcome Rishi, especially on our opening day and it gave everyone a boost,” they said.
“Our plans for the pub are to build on everything that people already value about the pub. We’ll be making some small improvements to the interior, but making sure we keep the character and charm that make the pub so special.”
The George and Dragon was recently used as a filming location for the television series Our Yorkshire Pub, with the episode expected to air later this year.
