Mairi Gougeon

The new Land Reform (Scotland) Bill includes measures that will apply to large landholdings of over 1,000 hectares, prohibiting sales in certain cases until ministers can consider the impact on the local community. This could lead to some landholdings being lotted into smaller parts if that may help local communities.

It will also help to empower communities with more opportunities to own land through introducing advance notice of certain sales from large landholdings. Large landholdings of over 1,000 hectares represent more than 50 per cent of Scotland’s land.

The bill will also place legal responsibilities on the owners of the very largest landholdings to show how they use their land and how that use contributes to key public policy priorities, such as addressing climate change and protecting and restoring nature. These owners will also have to engage with local communities about how they use the land.

It includes a duty on Scottish ministers to publish a model Land Management Tenancy which will support people to use and manage land in a way that meets their and the nation’s needs.

It also includes a number of measures to reform tenant farming and small landholding legislation, providing more opportunities to improve land, to become more sustainable and productive and to ensure that tenants are fairly rewarded for their investment of time and resources in compensation at end of tenancy.

Rural affairs secretary Mairi Gougeon said: “We do not think it is right that ownership and control of much of Scotland’s land is still in the hands of relatively few people. We want Scotland to have a strong and dynamic relationship between its land and people.

“We want to be a nation where rights and responsibilities in relation to land and its natural capital are fully recognised and fulfilled. That was our aim in 2016, and it remains our aim today.

“So, this bill sets out ambitious proposals to allow the benefits and opportunities of Scotland’s land to be more widely shared.

“Too often, people and communities feel powerless when the land they live on is sold with no prior warning – this bill will help to change that. We will introduce measures so that more communities are be given information and the opportunity to take on ownership before sales from landholdings over 1,000 hectares.

“Crucially, when one of these landholdings is being sold, we want government to have the power to step in and require that it be sold in smaller parcels to different people if that will help to make local populations and communities more sustainable.”

Welcoming the bill, Michael Russell, chair of the Scottish Land Commission, said: “We are pleased to welcome the publication of the Scottish government’s new Land Reform Bill, which draws on our research and analysis.

“This landmark legislation is a meaningful and important step forward in addressing the over-concentration of land ownership, which continues to be a central issue in Scotland’s ongoing journey of land reform.

“Our research has consistently shown the pitfalls associated with such a concentration of land ownership, including the impacts that localised monopolies can have on local economic opportunities and communities.”

Hamish Trench, chief executive of the Scottish Land Commission, added: “Scotland’s land is a resource that people need to be able to use to support jobs, housing, climate action and economic opportunities across the country.

“The proposed measures in the bill, including a new power for ministers to require the lotting of large land holdings prior to sale, are significant steps towards a fairer and more dynamic approach to land ownership in Scotland.

“Our research shows that governments worldwide often regulate land markets to safeguard the public interest and support sustainable development. In so doing Scotland would be operating within a widely recognised and accepted approach to land rights and regulation.

“We look forward to providing further evidence and advice to support the bill’s consideration in parliament.”