Parliamentary committee to examine priorities in crofting reform

Recognising that a significant amount of work has already been undertaken to identify improvements to crofting legislation, the committee will hear evidence from organisations representing crofters, crofting law experts and the Crofting Commission on action which may help accelerate progress in this area.

Convener of the Committee, Edward Mountain MSP said: “Crofting brings invaluable jobs, produce and income to our rural communities, and the committee understands the Scottish government will bring forward a crofting bill in the next few years. Detailed work has already identified issues which the proposed legislation might cover, and the committee is working to complement this with its own review of priorities for change.

Mr Mountain added: “Crofting issues can be complex and often specific to a local area. The committee wants to hear views from those with direct, ‘frontline’ experience of crofting issues, and those who have a detailed knowledge of the law in this area. We have no desire to duplicate or go over old ground. Our objective is to identify the key priorities and establish whether there is any potential for delivering on some of these to quickly alleviate certain challenges faced by Scotland’s crofters.”

On completion of the review of crofting law priorities, the Rural Economy and Connectivity Committee will write to the Scottish government with recommendations for action.