Scottish Parliament passes land reform bill

The Scottish Parliament has approved land reforms that could force the breakup of some large estates.

The bill is designed to help reduce the concentration of rural land ownership among a small number of people and give communities a greater say in what happens on privately owned land.

It also seeks to increase opportunities for land purchases by communities and could allow large properties to be divided into smaller plots when they are put up for sale.

After three days of debates, with almost 400 amendments tabled, the Land Reform (Scotland) Bill was passed with 85 votes in favour, 28 against and nine abstentions.

About half of Scotland’s land belongs to just 420 people, according to research by former Green MP Andy Wightman.

The government said its reforms would help address that imbalance.

Land reform advocates welcomed some aspects of the bill, but said it did not go far enough.

Opponents warned that the sweeping legislation would not work in practice and argued against government intervention in land transactions.

Parliament backed the creation of a “transfer test”, which would ensure that the sale or transfer of a large property (greater than 1,000 hectares) cannot be completed without the owners first asking ministers for a decision on whether to subdivide the land into “lots”.

The bill also says that if someone wants to sell a large piece of land, they must notify the government. Ministers would, in turn, notify community groups and offer them the opportunity to purchase the land.

The legislation will force owners of large properties to inform the surrounding community more about what is happening on their land by publishing a land management plan. Failure to comply with this requirement could result in a fine of up to £40,000.

The legislation will also pave the way for the creation of a Land and Communities Commissioner to oversee, investigate and report on some of the key objectives of the bill.

Patrick Colquhoun, deputy chief executive of Luss Estates, which owns almost 50,000 acres of land around Loch Lomond, said the legislation could lead to an “infringement” of property rights.

Colquhoun, who is also vice-chairman of Scottish Land and Estates, told the BBC’s Scotcast podcast that he feared the definition of large landed property could be narrowed in the future.

“There is already pressure on the government to reduce that to 500 (hectares), then 200, then 10, then five and suddenly your house plot, your garden plot could be threatened,” he said.

Some lawyers have also expressed concern. Don Macleod, director of land and property at law firm Turcan Connell, described the bill as “rubbish”, arguing that ambiguity over the definition of large land ownership could make the law “unworkable and impossible”.

Community Land Scotland, which represents community landowners, said the bill was a “step forward” for land reform.

However, he warned that the measures do not “go far enough to meaningfully intervene in the land market and change ownership patterns.”

Rural Affairs Secretary Mairi Gougeon told MPs the reforms would improve the way land is owned and managed for the benefit “of the many, not the few”.

He said MSPs would allow communities to “breathe new life into rural communities”.

Responding to concerns that the bill was not radical enough, he said the reforms were “balanced and proportionate”.

The Scottish Conservatives’ rural affairs spokesman, Tim Eagle, described the bill as “unworkable and devastating”, arguing it would “harm rural businesses and reduce land available for rent”.

Other parties argued that the reforms did not go far enough.

Scottish Labor Rural Affairs spokesperson Rhoda Grant said: “We support any improvements to Scotland’s land management, but this weak Bill is largely tinkering around the edges.

“The only significant change is to introduce untested batch provisions and take steps to stop off-market sales.”

Green Rural Affairs spokesperson Ariane Burgess said ministers had shown a “lack of ambition to deliver the real land reform that is so vital”.