Land reform report & Bill could be a game changer

While 264 pages with no executive summary isn’t the most accessible way to release such an important piece of work, the final report of the Land Reform Review Group is definitely worth the read. What’s contained within all those pages is thought provoking, challenging and genuinely radical. Based on the idea of the ‘common good’ (which benefits society as a whole), the report’s recommendations are backed up by the principles of social justice, participation and human rights. There are similarities with the Common Weal and particularly with the idea of greater equity in distribution of wealth, and how that would reduce the concentration of power and influence which exists in land ownership. Thankfully the authors don’t shy away from acknowledging that Scotland’s land ownership patterns are unusual and archaic. We have the highest concentration of private land ownership in Europe and it’s unlikely this will change any time soon, but at least there is now a route being mapped out to achieve more modern and equitable distribution. There are 62 broad recommendations tackling areas as diverse as housing, taxation and regeneration. Many of these can be taken forward immediately, and the Scottish Government has already committed to register all land in Scotland within the next ten years. The Community Empowerment Bill which is due to be introduced in the middle of June is expected to legislate for some of the recommendations. At the least these should include changes to the Land Reform Act which will make it more effective and extend rights to all communities. Others such as reform of Compulsory Purchase Order legislation are more challenging and will require further consultation and consideration. These are more likely to be addressed by the newly announced Land Reform Bill. It’s important that the Scottish Government continues to respond positively to this important report and support the direction of travel laid out. That’s why SCVO has joined up with a number of third sector organisations to issue this briefing to MSPs. Land reform now has the independent report it deserves and a Land Reform Bill to help move things forward. If the Scottish Government is serious about land reform, the bill must adopt the principles of the common good laid out in the report and not shy away from its more challenging recommendations.