Scottish Churches Parliamentary Office, Edinburgh - Briefing Document Six

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Parliamentary Officer:Rev Graham Blount
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Briefing Document No 6 - Page 1 of 4

"Whose Land Is It Anyway?"

The document "Land Reform - Proposals for Legislation" is the latest in a series of consultation documents arising from the work of the Land Reform Policy Group in the Scottish Office. Responses are to be in by 17 September, and a Bill in light of these responses is promised for the autumn. As part of an "integrated programme of action and legislation over the next four or five years", these proposals cover (a) a conditional community right to buy land which comes on to the market (b) some expansion of information on who owns land and (c) a right of "responsible access" to the countryside.

The proposals are to apply to "the whole of rural Scotland" (geographically the vast majority of the country) as "a central element of our Partnership's commitment to enhance rural life". The churches have previously seen land reform as not exclusively rural, recognising also issues of housing and social justice here for urban Scotland; it might seem quite a different proposition for the community of Easterhouse to buy their land compared to the Assynt Crofters, but there are some common issues. Other promised reforms abolishing the feudal system of land tenure and reforming the law of "real burdens" will apply throughout Scotland.

Information
Any serious land reform has to be based on a level of transparency in who owns land, but data on land ownership in Scotland is notoriously hard to come by. Various proposals have been discussed by the Land Reform Policy Group, but what is now put forward is very modest. The Land Register which is currently being drawn up to replace the Register of Sasines will be "complete", it is said, by 2003; it represents a major step forward but will only cover properties which have been recently sold. While most urban properties would therefore be included after 10-15 years, vast and significant land holdings may go for centuries without being sold. Ministers are considering whether a project undertaken by Highland Council (which achieved around 95% coverage) would be "value for money" as an interim solution.

Arguably more significant is the reluctance to pursue the earlier proposal that Scottish Ministers be given power to investigate the beneficial ownership of land (eg in cases where land is held by an offshore company or trust). Although there are other areas of law in which it is possible to "lift the veil" of corporate action, it is argued that it would be "difficult if not impossible" to find "a practical and cost-effective solution" here. However, greater consideration might be given either to prohibiting such "anonymous" ownership of land or to imposing on landowners a duty to disclose the beneficial owner/s. The underlying issue is whether it is right that land on which a community depends should be held in a way that prevents members of the community from knowing the real owner.