Land Reform

Radical Measures for Fairer Ownership

Scotland has one of the most unequal land ownership patterns in the developed world, with half of our total land area owned by fewer than 1000 individuals. But the SNP has been committed to improving Scotland's system of land ownership, use, rights and responsibilities, so that our land may contribute to a fair and just society while balancing public and private interests.

The radical and ambitious Community Empowerment (Scotland) Act 2015 and Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2016 had already transformed how we own, manage and access land in Scotland. And in 2017, the SNP Scottish Government set up the Scottish Land Commission as a new statutory public body to engage with the public and advise ministers on land reform.

Last year, it went considerably further with the passing of a new Land Reform (Scotland) Bill in November.

This landmark legislation will help create new small landholdings to increase farming opportunities and bring agricultural tenancy law into the 21^st century. The Bill will give Ministers powers to split up landholdings of over 1,000 hectares when being sold, provided that it is in the public interest to do so.

It also modernises how new small landholdings are created and operate, protecting their rights and helping new entrants and the next generation of farmers to get access to land.

Scotland’s concentrated patterns of ownership developed over centuries, with ownership and control of our nation’s land in the hands of the few for too long. In future, thanks to the SNP, communities will have advance notice of sales of large land holdings and Ministers will have the powers to pause them to allow the option of a Right to Buy application to be explored.