Government priorities on land reform do not reflect public concerns, according to Scottish Land & Estates (SLE), which represents landowners.
The organisation was responding to a report from the Scottish Land Commission – ScotLand Futures – which sought the views of 1,200 people on land ownership, transparency and community involvement.
While the Scottish government and the commission regard these as core drivers of reform, SLE says the results show limited public support for many of the changes being pursued.
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For example, only 24% of respondents believed land ownership is concentrated in too few hands, just 21% felt major landowners should be part of the communities affected by their decisions, and 9.4% said tax changes would significantly influence how land is owned and used.
SLE chief executive Sarah-Jane Laing said: “Landowners are every bit as committed to change – real change that boosts rural jobs, communities and the environment.
“Yet the report’s headline claim that 96% of respondents ‘want change’ offers little clarity because the report fails to say what that change is supposed to be.”
She added: “Only 24% of respondents said ownership is too concentrated; put another way, this suggests that more than 75% did not view Scotland’s pattern of land ownership as a problem.”
Ms Laing said the findings provided “an interesting insight to what people actually think” and called for clarity on what the commission would ask of the Scottish government, local authorities and others “who actually hold the levers to drive meaningful change in key areas such as planning and funding for rural development”.
Community ownership
Land reform secretary Mairi Gougeon said she welcomed separate statistics showing a 2.8% rise in assets under community ownership since last year.
She said: “Communities taking on responsibilities for buildings and land can open up incredible opportunities to build hubs for local people, safeguard vital amenities and give people a greater say and influence in their neighbourhoods.”
Community rights to buy have expanded since their introduction in the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003, with later legislation extending compulsory purchase powers and enabling rural, urban, and crofting communities to acquire land to support community development.