Land Reform Bill: 'Potential to make newer farm entrants in Scotland'

The Land Reform Bill has the potential to make newer entrants, younger farmers and help older tenants retire more easily, according to the Scottish Tenant Farmers Association.

Commenting in advance of the parliamentary debate on the Land Reform Bill, STFA chairman Christopher Nicholson said: “Although the timescales are tight, this is not a rushed bill, it has been subjected to two years of research, two substantial reports and some intense engagement by government and the Rural Affairs committee.

The union said that a wide range of views has been listened to and the result is a bill that strives to be radical while striking a balance between competing rights and interests.

“The changes to rent reviews, succession and compensation for improvements for tenant farmers in Part 10 of the Bill represent the biggest reform to agricultural holdings since the post war 1948 Act. However, although the bill, as it stands, strengthens the position of existing secure tenancies, it does little to help those wanting to get a start in agriculture or those on Limited Partnerships or other short term tenancies who would like to move up the farming ladder.

The new Modern Limited Duration Tenancies are little different from LDTs and landlords will inevitably prefer to keep control of the land and use short-term arrangements or contract farming.

Nowadays decisions on letting land are largely opportunistic and driven by access to CAP payments.

Non-family members

Against this background the Scottish Government intends to introduce amendments at Stage 2 allowing non-family assignation under certain conditions and creating a new full repairing lease.

“This new provision carefully balances the rights of landlords and tenants by creating a process in which 1991 tenants can assign their tenancies on the same terms to a new entrant or a farmer who is progressing through the industry (including tenants on short-term tenancies and Limited Partnership tenancies).

"As a balancing measure, the landlord has the option to buy out the tenant’s interest during the process; otherwise the tenant can proceed with the assignation.

“Although this measure does not go as far as we would have liked, it is, in many ways the missing piece in the tenancy jigsaw and potentially a game changer in making the bill a more complete package. The assignation proposal will open up opportunities for tenants to retire with a realistic waygo valuation and allow new entrants and progressing or developing farmers access to secure tenancies with the added benefit of slowing down the decline in secure tenancies. Above all this proposal has the potential to re-instate the missing rungs in the farming ladder and widen access to secure tenancies.

“In response to the RACCE recommendation, the government has also committed to bringing forward a new repairing tenancy which would allow landlords to rent out land in need of improvement with minimal fixed equipment on at least a 35 year term to allow the tenant to reap the benefit of his improvements before handing back an improved holding to the landlord. Other provisos are that the rent should be based on the productive capacity of the holding at the start of the lease and the tenant must receive compensation for his improvements.

“The Land Reform Bill is taking shape, but it will need careful consideration and hard work at Stage 2 to get the detail right to produce the next stepping-stone on the long road to Land and Tenancy Reform.”