24/02/2012
Urgent attention is required to address challenges facing the tenant farming community in Scotland, according to a report published today by the Rural Affairs, Climate Change and Environment Committee.
The Stage 1 report on the Agricultural Holdings (Amendment) (Scotland) Bill, asks the Scottish Government to give further consideration to two of the provisions in the Bill, to ensure that certain individuals are not excluded unnecessarily from the benefits of the Bill.
The committee also examined a raft of other issues relevant to tenant farming in Scotland. These included:
- how to attract more new entrants into farming
- how to ensure tenants are appropriately compensated for improvements made to farms
- how to improve regulation of land agents
- and how a more accessible and effective method of dispute resolution could be developed.
Committee Convener Rob Gibson MSP said: “The committee unanimously supports this Bill which makes some modest, but overdue and necessary changes to agricultural holdings law in Scotland.
"We hope these changes will be a step in the right direction towards establishing an appropriate balance between landlords and tenants in our farming communities.
“However, it is clear from the evidence we received that there are many other outstanding issues that need to be addressed to ensure that Scotland has a healthy and vibrant tenant farming sector to pass on to future generations. We recommend that the Scottish Government continues to address these issues as a matter of urgency.”
- Picture of tractor with harrow © Ian Hamilton/iStockphoto