Trust welcomes update to Land Reform Bill

Scottish Politicians have voted to double the number of landowners included in Land Reform Bill

Following campaigning from the John Muir Trust, Ramblers Scotland, Community Land Scotland and others, the number of estates which will be required to publish Land Management Plans, support wild places and comply with the Scottish Outdoor Access Code has been doubled to a total of about 700, covering just over 60% of Scotland’s land.

MSPs scrutinizing the Land Reform Bill in committee at Holyrood voted to lower the threshold of estates included in legislation to 1,000 hectares.

Earlier this year, our Director of Policy David Fleetwood gave evidence to the Net Zero and Transport Committee, setting out the Trust’s views that land reform is needed in Scotland due to the poor track record of many large landowners.

Until the new amendment was passed, only extremely large estates of more than 3,000 hectares – the equivalent of 6,000 football pitches – were included. 

Thomas Widrow, the Trust's Head of Campaigns, said: “The Land Reform Bill is a critical piece of legislation for wild places. We have been making a strong case to lower the threshold for defining a ‘large landholding' down to 1,000 hectares so we are delighted that MSPs have taken our advice.

“Land Management Plans must deliver for wild places. That is why we need to make sure large estates are legally obliged to manage the land in their care for nature restoration, with local communities at the heart of that effort.

“As a significant landowner ourselves, we would be subject to this new requirement. We are clear that having a legal obligation to develop Land Management Plans is absolutely needed. Nature is collapsing, and wild places are under threat across the country.

The Land Reform Bill can help reverse that trend, if enough large landowners like ourselves are subject to the requirements.”

The Trust's views on the Land Reform Bill are supported by evidence from work published by Scottish Land and Estates (SLE) on activities of their members (larger landowners in Scotland), which shows that:

•  54% of estates don’t restore rivers, flood plains or riparian habitats.
• 57% don’t plant and maintain hedges for wildlife or implement natural solutions to manage floodwater.
• 66% aren’t involved in managing or creating woodland.
• 70% aren’t involved in restoring grassland, wetland, heathland and/or costal habitats.

You can find out more about the Land Reform Bill and watch David give evidence to the Net Zero and Transport Committee on the Scottish Parliament website.