Seòmar agus comataidhean

Deer management is currently carried out across land holdings of varying size from 10Ha to over 10,000Ha. The extent of the deer management and any required collaboration is more dependent on the species and land type rather than any minimum size. For ‘territorial’ species such as roe deer the scale of management will often be at the individual farm unit; whereas for open hill red deer, that range across multiple large properties, the management scale expands to Deer Management Groups that cover many thousands of hectares.

The Code of Practice on Deer Management prescribes to everybody who owns or manages wild deer on someone else’s land (irrespective of the size of that land holding), how they should deliver sustainable deer management. A review of compliance with the Deer Code published 2019 concluded that where it was relevant to them, a majority of owner-occupiers, across varying land holdings, had undertaken actions to meet each of the themes outlined in the Deer Code. NatureScot, in their role as Scotland’s deer authority, work with a range of partners, including the Association of Deer Management Groups, local deer management groups and individual land managers to develop effective planning and deliver deer management across Scotland.

The cost crisis is placing huge pressures on households, particularly on those who rent their home. The moratorium on evictions will prevent negative impacts on the health and wellbeing of tenants caused by being evicted and/or being made homeless at a time when they are already struggling as a result of financial stress. It will also relieve pressures on housing and homelessness services in the short term.

We fully recognise however the significant impact that criminal behaviour can also have on other tenants, household members and the wider community.

Details of the moratorium and the exclusions which will apply are still being finalised. However I can confirm that it is our intention that where a tenant has been convicted of:

a) using the house or allowing it to be used for immoral or illegal purposes, or

b) an offence punishable by imprisonment committed in, or in the locality of, the house; and

c) the court has also granted an eviction decree on grounds a) and/or b) above, the moratorium on evictions will not apply.

Domestic Abuse Protection Orders set out in the Domestic Abuse (Protection) (Scotland) Act 2021 are not yet in force.

The purpose of the consultation document, Land Reform in a Net Zero Nation, is to seek views on a range of proposals for land-related reforms, including specific measures that could be included in the next Land Reform Bill. As part of that, views are sought on criteria that could be used to classify landholdings as 'large-scale'.

The criteria put forward for consultation in the document are based on the principle of proportionality. They are:

a. A fixed threshold of 3000 hectares

b. Land that accounts for more than a fixed percentage of a data zone (or adjacent data zones) or local authority ward(s) designated as an Accessible Rural Area or Remote Rural Area, through our six-fold urban/rural classification scheme

c. Land that accounts for more than a specified minimum proportion of a permanently inhabited island.

Meeting one or more of these criteria would mean that a landholding would be considered 'large-scale'.

The proposal to set the fixed threshold at 3000 hectares reflects a suggestion made by the Scottish Land Commission that the 'aim should be to establish a threshold that would ensure that family farms and small businesses would not fall in scope, but that modest estates that could pose risks [of harm to the public interest] would.'

As set out in the consultation document, the proposed threshold of 3000 hectares has been informed by data held on land and property titles by the Registers of Scotland, and the Scottish Government's Integrated Administration and Control System (which records data on all businesses with agricultural and non-agricultural land in Scotland that receive public subsidies.) Based on this data we consider that setting the threshold of 3000 hectares would be proportionate, in that it would bring into the scope of measures proposed for the Bill a substantial proportion of land in Scotland, while affecting a very small proportion of landowners, few of whom would be considered 'family farms'.

The consultation document puts forward the following criteria for the purpose of defining a landholding as 'large-scale':

a. A fixed threshold of 3000 hectares

b. Land that accounts for more than a fixed percentage of a data zone (or adjacent data zones) or local authority ward(s) designated as an Accessible Rural Area or Remote Rural Area, through our six-fold urban/rural classification scheme (please refer to: https://www.gov.scot/publications/scottish-government-urban-rural-classification-2016/pages/2/

c. Land that accounts for more than a specified minimum proportion of a permanently inhabited island.

The proposal to set the fixed threshold at 3000 hectares for the purpose of defining a landholding as 'large-scale' reflects a suggestion made by the Scottish Land Commission that the 'aim should be to establish a threshold that would ensure that family farms and small businesses would not fall in scope, but that modest estates that could pose risks [of harm to the public interest] would'.

Consultation on our proposals for the next Land Reform Bill is ongoing. We will form a view on measures to include in legislation, and what definitions might be required, in the light of the responses we receive.

We will continue to work with the Regional Land Use Partnership (RLUP) pilots as they progress towards the delivery of Regional Land Use Frameworks by the end of 2023. Success will be measured in terms of how the pilots meet expectations as set out in the Bute House Agreement. Specifically, the pilots should demonstrate that they have taken a democratic, local and inclusive approach to governance and decision making, maximised engagement with stakeholders and helped to meet national outcomes on the environment and climate change. Although it is too early to gauge success against these criteria, we will use findings from the pilots going forwards to inform decision-making.

A year one evaluation of the pilots was completed for 2021-22. The aim was to provide insights and lessons learned as RLUPs worked towards establishment of their governance structures. The report will be published in due course.

Community ownership is an important aim of the Scottish Government and there are numerous examples of communities thriving after being given the opportunity to own and manage their own assets. This leads to better local outcomes, which focus on local needs. It is important that we align our policy in respect of increased community ownership to help deliver the vision and outcomes set out in our new Scottish Biodiversity Strategy. If we are to meet our ambitious target of halting the decline in Scotland’s biodiversity by 2030 and reverse it by 2045 all land owners and managers across community, private, voluntary and public sectors will have a part to play.

The Scottish Government is committed to maintaining high standards of animal welfare. The Scottish Government is currently working closely with the other GB administrations on potential improvements to animal transport legislation and consulting stakeholders through a series of workshops, to ensure all options are fully considered before any specific proposals are brought forward.

The Scottish Government remains committed to consulting on proposals to phase out cages for gamebirds and laying hens, as well as farrowing crates for pigs. The consultations will be prepared and brought forward in due course.

The full analysis of the responses to the Hunting with Dogs (Scotland) Bill consultation has been completed and a report of the findings will be published on the Scottish Government website shortly.

The evidence review of muirburn being carried out by SAC is currently going through NatureScot’s Quality Assurance Process and they will publish the final review shortly once this process has been completed.