Confidence to lease out land or take on new tenancies will be seriously damaged if the government allows secure tenancies to be sold for value, warns a group of farmers and landlords in the north-east.
The North East Landowners and Tenants Forum is the latest group to speak out against the proposals which look set to be introduced to the upcoming land reform bill.
The forum, which comprises landlords, owner-occupiers, tenants and new entrants, said it formed in 2014 over concerns the review of agricultural holdings legislation and land reform agenda had the potential to “seriously damage the farming industry”.
In a submission to farm minister Richard Lochhead and Holyrood’s rural affairs committee, the group has warned allowing secure 1991 Act tenancies to be sold for value will not only deter landlords from letting out land but make other tenancies less attractive.
“It [the proposal] signals that long secure tenancies are favoured by the Scottish Government and must be preserved,” said the group.
“This suggests that any form of lease other than a secure lease is suboptimal thus implying that existing or future Limited Duration Tenancies could be made secure in a further round of land reform legislation. Confidence to let is therefore seriously compromised.”
The group said a further knock-on effect of the proposals would be that existing tenants and owner-occupier farmers would find it difficult to expand their holdings in future other than through purchasing land.
“This will in the long term stagnate the sector and restrict opportunities,” added the forum.
In addition the value of the let land portfolio of a landowner was likely to reduce and potentially have a collateral consequence on existing borrowings against the portfolio and an impact on other businesses and employment, warned the group.
It concluded that the proposal was “not only unbalanced but will inflict serious collateral damage on confidence to let using limited duration tenancies and the long-term vibrancy of the tenanted sector”.
The forum is chaired by 57-year-old tenant farmer Tom Johnston of Cottown Farm, Drumblade, Huntly.
The other members are: NFU Scotland north-east regional chairman Roddy Catto; contract farmer Allan Craig who is facing problems getting his landlady to agree to a long-term lease due to fears an absolute right to buy could be introduced; Finzean Estate manager and partner, Andrew Farquharson; Seafield Estate consultant Sandy Lewis; part-owner and factor of BMF Group, which owns land with a number of tenancies in Aberdeenshire, Gordon Morison [corr]; owner-occupier farmer Gordon McKilligan of Headtown Farm, Cornhill, Banff; Allan Simpson who both owns land and rents land; new entrant farmer Ross Williams who has a short limited duration tenancy on a Scottish Forestry Commission starter farm unit; tenant farmer Ian Wilson; Dunecht Estate tenant farmer David Winton; and Dunecht Estate’s chief executive Stuart Young.