2026 Elections - What's in it for rural Scotland? Part 2
The Scottish election campaign continues to gather pace, with further parties now setting out their vision for Scotland ahead of polling day on 07 May. In this week’s blog, we turn our attention to the proposals put forward by the Scottish Green Party and Scottish Labour Party and what they could mean for rural businesses and communities.
The Scottish Greens’ manifesto builds on their now familiar themes of land reform and community empowerment. Their proposals place a strong emphasis on accelerating our route to Net Zero, including further investment in renewable energy and energy efficiency, alongside more stringent environmental regulation. On land use, they continue to advocate for greater community ownership and stronger intervention in how land is managed, including measures that could further reshape patterns of landholding. For rural businesses, there are signals of increased support for nature restoration, sustainable agriculture and local economic development, but these are often coupled with additional regulatory expectations. The Greens also place a clear focus on affordable housing and transport connectivity in rural areas, recognising their role in sustaining communities, though questions remain around how these ambitions will be delivered in practice without placing additional burdens on rural employers and land managers.
Meanwhile, Scottish Labour’s manifesto centres on economic growth, public service reform and tackling the cost of living - priorities that have clear implications for rural Scotland. Their proposals include commitments to boost housebuilding, improve transport links and invest in skills and jobs, all of which could support rural economies if effectively targeted. On energy, Labour emphasise a balanced approach to the transition, seeking to deliver both economic opportunity and energy security, with potential benefits for rural areas that host much of Scotland’s energy infrastructure. In rural policy specifically, there is a focus on supporting agriculture, strengthening local services and addressing depopulation, although - as with other parties - detail on delivery mechanisms remains limited. Their broader economic framing, however, suggests a recognition that rural Scotland must play a central role in driving national prosperity in a sure sign that they have incorporate much of the thinking set out in our recent paper on tackling depopulation in rural areas.
As more detail emerges and further manifestos are published, we will continue to assess what each party’s proposals mean in practice for rural businesses. With polling day fast approaching, the challenge for all parties will be to move beyond high-level ambition and demonstrate how their policies will deliver sustainable growth and thriving communities across rural Scotland. Next week in our final instalment of this series, we’ll be dissecting the Liberal Democrat manifesto and the party still polling to form the next government – the SNP.
Comments