Evidence needs to be key element in Scottish land policy

Press Release

Scottish Land & Estates, the rural business organisation, has said a new rural land market report highlights the need to base policy in evidence rather than ideology.

Published by the Scottish Land Commission (SLC), the Rural Land Market Report draws on data from the Registers of Scotland and the wider industry to evaluate the land market and property values across the country, focusing on farms, forests, and estates.

A total of 740 rural land sales took place over the three-year study period, of which 24 were for land over 1,000ha in size, and a further 27 for areas of between 500-1,000ha.

The report also identifies that most sales were of moderately sized farms or forests, with over 93% of transactions taking place in Scotland for areas of land less than 500 hectares. Farmland made up nearly 60% of total land sales.

Sarah-Jane Laing, chief executive, Scottish Land & Estates, said: "This report demonstrates clearly a great diversity of land holdings in terms of type and size coming onto the market which reflects the diversity of ownership of land.

"The overall value of estate sales is a fraction of the farm and forestry market and most estates brought to the market are under 500 hectares, which should serve as a reminder that estates are rural businesses of all sizes that operate across a range of activities and contribute much to rural Scotland.

"Having up-to-date data on the land market is important so that policy and legislative changes are based on reality rather than perception."