News

Land reform debate should reflect contribution of land based businesses

Press Release

Scottish Land & Estates has issued the following statement after a Scottish Land Commission report on landownership was published today. Sarah-Jane Laing, Executive Director of SLE, said: “There are a number of findings in this new report which private landowners already put into practice as part of their progressive approach to owning...

Scottish Land & Estates statement on muirburn

Press Release

Scottish Land & Estates has issued the following statement regarding muirburn in the Cairngorms. More information on the science behind muirburn is also available to read here. Tim Baynes, from Scottish Land & Estates said: “Muirburn is the traditional way to manage moorland and has been practised for centuries, resulting in the Scotland...

2019 Member Surveys

General News

A key element of SLEs work on policy development and political representation is the gathering of facts and figures on our members and their businesses. Over the course of 2019 we will be building up our evidence base by gathering key pieces of information through short online surveys. This information is really important and I would urge...

SLE stresses importance of openness and transparency in land ownership

General News

Scottish Land & Estates (SLE) has reiterated its support for openness and transparency in land ownership ahead of a parliamentary debate on the availability of information on land ownership on Tuesday 12 March. MSPs received a briefing ahead of the debate, which was led by Scottish Green Party MSP, Andy Wightman, under his motion titled '...

Winners celebrated at Lantra Scotland's Learner of the Year Awards

General News

The talents of the country’s top land-based and aquaculture trainees and Modern Apprentices were celebrated last night (Thursday 7th March) at Lantra Scotland’s 17th Learner of the Year Awards. More than 250 guests, including finalists and their families, event supporters, employers, training providers and industry leaders, gathered at...

SLE responds following John Finnie MSP's comments on sporting rates

General News

Scottish Land & Estates has responded to comments made by John Finnie, Green MSP for Highlands & Islands, in an article published by The National on 23rd February 2019. Letter to John Finnie MSP: Dear Mr Finnie I write to you on behalf of SLE's Highland members following your comment on sporting rates in The National on Saturday 23...

New research to inform future planning policy across rural Scotland

General News

Savills’ planning team in Scotland and the research institute Inherit have together won a Scottish Government tender for research which will inform the future preparation of the National Planning Framework (NPF4). The project will be undertaken by Savills rural planning specialists, along with Inherit, which is a charity with expertise in...

Fresh debate on farming and land management support a welcome step forward

Press Release

Designing new support structures to enable a bright future for Scottish farming and land management are an immediate priority, Scottish Land & Estates (SLE) said today. The rural business organisation has welcomed today’s debate at Holyrood, led by the Scottish Conservatives, on future agriculture policy. Scottish Land & Estates...

SLE Appoints New Highland Regional Support Officer

Press Release

A new regional support officer has been appointed by Scottish Land & Estates to support and promote rural businesses in the Highlands. Megan Rowland has joined SLE with a wealth of knowledge and experience to utilise, including her ongoing work as a land manager on an estate in Sutherland. In 2018, Megan was the recipient of the Lantra...

Business Rates for small-scale hydro – An update on the legal challenge

General News

For the last five years, Alba Energy has been in a protracted dispute with the Tayside Assessor, in order to challenge the Rateable Values (RVs) ascribed to small hydro sites in Scotland. Alba and the BHA consider these valuations – from which business rates are calculated – to have been inappropriately high in the 2010 valuation roll and...