12/02/2010
The Scottish Parliament’s Rural Affairs and Environment Committee will meet in Thurso later this month to hear about the challenges facing crofting in the 21st century as it scrutinises the Crofting Reform (Scotland) Bill.
The committee will hold a formal meeting in the town on Tuesday 23 February where it will take evidence from crofters from Caithness, Sutherland, Orkney and the Isle of Lewis, as well as from members of the Crofters Commission.
The meeting will include a session where members of the public will have an opportunity to air their views on the bill.
The Committee will also spend time visiting crofts and townships in Caithness and Sutherland.
Committee Convener Maureen Watt MSP said: “Crofting has long been an important part of culture and society in the north of Scotland, and one of the main factors that has helped sustain remote and often fragile communities. This is why it is important that we come to Thurso to discover at first-hand how crofting is faring in the area.
"Crofting is also a diverse activity, and we hope to get a flavour of that from our visits to the surrounding area and from hearing evidence directly from crofters from Caithness, Sutherland, Orkney and Lewis.
"The bill has arisen from the recognition that there are challenges to the crofting way of life that need to be addressed – issues such as the under-use of croft land, concerns over the effectiveness of the Crofters Commission, and the lack of availability of crofts to younger people.
"Everyone agrees there is a need for change if crofting communities are to have a thriving future. The question is whether the current bill does this in the best way or whether there are other approaches that would work better.”
Background
The Crofting Reform (Scotland) Bill was introduced to the Parliament by the Scottish Government on 9 December 2009. The bill is currently at Stage 1 of the scrutiny process meaning that the lead committee – the Rural Affairs and Environment Committee – will take evidence on the general principles of the bill from a range of stakeholders before reporting to the whole Parliament in late April.
The committee will meet at the Weigh Inn in Thurso at 1.30pm on 23 February. An opportunity for members of the public to make their views known will be provided halfway through the meeting at around 2.45pm.
In order to be assured of participation, anyone wishing to take advantage of this opportunity should contact the clerks to the committee in advance.
The bill seeks to deal with issues including:
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increasing the accountability of the Crofters Commission and strengthening its regulatory role
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enabling the Commission to address absenteeism and neglect more effectively
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providing for a more comprehensive and map-based system for croft registration
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making it more difficult to de-croft land and to speculate from croft sales.
The committee’s Stage 1 scrutiny process includes visits to the Western Isles, Caithness and Shetland, as well as public meetings with stakeholders and with the responsible Scottish Government minister in Edinburgh.
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