Land Matters - …the blog and website of Andy Wightman

Land Speculation at Camster Burn in Caithness

Posted on March 13, 2025March 19, 2025 by Andy Wightman

Scottish Land and Estates has argued in recent years that large-scale landholdings are best placed to deliver public policy objectives associated with woodland expansion, peatland restoration and other large scale projects. Scale can help of course but it is nonsense

Where now for the Land Reform (Scotland) Bill?

Posted on March 3, 2025March 5, 2025 by Andy Wightman

INTRODUCTION The Net Zero, Energy and Transport Committee has now completed taking evidence as part of its Stage One scrutiny of the Land Reform (Scotland) Bill. This concluded with evidence from the Cabinet Secretary, Mairi Gougeon, on Tuesday 18 February.

Is Gresham House the third largest landowner in Scotland?

Posted on February 5, 2025 by Andy Wightman

Gresham House Ltd. a private limited company (No. 00000871) incorporated in 1857. It is an asset management company wholly owned by SeedBidCo Ltd, a company registered in Guernsey. The ultimate controlling part is Searchlight Capital Partners III SED, a limited

What happened to Kildrummy Castle Gardens?

Posted on January 31, 2025February 3, 2025 by Andy Wightman

Guest blog by Regina Erich Perhaps some readers will know Kildrummy Castle Gardens in Strathdon, Aberdeenshire. If so, they might remember it as a beautiful, friendly, peaceful haven tucked away in a ravine overlooked by the impressive ruins of Kildrummy

Land Reform (Scotland) Bill – Landholdings in Scope

Posted on January 30, 2025 by Andy Wightman

Today, I have published an analysis of the landholdings in Scotland above 1000ha and 3000ha that are in scope in relation to the provisions in Part I of the Land Reform (Scotland) Bill introduced to Parliament by the SNP/Scottish Green

Scottish Land Commission Amendments

Posted on January 23, 2025January 23, 2025 by Andy Wightman

10 minute read. The Scottish Land Commission (SLC) has published advice to Scottish Ministers on changes that it recommends be made to Part I of the Land Reform (Scotland) Bill introduced to the Scottish Parliament by the SNP/Scottish Green coalition

French Government sells Scottish forests

Posted on October 7, 2024 by Andy Wightman

Scotland’s pattern of private rural landownership is becoming more concentrated as first revealed in my preliminary analysis of who owns Scotland published in March. A final 2024 report on the topic will be published next month in November. As discussed

Global learnings for land reform in Scotland: Towards more radical solutions

Posted on October 2, 2024December 21, 2024 by Andy Wightman

I am pleased to publish this guest blog by Dr Fraser Sugden, Senior Lecturer in Human Geography in the University of Birmingham’s School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences. In it, Dr Sugden examines Scotland’s land reform journey in light

Cashel Estate and the post-war Labour Government

Posted on July 4, 2024 by Andy Wightman

The excellent Parkswatch blog has published a piece today on the sale of the 1242ha Cashel Estate on the east shore of Loch Lomond in the heart of the Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park. In 1946, the new Labour

The Land Reform Review Group 10 Years Later

Posted on May 23, 2024 by Andy Wightman

BACKGROUND Ten years ago today, the Land Reform Review Group (LRRG) published its Final Report. In July 2012, Scottish Ministers appointed the LRRG with the following remit:- “The relationship between the land and the people of Scotland is fundamental to

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