Mid-Scotland and Fife MSP Murdo Fraser has backed comments made by Allan Bowie, President of the National Farmers Union in Scotland who said that the management of land – rather than physical ownership – should be central to the current land reform debate.
Murdo, who is the Scottish Conservative Spokesperson on Land Reform, has called on the Scottish Government to properly consult the farmers union as they are ultimately the most informed when it comes to understanding Scottish agriculture.
In a recent consultation rural stakeholders have raised concerns over land reform, believing the proposals to be overly bureaucratic and potentially dangerous for rural jobs.
Commenting on the intervention of the NFUS, Murdo Fraser MSP said:
“Yesterday’s comments from Allan Bowie underline what we believe is central to the land reform debate- not who owns the land but how it is used. I would urge the Scottish Government to take on-board their advice.
“Within my own electoral region of Perth and Kinross, Fife, Stirling and Clackmannanshire there are countless examples of landowners and sporting estates who provide well-paid jobs and are central to the sustainability of their rural communities. Any threat to their continued existence should be seen as a threat to rural jobs.
“Slow broadband, substandard road links and limited public transport services are the real inhibitors to growth in rural Scotland, not Land Reform. I would urge the Scottish Government to drop this ideological pursuit and provide a legislative agenda that meets the challenges of rural Scotland head-on.”