The Scottish Crofting Federation (SCF) has welcomed the assurances given by the Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs and Islands, Mairi Gougeon, regarding recognition of crofting’s value, continued government support and commitments to reforms to strengthen the future of crofting.
“The Cabinet Secretary gave a very up-beat address to the SCF AGM yesterday”, said Donald MacKinnon, chair of the SCF. “She tackled issues of concern to crofters, head-on, and reaffirmed commitments the government has made. A topical issue is the enforcement of duties in order to ensure occupation and use of crofts, and, in doing so, creating further opportunities for new entrants to crofting. As well as increasing the capacity of the Crofting Commission ‘Residency and Land Use’ team and on-the-ground presence through new development posts in the Western Isles, the government is taking action on its own crofting estates to enforce duties and create opportunities for new entrants. The Cabinet Secretary agreed that there needs to be an appropriate balance found between public interest and private property rights.” Read in full here
