A public consultation on priorities for the future of crofting law was launched this week. It seeks opinions on the new form of legislation and priorities for legislative change to ensure crafting law is fit for the 21st century.

“Initial discussions have shown while there is plenty of agreement that the current law needs to change, there are many views on what should replace it,” said Rural Affairs Secretary Fergus Ewing.

The launch of the consultation has been welcomed by farming groups, including the NFUS and the Scottish Crofting Federation (SCF).

“We must not lose sight of the fact that crofting legislation was formed to protect crofters’ rights, not to serve lawyers,” said Russell Smith, chair of the SCF. “This principle is inviolable. The crofting act is the heart of crofting and has evolved over 130 years, adapting to work for crofting in a changing world.”

The NFUS will be consulting its 850 crofter members, but urges individuals to also respond to the consultation. It also welcomed the Scottish Government’s commitment to the production of a national development plan for crofting.

“It hasn’t been long since the 2010 act, but it is very apparent from talking to members, crofting lawyers and the Crofting Commission that crofting law, as it currently stands, is not fit for purpose and importantly is not serving the needs of crofters,” said Sutherland crofter Sandy Murray, who chairs the NFU’s Crofting, Highlands and Islands Working Group.

The 12-week consultation runs to 20 November. It is available on the Scottish Government’s consultation website or by emailing croftingconsultation@gov.scot. A series of public meetings will be held to help with any issues when responding to the consultation. Anyone interested in attending will need to book a place.