SNP MSP for the South of Scotland Aileen McLeod today (Tuesday) urged people in Dumfries & Galloway to take part in the newly-launched Scottish Government consultation on the future of land reform in Scotland.
Aileen said:
“This is an important subject for all of Scotland but will of course have particular relevance in regions such as Dumfries & Galloway. The consultation covers a number of areas, for example, at present information on who owns land is held by many different bodies including Registers of Scotland, SEPA, Local Authorities as well as the Scottish Government.
“This consultation will look at finding ways to bring this information together, which will not only inform debate and public decision making but also help private decision making and drive opportunity.
“The consultation will also look ways of modernising how Common Good should be managed, used and transferred, which again is an issue with particular relevance to the region.
“We have a great opportunity to change and improve the relationship between Scotland’s people and the land, where ownership and use of the land delivers greater public benefits through a democratically accountable and transparent system of land rights.
“This consultation is part of a public debate about land and the public interest, and how land in Scotland works for the people of Scotland. This is not simply for those with strong existing interests in land but a process in which I hope everyone will engage.
“Scotland’s land must be an asset that benefits the many, not the few, so I hope as many people as possible across Dumfries & Galloway will take part in the consultation.”
Notes: The Scottish Government consultation can be found here:
